VERSE 11
śrī-bhagavān uvāca
aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ
prajñā-vādāṁś ca bhāṣase
gatāsūn agatāsūṁś ca
nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ
SYNONYMS
śrī bhagavān uvāca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; aśocyān—that which is
not worthy of lamentation; anvaśocaḥ—you are lamenting; tvam—you;
prajñā-vādāḥ—learned talks; ca—also; bhāṣase—speaking; gata—lost; asūn—life;
agata—not past; asūn—life; ca—also; na—never; anuśocanti—lament; paṇḍitāḥ—the
learned
TRANSLATION
The Blessed Lord said: While speaking learned words, you are mourning for what is
not worthy of grief. Those who are wise lament neither for the living nor the dead.
PURPORT
The Lord at once took the position of the teacher and chastised the student, calling
him, indirectly, a fool. The Lord said, you are talking like a learned man, but you do not
know that one who is learned—one who knows what is body and what is soul—does
not lament for any stage of the body, neither in the living nor in the dead condition. As
it will be explained in later chapters, it will be clear that knowledge means to know
matter and spirit and the controller of both. Arjuna argued that religious principles
should be given more importance than politics or sociology, but he did not know that
knowledge of matter, soul and the Supreme is even more important than religious
formularies. And, because he was lacking in that knowledge, he should not have posed
himself as a very learned man. As he did not happen to be a very learned man, he was
consequently lamenting for something which was unworthy of lamentation. The body is
born and is destined to be vanquished today or tomorrow; therefore the body is not as
important as the soul. One who knows this is actually learned, and for him there is no
cause for lamentation, regardless of the condition of the material body.
śrī-bhagavān uvāca
aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ
prajñā-vādāṁś ca bhāṣase
gatāsūn agatāsūṁś ca
nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ
SYNONYMS
śrī bhagavān uvāca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; aśocyān—that which is
not worthy of lamentation; anvaśocaḥ—you are lamenting; tvam—you;
prajñā-vādāḥ—learned talks; ca—also; bhāṣase—speaking; gata—lost; asūn—life;
agata—not past; asūn—life; ca—also; na—never; anuśocanti—lament; paṇḍitāḥ—the
learned
TRANSLATION
The Blessed Lord said: While speaking learned words, you are mourning for what is
not worthy of grief. Those who are wise lament neither for the living nor the dead.
PURPORT
The Lord at once took the position of the teacher and chastised the student, calling
him, indirectly, a fool. The Lord said, you are talking like a learned man, but you do not
know that one who is learned—one who knows what is body and what is soul—does
not lament for any stage of the body, neither in the living nor in the dead condition. As
it will be explained in later chapters, it will be clear that knowledge means to know
matter and spirit and the controller of both. Arjuna argued that religious principles
should be given more importance than politics or sociology, but he did not know that
knowledge of matter, soul and the Supreme is even more important than religious
formularies. And, because he was lacking in that knowledge, he should not have posed
himself as a very learned man. As he did not happen to be a very learned man, he was
consequently lamenting for something which was unworthy of lamentation. The body is
born and is destined to be vanquished today or tomorrow; therefore the body is not as
important as the soul. One who knows this is actually learned, and for him there is no
cause for lamentation, regardless of the condition of the material body.
