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Part II: The Inner Doctrine.1405
“This Real Man that inhabiteth the body, O Arjuna, is invulnerable to harm,
hurt, or death—therefore, why, shouldst thou trouble thyself further about
the matter? Instead, it is far more worthy of thee, thou prince of the Warrior
Caste, to face thy Duty in the matter, manfully and resolutely. The Duty of a
soldier is to fight—and fight well. And the reward of Duty well done is the
opening of the heaven of thy kind, which is possible only to warriors who
are so fortunate as to be able to participate in a glorious, just and righteous
battle, coming to them unsought.
“And shouldest thou decline the battle, and cast away thy righteous Duty
with thy weapons, surely thou wouldst commit a grave crime against thine
honor, thy duty and thy people. And, men will see it only as such, and will
recite thy crimes in terms of perpetual dishonor; and to such as thou, O
Prince, the pangs of death are preferable to the reproach of such dishonor.
The generals of the host will think thou hast fled from the field from a sense
of cowardly fear; those who have thought so highly of thee until now, will
hold thee in abhorrence and contempt. Even thine enemies will speak of
thee in shameful terms, with many a jest and sneer at thy lack of strength
and courage; and what could be more painful than that, to such as thou art?
“If thou chance to be slain in the battle, the warrior’s heaven wilt be thy
reward; if victorious thou emergeth from the fray, the joys of earth await thee.
Therefore, O Prince of Pandu, arise and fight! being willing to take whatever
betideth thee—be it pain or pleasure; loss or gain; victory or defeat; thine
only concern being whether thou hast done thy best—prepare thou for the
fray. That is your plain Duty!
“Know thou, O Arjuna, that in these words of mine hath been set before
thine understanding the Doctrine, which deals with the speculative
philosophy of life and things. Now, prepare thyself for the teachings of the
other school; thou shalt there find escape from the bonds of action, and be
forever after free from them.
“In this there is no loss or waste of effort, nor is there therein any danger
of transgression, as even a small portion of this knowledge and practice