Verse-40
Chapter 4 — Gyan Karma Sannayasa Yoga
Verse 40
🕉 Original Sanskrit Shloka
ajñaścāśraddadhānaśca saṁśayātmā vinaśyati
nāyaṁ loko'sti na paro na sukhaṁ saṁśayātmanaḥ
🕉 English Translation
Samaj usko murakh na shradhalu jo,
Ho bhrasth sanshay agar man main ho.
Nahin sukh use jisme shak hain bhare,
Na lok aur na parlok ka hi rahe.
📜 Translation
English
The one who is indiscriminating, without faith and of doubting nature he falls from the path of elevation. For such a doubting person is neither this world nor the world beyond, nor any happiness.
It is absolutely necessary to remain vigilant on the path of self-seeking. The mind should be cautioned time and again. Keep both the positive and negative aspects in view. One should keep an eye on the consequences of both. The caution of the negative aspect will strengthen the positive aspect. The previous verse was the positive aspect of the path of Spirituality, a healthy, beautiful and glorious inspiration! In this verse, the Gita preacher is using a tone of caution. Beware! This can also happen! The ladder takes one to the top of the roof; but sometimes becomes a cause for fall. It is necessary to be vigilant.
The word 'ajnasca' is for ignorant. So long as the discrimination is not there till then the attempt will be made to justify wrong as right. The insentient will be felt as sentient; the untruth will be felt as truth. In such a state how can the faith be firm in Truth, Consciousness and Eternal Bliss? Then several doubts in the mind create a state of downfall. This is all, who has seen the future? Eat, drink and be merry. When the veil ignorance thickens then one wonders, whether God exists or not; whether He is attained by anyone or not, etc.
Think whether such a state will cause one to progress. If the foundation itself is not there then how can the house be firm? On what prop will the building stand. It will crack and fall into pieces. Just this is the state of 'sanshayaatma vinshyati' the doubting soul perishes. The foundation is faith. Faith gains strength with the maturity of discrimination; where the faith is firm and discrimination is mature, there the doubts have no function to perform. For such an embodied being there is neither this world nor the world beyond and there would also not be any happiness in reality in his life! Dilemma will prevail, the mind in itself will remain in a state of discomfort. Doubts always create a state of instability-'ashantasya kuta sukham' (Gita 2/66).