यद्यप्येते न पश्यन्ति लोभोपहतचेतसः।
कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं मित्रद्रोहे च पातकम्।।1.38।।
कथं न ज्ञेयमस्माभिः पापादस्मान्निवर्तितुम्।
कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं प्रपश्यद्भिर्जनार्दन।।1.39।।
कुलक्षये प्रणश्यन्ति कुलधर्माः सनातनाः।
धर्मे नष्टे कुलं कृत्स्नमधर्मोऽभिभवत्युत।।1.40।।
अधर्माभिभवात्कृष्ण प्रदुष्यन्ति कुलस्त्रियः।
स्त्रीषु दुष्टासु वार्ष्णेय जायते वर्णसङ्करः।।1.41।।
सङ्करो नरकायैव कुलघ्नानां कुलस्य च।
पतन्ति पितरो ह्येषां लुप्तपिण्डोदकक्रियाः।।1.42।।
दोषैरेतैः कुलघ्नानां वर्णसङ्करकारकैः।
उत्साद्यन्ते जातिधर्माः कुलधर्माश्च शाश्वताः।।1.43।।
उत्सन्नकुलधर्माणां मनुष्याणां जनार्दन।
नरकेऽनियतं वासो भवतीत्यनुशुश्रुम।।1.44।।
- O Janardana, although these people, whose hearts have become perverted by greed, do not see the evil arising from destroying the family and sinning in hostility towards friends, yet how can we, who clearly see the evil arising from destroying the family, remain unaware of the need to abstain from this sin?
- O Janardana, although these people, whose hearts have become perverted by greed, do not see the evil arising from destroying the family and sinning in hostility towards friends, yet how can we, who clearly see the evil arising from destroying the family, remain unaware of the need to abstain from this sin?
From the ruin of the family, the traditional rites and duties are totally destroyed. When rites and duties are destroyed, vice overwhelms the entire family.
O Krishna, when vice predominates, the women of the family become corrupt. O descendant of the Vrsnis, when women become corrupted, it results in the intermingling of castes.
And the intermingling in the family leads the ruiners of the family verily into hell. The forefathers of these fall down (into hell) due to being deprived of the offerings of rice-balls and water.
Due to the misdeeds of the ruiners of the family, which cause intermingling of castes, the traditional rites and duties of the castes and families are destroyed.
O Janardana, we have heard that living in hell is inevitable for those whose family duties are destroyed.
Osho’s Commentary
Arjuna’s arguments become more and more elaborate. He says, “They may be blinded by greed, but we can see the evil in destroying a family. With the destruction of the family, the ancient family traditions perish. With the loss of tradition, lawlessness prevails. The women of the family become corrupt, and from this, a confusion of castes arises. This leads the family and the destroyers of the family to hell. The rites offered to the ancestors cease, and the ancestors fall.” These are all borrowed arguments, my friend. These are the arguments of the priests, the arguments of a tradition-bound society. Arjuna is not speaking from his own experience. He is repeating what he has heard. He is using the fear of hell, the fear of social chaos, the fear of disrupting tradition, as a shield for his own personal unwillingness to fight. The mind is a master deceiver. When it wants to escape from a situation, it will find the most noble-sounding reasons. It will speak of dharma, of tradition, of the welfare of society. But behind all these beautiful words, the real motive is a simple, personal fear, a simple personal attachment. Krishna is listening to all this, and he is smiling, because he can see the man behind the mask of the philosopher.