________________
GITA, TRANSLATION & COMMENTARY, CHAP. II 875
and, as it has been stated in the second quarter of the stanza that the 'sat' too is not destroyed, Madhvācārya has, according to his Dualistic doctrine, interpreted the entire stanza as meaning that both the 'asat' and the 'sat" are permanent. But, this meaning is not the straight-forward meaning of the stanza. It is a stretched meaning; for, it can be seen that the two mutually opposite words 'abhäva' and 'bhāva' have been used in this place in the same way as the mutually opposite words, 'asat' and 'sat'; and if the word 'abhuva' has beed used in the second line of the stanza, namely, in the phrase, "nābhāvo vidyate sataḥ", it is quite clear that the word intended to be used in the first line of the stanza must have been 'bhavn' and not ablava'; besides, it was not necessary at all to use the words 'abhava' and 'vidyate twice, in order to say that both asat' and 'sat' are permanent. But, even if this repetition is looked upon as a respectful repetition, as suggested by Madhvācārya, it has been been clearly stated later on in the 18th stanza, that the human body to be seen in the perceptible or visible world is destructible, that is to say, nonpermanent. It, therefore, clearly follows that according to the Bhagavadgita, the Body cannot be looked upon as permanent, in the same way as the Atman. Whereas the latter is permanent, the former is non-permanent. Nevertheless, I have given here the meaning of this stanza according to Madhvacārya, by way of example, in order to show my readers how the meanings of words are stretched by doctrine-supporting commentators with the intention of supporting their own doctrine. However, as that. which is sat' can never cease to exist, it is no use lamenting over the sat-formed (satsvarüpa) Atman; and as the Name-d and Form-ed Body etc., as also the emotions of pleasure or displeasure, are essentially destructible from: the philosophical point of view, it is also not proper to lament their loss. This justifies the words "you are lamenting that over which you should not lament" used in speaking to Arjuna. The Blessed Lord now further explains the meanings of the words 'sat' and 'asat', in the next two stanzas-]
33-34
