अश्रद्दधानाः पुरुषा धर्मस्यास्य परन्तप।
अप्राप्य मां निवर्तन्ते मृत्युसंसारवर्त्मनि।।9.3।।
9.3 O destroyer of foes, persons who are regardless of this Dharma (knowledge of the Self) certainly go round and round, without reaching Me, along the path of transmigration which is fraught with death.
9.3 Those who have no faith in this Dharma (knowledge of the Self), O Parantapa (Arjuna), return to the path of this world of death without attaining Me.
9.3. O scorcher of foes ! Having no faith in this Dharma, persons do not attain Me and remain eternally in the circuit of mundane existence, wrought with death.
9.3 अश्रद्दधानाः without faith? पुरुषाः men? धर्मस्य of duty? अस्य of this? परन्तप O scorcher of foes? अप्राप्य without attaining? माम् Me? निवर्तन्ते return? मृत्युसंसारवर्त्मनि in the path of this world of death.Commentary Arjuna asks? O Lord? why do people not attempt to attain this knowledge of the Self when it can be easily attained? when it is the highest of all things? and when it gives the greatest benefits All should certainly attain this knowledge. The Lord replies? O My beloved disciple? people have no faith in this Dhrama or knowledge and so return to the path of this world of death. Even if they strive with the help of the means of their own imagination they cannot attain Me as they are not endowed with the right means prescribed by the scriptures.Dharma means law? religion? knowledge of the Self.This faith is not mere intellectual belief in certain dogmas or principles. It is not merely belief in the statement of another. It is unshakable firm inner conviction that the knowledge of the Self alone can give one supreme peace? immortality and eternal bliss. It was this strong and unflinching faith of Sri Sankara that goaded him to leave his mother and take shelter under the kind protection of his Guru Sri Govindapada for attaining this knowledge which is the supreme purifier? intuitional? accordig to righteousness? very easy to perform? and imperishable. It was the strong faith of Lord Buddha that induced him to have that iron determination which he expressed in these words? I will not budge an inch from my seat till I get illumination. Faith goes hand in hand with fiery determination.The Lord has eulogies the knowledge of the Self in the first two verses by the positive method (Vidhi Mukhastuti). He has extolled it in the third verse by the negative method (Nishedha Mukhastuti). The benefits of obtaining knowledge of the Self are described in the first and the second verses. This is Vidhi Mukhastuti. The disastrous effects that result from not obtaining the knowledge of the Self are described in the third verse. This is Nishedha Mukhastuti.The greedy? lustful and sinful persons who are the followers of the philosophy of the flesh? who lead the life of the demons? who worship the body taking it to be the Self? and who have no faith in the knowledge of the Self? do not reach Me. They do not even possess an iota of devotion which is also one of the paths that lead men to Me. They remain in the path of the world of death which leads to hell and the lower births of animals? worms? etc.
9.3 Parantapa, O destroyer of foes; those purusah, persons, again; who are asraddadhanah, regardless of, devoid of faith in; asya dharmasya, this Dharma, this knowledge of the Self-those who are faithless as regards its true nature as well as its result, who are sinful, who have taken recourse to the upanisad (mystical teaching) of demoniacal people, consisting in consideration the body alone as the Self, and who delight in life (sense enjoyments); nivartante, certainly go round and round;-where?-mrtyu-samsara-vartmani, along the path (vartma) of transmigration (samsara) fraught with death (mrtyu), the path leading to hell, birth as low creatures, etc., i.e., they go round and round along that very path; aprapya, without reaching; mam, Me, the supreme God. Certainly there is no estion of their attaining Me. Hence, the implication is that (they go round and round) without even aciring a little devotion, which is one of the disciplines [Ast. omits the word sadhana, disciplines.-Tr.] constituting the path for reaching Me. Having drawn Arjunas attention through the (above) eulogy, the Lord says:
9.3 Asraddadhanah etc. They remain eternally : Again and again they are born and they die.
9.3 Some men who even after attaining the state fit for the practice of this Dharma which is called Upasana (worship) - which is immensely dear inasmuch as it has for its goal Myself who am incomparably dear, and which is the means for the attainment of Myself forming the supreme good that does not perish - may still lack faith in it. Such persons who lack faith which reires eagerness for realization, will not attain Me but remain in the mortal pathway of Samsara. O how strange it is - this hindrance caused by evil Karma! Such is the meaning. [It means, that to declare that one has faith in a spiritual doctrine and yet to take no steps to put it into practice, is pure hypocrisy.] Listen then to the inconceivable glory of Myself, who am the goal tobe attained:
“Well if this dharma is so easy to execute, who will remain in this world?” This verse answers. Using genitive (possessive case) instead of accusative case (object) in dharmasya asya is poetic license. Those who do not have faith in this process of dharma, who think that the supreme position given to bhakti in the scriptures is just exaggeration, and who do not accept it with faith, do not attain me, even though they make efforts to attain me by other methods. They remain completely (nivartate) on the path of transmigration (samsara vartmani), invariably including death.
So the question may arise that if the implementation of this supreme wisdom is so easy to practice then why isnt everyone performing it and freeing themselves from transmigration in samsara or the perpetual cycle of birth and death. Lord Krishna is answering this question in this verse. Persons who are lacking in faith in Lord Krishna do not accept this eternal wisdom in spite of the fact that there is no knowledge superior to this wisdom in any medium from any source. So it is assured that such persons are trapped in samsara. Others may have attempted to increase their faith by other methods and means; but without bhakti or pure loving devotion for Lord Krishna such persons are automatically recycled back into another body again and again in the worlds of mortals and subject to pursuit by death who captures all beings.
Lord Krishna uses the word dharmasya meaning acts of eternal righteousness and is the sacred means to acquire upasana or communion with the Supreme Lord. Its virtue is that it has the Supreme Lord as its only goal and is very joyful and exhilarating to perform. It achieves for the aspirant who faithfully engages in it continuously the highest result as it bequeaths direct realization of the Supreme Lord. The word asraddadhanah means those devoid of faith. Whoever having the golden opportunity after thousands upon thousands of lifetimes to worship the Supreme Lord but are found lacking in determination and attention as well as fervent longing due to insufficient faith, fail to reach Lord Krishna and instead are forced to be propelled into the lethal current of samsara the perpetual cycle of birth and death which is very terrible. Oh how dangerous and perilous is human existence!
Lord Krishna uses the word dharmasya meaning acts of eternal righteousness and is the sacred means to acquire upasana or communion with the Supreme Lord. Its virtue is that it has the Supreme Lord as its only goal and is very joyful and exhilarating to perform. It achieves for the aspirant who faithfully engages in it continuously the highest result as it bequeaths direct realization of the Supreme Lord. The word asraddadhanah means those devoid of faith. Whoever having the golden opportunity after thousands upon thousands of lifetimes to worship the Supreme Lord but are found lacking in determination and attention as well as fervent longing due to insufficient faith, fail to reach Lord Krishna and instead are forced to be propelled into the lethal current of samsara the perpetual cycle of birth and death which is very terrible. Oh how dangerous and perilous is human existence!
Ashraddhadhaanaah purushaa dharmasyaasya parantapa; Apraapya maam nivartante mrityusamsaaravartmani.
aśhraddadhānāḥ—people without faith; puruṣhāḥ—(such) persons; dharmasya—of dharma; asya—this; parantapa—Arjun, conqueror the enemies; aprāpya—without attaining; mām—Me; nivartante—come back; mṛityu—death; samsāra—material existence; vartmani—in the path
