Bhagvad Gita: 20 Life-Changing – Beyond Pleasure & Pain – 11/20
🌟 Shloka 11 of 20 – Beyond Pleasure & Pain
Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Shloka 14 – Deep Dive
“Treat heat and cold, pleasure and pain with equality…”
📜 Sanskrit Verse
मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय
शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः।
आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत॥
🔤 Transliteration
mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya
śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ
āgamāpāyino ’nityās
tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata
🌍 English Translation
O son of Kunti, the contacts of the senses with objects give rise to cold and heat, pleasure and pain.
They come and go — they are impermanent.
Endure them, O descendant of Bharata.
🧭 Context in the Gita
In Chapter 2, as Arjuna trembles on the battlefield, Krishna begins his teaching not with abstract metaphysics — but with a deeply human lesson: the transience of pleasure and pain.
He urges Arjuna to become strong — not by suppression, but by understanding the nature of experience.
🔍 Line-by-Line Explanation
🔹 मात्रास्पर्शाः
“Sense contacts…”
All sensations — pleasant or unpleasant — are simply contacts between sense organs and their objects. They are not eternal, and they don’t define the real ‘you’.
🔹 शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः
“Cold and heat, pleasure and pain…”
These pairs arise naturally — through changes in external circumstances. Just like summer and winter, they will pass.
🔹 आगमापायिनः अनित्याः
“They come and go; they are impermanent…”
This line is pure spiritual psychology. All experiences arise and dissolve — and thus, don’t deserve over-attachment or aversion.
🔹 तांश् तितिक्षस्व भारत
“Endure them, O Bharata…”
Krishna introduces the virtue of titikṣā — patient endurance without complaint. This is not passive suffering, but dignified forbearance with wisdom.
🧠 Modern Life Applications
💼 At Work
- Job stress, deadlines, office politics — all are temporary “sense contacts.”
Don’t let them shake your peace.
❤️ In Relationships
- Ups and downs will come — instead of reacting impulsively, witness them as passing phases.
🧘 Mental Health
- Anxiety, irritation, sadness — if you don’t cling to them or panic, they pass like clouds. They are not who you are.
✨ Real-Life Analogy
Imagine you’re walking barefoot and step on something sharp.
You wince, but you don’t identify with the pain.
You treat it, heal, and move on.
Life’s joys and sorrows are the same — felt, but not defining.
📿 Daily Practice Tip (Layman-Friendly)
✅ Next time you feel annoyed by heat, cold, or any discomfort —
pause, take a deep breath, and say:
“This will pass. I remain steady.”
Do this just once a day — you’re training your nervous system in spiritual toughness.
🪔 Takeaway Affirmation
🎵 Pleasure and pain are guests who stay,
Then leave at dusk what came by day.
Let me remain the silent shore —
Unshaken, patient, evermore. 🎵