Bhagavad Gita · Sankhya YogaChapter 2, Shloka 52 (2.52)
Original Sanskrit · श्रीभगवान्
यदा ते मोहकलिलं बुद्धिर्व्यतितरिष्यति
तदा गन्तासि निर्वेदं श्रोतव्यस्य श्रुतस्य च
॥ 2.52 ॥
yadā te mohakalilaṃ buddhirvyatitariṣyati
tadā gantāsi nirvedaṃ śrotavyasya śrutasya ca
Translation
"When your understanding crosses the mire of delusion, then you will gain dispassion towards all that you have heard and all that is yet to be heard (the words about rewards)."
Interpretation
"Moha-kalila" — the mire of delusion. Kalila — filth, a swamp, a tangle. Shankaracharya: the impurity of non-discernment, which muddies the discernment between self and non-self and draws the mind towards sense objects.
"Nirveda" — dispassion. What happens when delusion is removed? Nirveda — dispassion, detachment. Towards what?
- Shankaracharya: Śrotavya (what is to be heard) and śruta (what has been heard) — then all that is to be heard and has been heard seems fruitless.
- Ramanuja: Towards the fruits and so on already described as "to be given up", and the fruits and so on to be heard of later — dispassion will arise by itself.
That is, when understanding is clear, the "flowery speech" (2.42) about rewards no longer attracts.
Natural dispassion. Ramanuja's word svayam eva — "by itself" — is important: dispassion is not brought about by force; when understanding becomes clear, it comes naturally.
AI-assisted draft translation — under review.