48. Raag, Bhay and Krodh



Krishna says that sthita-prajna is neither excited by sukh (pleasure) nor agitated by dukh (pain), is free from raag (attachment), bhay (fear) and krodh (anger) (2.56). This is an extension of 2.38 where Krishna tells us to treat sukh (pleasure) and dukh (pain); labh (gain) and hani (loss); and jaya (victory) and parajay (defeat) with equipoise. Krishna places great importance on freedom from agitation, saying that the devotee who neither agitates the world nor becomes agitated by it is dear to Him (12.15).

All of us seek sukh but dukh invariably comes in our lives as both exist in pairs of dwandwa (polarity). This is like bait to fish where the hook is hidden behind the bait.

Sthita-prajna transcends these polarities and attains dwandwa-atheeth. It’s pure awareness that when we seek one, the other is bound to follow - maybe in a different shape and after a lapse of time.

When we get sukh with our planning, ahankaar gets elated. However, when dukh follows sukh, ahankaar feels wounded. This manifests as agitation and anger (krodh), revealing that it is a game of ahankaar. Sthita-prajna realises the same and sheds ahankaar.

Languages rarely have words to describe a state beyond polarities. When Krishna says sthita-prajna is free from raag (attachment), it doesn’t mean that sthita-prajna gravitates towards detachment. It’s a state beyond both.

Sthita-prajna is free from bhay and krodh but it doesn’t mean that they suppress them. It is not about identifying with the process of expression or suppression of fear or anger but witnessing that process. 

Bhay and krodh are always projections of the future as well as the past, on the present. They arise from our worry about adverse consequences in the future. As such, there is no place for either of them in the present moment. When Krishna says that sthita-prajna is free from bhay and krodh, it implies that they remain in the present moment.


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