Strength sans attachment, and the limits of the material

Acharya Prashant
8 min readJan 27, 2021

The following is an excerpt from a samvaad (dialogue) session with Acharya Prashant.

बलं बलवतां चाहं कामरागविवर्जितम् ।

धर्माविरुद्धो भूतेषु कामोऽस्मि भरतर्षभ ।। 7.11 ।।

balaṁ balavatāṁ chāhaṁ kāma-rāga-vivarjitam

dharmāviruddho bhūteṣhu kāmo ’smi bharatarṣhabha

And of the strong, I am the strength, which is devoid of desire and attachment, among the creatures I am the desire, which is not contrary to righteousness, O scion of the Bharat dynasty.

~ Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 7, Verse 11

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ये चैव सात्त्विका भावा राजसास्तामसाश्च ये ।

मत्त एवेति तान्विद्धि न त्वहं तेषु ते मयि ।। 7.12 ।।

ye chaiva sāttvikā bhāvā rājasās tāmasāśh cha ye

matta eveti tān viddhi na tvahaṁ teṣhu te mayi

Those things that indeed are made of Sattva and those things that are made of Tamas, know them to have sprung from me alone. However, I am not in them; they are in me.

~ Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 7, Verse 12

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Questioner (Q): What is the significance of “strength devoid of desire and attachment” and “desire unopposed to Dharma”?

Also, what does Krishna mean by saying, “They are in Me, yet I am not in them,” as his statement seems to contradict the verses 8 to 10, where he says, “I am the light in the sun and the moon, I am the pure smell in the Earth, and life principle in all being”?

Acharya Prashant (AP): So, verses 8, 9, 10 have also been quoted. And the verses from 8th to 10th say:

Acharya Prashant