Having established the soul’s eternal nature, Lord Krishna now provides the practical technique for living with this knowledge in a world of constant change. If the soul is permanent, how should it deal with the temporary experiences of the body? The Matra Sparsas Tu Kaunteya verse gives the direct answer: tolerance. It introduces the concept of duality and instructs the aspiring sage on how to remain undisturbed by the fleeting sensations of material existence.
Sanskrit Verse
मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः ।
आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥ १४ ॥Transliteration
mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ
āgamāpāyino ’nityās tāṁs titikṣasva bhārataWord for Word Translation
mātrā-sparśāḥ — sense perceptions; tu — but; kaunteya — O son of Kunti; śīta — winter; uṣṇa — summer; sukha — happiness; duḥkha — and distress; dāḥ — giving; āgama-apāyinaḥ — coming and going; anityāḥ — non-permanent; tān — them; titikṣasva — you must tolerate; bhārata — O descendant of Bharata.
English Translation
O son of Kunti, the non-permanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearing and disappearing of winter and summer seasons. They arise from sense perception, O descendant of Bharata, and one must learn to tolerate them without being disturbed.
Explanation
Each Bhagavad Gita verse whispers ancient truths, let’s listen closely with Vedic Stories…
This verse is the prescription for peace in a turbulent world. Krishna explains the nature of worldly experience and how a wise person should interact with it.
- Mātrā-sparśāḥ: This literally means “the touch of the senses.” All our experiences of the world are born from the contact of our senses (skin, eyes, tongue, etc.) with their objects (surfaces, forms, tastes, etc.). Krishna identifies this interaction as the source of all our feelings of happiness and distress.
- Śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ: “Giving cold-heat, happiness-distress.” He gives a simple, powerful example of duality. The same water can feel pleasant in the summer and painfully cold in the winter. The experience is subjective and temporary. Similarly, all worldly situations bring fleeting moments of joy (`sukha`) and sorrow (`duḥkha`).
- Āgamāpāyino ’nityāḥ: “They are coming and going, non-permanent.” This is the critical insight. No season is permanent, and similarly, no feeling of happiness or distress lasts forever. They appear, they have their effect, and they disappear. Understanding this transient nature is the first step to detaching from their power over us.
- Tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata: “Tolerate them, O Bharata.” This is the core instruction. `Titikṣā`, or tolerance, is the spiritual practice of enduring these dualities without being mentally or emotionally agitated. It is not about suppressing feelings, but about not letting them control your actions or disturb your inner peace. For a warrior like Arjuna, this quality is essential for performing his Dharma.
Conclusion
This powerful instruction gives Arjuna—and all of us—the tool to live a sane and steady life. By understanding that the pleasant and unpleasant experiences of life are as predictable and temporary as the seasons, a wise person does not get overly attached to the good times or overly despondent in the bad. They cultivate `titikṣā`, an inner resilience that allows them to remain fixed on their purpose, regardless of the ever-changing weather of worldly experience.
Read Next: Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2 – Verse 15 – Yam Hi Na Vyathayanty Ete
