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19. He who thinks that this slays and he who thinks that this is slain, both of them fail to perceive the truth. This one neither slays nor slain.
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The nature of soul is described in this and subsequent verses. Having experienced excessive grief and suffering which are integral parts of earthly life and understood the true nature of his physical existence and the reality around him, Arjuna has to now look inwardly into his own personality to understand his true and eternal self hidden in himself. The understanding will not come unless he looks at his surface existence, understand its ephemeral nature and go deeper in himself where he would probably come across his permanent and immortal self. For this to happen first there must be a radical change in his thinking, complete identification with his soul nature and unconditional acceptance of his soul as the central truth of his life.
Thoughts are very important. Our thoughts influence our behaviour and our attitude towards others and ourselves. Our relationships, our success and failure and our very existence and activities on earth depend upon the nature of thoughts we harbor in our minds. Even our perceptions are colored by our thoughts. And unless we are willing to change our thoughts we cannot bring about any change in ourselves. In this context Lord Krishna's emphasis on thinking is therefore understandable.
But thoughts do not change by themselves. It needs practice. Our thoughts to a great extent are influenced by our beliefs. We accept as truths what we believe to be true. By changing ones beliefs, we can attempt to change our thoughts. As long as we believe that we are mere physical beings subject mortality, we model our lives on that belief and remain preoccupied with our physical comforts and survival. We would not look beyond the present life, which we would accept as the one and true. This would limit our vision, our aims and thoughts to our present lives.
In this verse Lord Krishna is trying to change Arjuna's beliefs and his way of thinking by explaining to him the true nature of his existence. This new awareness would take Arjuna's mind beyond the present life and beyond the immediate concerns. It would broaden his vision and make him look to his interests beyond his physical body and his immediate life.
Commentary by Jayaram V
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