Bhagavad Gita 18.59 · Krishna
Your nature will call you back
यदहंकारमाश्रित्य न योत्स्य इति मन्यसे।
मिथ्यैष व्यवसायस्ते प्रकृतिस्त्वां नियोक्ष्यति॥
yadahaṃkāramāśritya na yotsya iti manyasemithyaiṣa vyavasāyaste prakṛtistvāṃ niyokṣyati
If, leaning on ego, you think, I will not fight, your resolve is empty. Your own nature will drive you to it.
Words
- prakṛti
What it means
Krishna says, if ego makes you decide, I won't fight, that decision won't hold. Your prakriti, your own nature, will pull you back. Arjuna is a protector by nature. Running away would go against who he is. Our deepest nature eventually reclaims us.
The story
Arjuna's refusal in chapter one wasn't wisdom. It was fear and ego dressed up as virtue. Krishna knows his friend would never truly abandon those depending on him.
In your life
Think of a natural carer who swore never to look after anyone again, then found themselves volunteering a year later. Don't fight your best nature. Follow it.
Your true nature calls you home.