Gita 1.38

Sadhak: "Arjuna seems to be judging the Kauravas—calling them greedy, saying they can't see the sin."

Guru: "Notice he isn't condemning them—he's describing their condition as one would describe a disease. 'Lobhopahata-cetasaḥ'—their minds are overpowered, afflicted. There's almost compassion in this diagnosis. They didn't choose to become blind; greed infected them."

Sadhak: "So greed is like an illness that destroys moral vision?"

Guru: "Precisely. The Gita treats moral failings more like psychological conditions than personal evils. Duryodhana isn't demonic; he's sick. His desire for kingdom has so consumed him that he cannot process the reality of what he's doing. Have you never been so caught up in wanting something that you didn't notice the harm you were causing?"

Sadhak: "Yes... when I was fighting for that promotion, I didn't see how I was neglecting my family until my daughter told me she didn't know me anymore."

Guru: "That's 'lobhopahata-cetasaḥ'—ambition had clouded your perception. You weren't evil; you were temporarily blind. The Kauravas' condition is the same, just more extreme and more prolonged."

Sadhak: "But if they're blind, aren't they less guilty than Arjuna who can see?"

Guru: "This is exactly Arjuna's dilemma! He's realizing that his clarity of vision may actually increase his responsibility. If he fights knowing fully what it means, his karma is different from theirs. The ignorant soldier and the aware soldier perform the same act, but the inner meaning is different."

Sadhak: "So wisdom is actually a burden?"

Guru: "It is both gift and burden. The more you see, the more you are responsible for what you see. This is why many people unconsciously avoid clarity—they sense that seeing truly will demand something of them. Arjuna's crisis is partly the crisis of one who cannot unsee what he has seen."

Sadhak: "That's uncomfortable. Sometimes I wish I didn't see certain things—problems at work, issues in relationships."

Guru: "And yet you cannot unfind what you have found. This is why the Gita is necessary—it teaches how to bear the weight of vision, how to act from clarity without being crushed by it. But first, like Arjuna, you must fully acknowledge the weight."

Sadhak: "What about people who genuinely don't see—not from greed but just from lack of exposure or education?"

Guru: "Their karma is different. The universe is not unjust—it measures each according to their capacity. What is sin for the wise may be forgivable in the ignorant. But this is why wisdom traditions emphasize compassion: the awakened understand that most beings are asleep, and judge them accordingly."