Gita 12.13

Bhakti Yoga

अद्वेष्टा सर्वभूतानां मैत्रः करुण एव च | निर्ममो निरहङ्कारः समदुःखसुखः क्षमी ||१३||

adveṣṭā sarva-bhūtānāṁ maitraḥ karuṇa eva ca | nirmamo nirahaṅkāraḥ sama-duḥkha-sukhaḥ kṣamī ||13||

In essence: Free from hatred toward all beings, friendly and compassionate, without possessiveness or ego, equal in pain and pleasure, forgiving.

A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply

Sadhak-Guru Dialogue

Sadhak: "Eight qualities in one verse! This feels overwhelming."

Guru: "They're not separate achievements to collect. They arise together from one source: seeing the Divine in all. When you truly see Krishna in everyone, hatred becomes impossible, friendliness natural, compassion spontaneous."

Sadhak: "I can try to be friendly, but how do I become free from hatred? Sometimes anger arises despite my best efforts."

Guru: "Adveṣṭā doesn't mean never feeling irritation. It means not holding hatred, not maintaining enmity. Anger may flash and pass. Hatred is nursed anger that becomes identity. The devotee lets anger pass without building a story of grievance."

Sadhak: "What's the difference between nirmama and nirahaṅkāra?"

Guru: "Nirmama addresses possessiveness - 'this is mine.' Nirahaṅkāra addresses identity - 'I am the doer, the owner, the one who deserves.' One is horizontal attachment (to things), the other vertical (to selfhood). Both must dissolve."

Sadhak: "Kṣamī - forgiving. But some things are unforgivable!"

Guru: "To whom? To the ego, perhaps. But when you see that everyone acts from their conditioning, that harm comes from ignorance not pure evil, forgiveness becomes possible. This doesn't mean accepting abuse; it means not carrying poison in your heart. Forgiveness frees the forgiver."

Did this resonate with you? Share it with someone who needs to hear this.

🌅 Daily Practice

🌅 Morning

Choose one quality to focus on today - perhaps adveṣṭā (freedom from hatred) or kṣamī (forgiveness). Set intention: 'Today I will notice hatred or grudges arising and consciously release them.' Morning contemplation primes the day's practice.

☀️ Daytime

As you interact with others, practice maitrī (friendliness) with awareness. Can you genuinely wish well to each person you encounter - the annoying colleague, the slow cashier, the difficult family member? This isn't performance but internal cultivation.

🌙 Evening

Review: Where did 'mine' and 'I' dominate today? Where did you defend possessions or identity unnecessarily? Not self-judgment but observation. Also note moments of natural compassion, equanimity, or forgiveness. These are signs of progress.

Common Questions

Is it possible to be friendly and compassionate to truly evil people?

Krishna says 'sarva-bhūtānām' - all beings. Friendliness doesn't mean naivety or lack of boundaries. A mother can be friendly and compassionate while stopping her child from harmful behavior. The devotee maintains goodwill internally while acting wisely externally. Evil itself is seen as disease, not essence.

If I become free from ego and mine-ness, won't I become passive and ineffective?

The opposite often occurs. Ego creates enormous friction - defending identity, protecting possessions, managing image. Without this burden, energy flows freely into action. History's greatest servants often had little sense of 'I' - they worked tirelessly because there was no self to protect.

How can one be 'equal in pain and pleasure'? Isn't pleasure obviously better?

Equal response, not equal preference. The devotee isn't pretending pain and pleasure feel the same. Rather, neither pain nor pleasure disturbs their fundamental stability. They experience fully but aren't destabilized. A mountain feels sun and rain but isn't moved by either.

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