In plain words
One who hates no being, who is friendly and compassionate, free from possessiveness and ahaṅkāra, equal in pleasure and pain, and forgiving,
Word for word
Not hating any being, friendly and compassionate indeed, free from "mine", free from ahaṅkāra, even in pain and pleasure, forbearing,
अद्वेष्टा सर्वभूतानां मैत्रः करुण एव चनिर्ममो निरहङ्कारः समदुःखसुखः क्षमी
Other commentaries
The commentators
▸Bhagavadgītābhāṣyam
अत्र च आत्मेश्वरभेदमाश्रित्य विश्वरूपे ईश्वरे चेतःसमाधानलक्षणः योगः उक्तः, ईश्वरार्थं कर्मानुष्ठानादि च । ‘अथैतदप्यशक्तोऽसि’(भ. गी. १२ । ११) इति अज्ञानकार्यसूचनात् न अभेददर्शिनः अक्षरोपासकस्य कर्मयोगः उपपद्यते इति दर्शयति ; तथा कर्मयोगिनः अक्षरोपासनानुपपत्तिम् । ‘ते प्राप्नुवन्ति मामेव’(भ. गी. १२ । ४) इति अक्षरोपासकानां कैवल्यप्राप्तौ स्वातन्त्र्यम् उक्त्वा, इतरेषां पारतन्त्र्यात् ईश्वराधीनतां दर्शितवान् ‘तेषामहं समुद्धर्ता’(भ. गी. १२ । ७) इति । यदि हि ईश्वरस्य आत्मभूताः ते मताः अभेददर्शित्वात् , अक्षरस्वरूपाः एव ते इति समुद्धरणकर्मवचनं तान् प्रति अपेशलं स्यात् । यस्माच्च अर्जुनस्य अत्यन्तमेव हितैषी भगवान् तस्य सम्यग्दर्शनानन्वितं कर्मयोगं भेददृष्टिमन्तमेव उपदिशति । न च आत्मानम् ईश्वरं प्रमाणतः बुद्ध्वा कस्यचित् गुणभावं जिगमिषति कश्चित् , विरोधात् । तस्मात् अक्षरोपासकानां सम्यग्दर्शननिष्ठानां संन्यासिनां त्यक्तसर्वैषणानाम् ‘अद्वेष्टा सर्वभूतानाम्’ इत्यादिधर्मपूगं साक्षात् अमृतत्वकारणं वक्ष्यामीति प्रवर्तते —
अद्वेष्टा सर्वभूतानां न द्वेष्टा, आत्मनः दुःखहेतुमपि न किञ्चित् द्वेष्टि, सर्वाणि भूतानि आत्मत्वेन हि पश्यति । मैत्रः मित्रभावः मैत्री मित्रतया वर्तते इति मैत्रः । करुणः एव च, करुणा कृपा दुःखितेषु दया, तद्वान् करुणः, सर्वभूताभयप्रदः, संन्यासी इत्यर्थः । निर्ममः ममप्रत्ययवर्जितः । निरहङ्कारः निर्गताहंप्रत्ययः । समदुःखसुखः समे दुःखसुखे द्वेषरागयोः अप्रवर्तके यस्य सः समदुःखसुखः । क्षमी क्षमावान् , आक्रुष्टः अभिहतो वा अविक्रियः एव आस्ते ॥ १३ ॥
In plain words
Here, for the moment, the teaching leans on the distinction between the individual and the Lord. In chapter twelve, meditating on the Lord's own universal form, Krishna taught a yoga of steadying the mind on him, and also action done for his sake. Notice: 'even if you cannot manage that' already hints this is meant for someone still touched by ignorance — so this discipline of action was never really meant for someone who already sees no difference between self and Lord, who meditates on the changeless Imperishable directly. And the reverse holds too: meditation on the Imperishable was never meant for someone still walking the path of action. Krishna said of the Imperishable's meditators, 'they reach me alone,' meaning they get there by their own strength; but of everyone else, because they still depend on him, he says plainly, 'I am the one who lifts them up.' Think about what that would mean if the meditators on the Imperishable were somehow his very self, seeing no difference at all — if they already were the Imperishable itself, then 'I lift them up' would be a strange, pointless thing to say about them. The real reason is this: Krishna, who wants nothing but Arjuna's good, with his whole heart, teaches him a path of action that isn't yet fused with that ultimate vision — a path built, quite deliberately, on the sense of difference. And truly, no one who has actually realized the self as the Lord himself would then turn around and want to be someone's servant — that would contradict itself. So now, for those who meditate on the Imperishable, who stand firm in true vision, who have renounced every last craving — for these renunciates, Krishna is about to speak, directly, of the very cause of immortality: the whole cluster of qualities beginning with 'one who hates no being at all.' He now begins —
He does not hate — not even the person who has hurt him, because he sees every being as himself; how could he hate his own self? He is a friend to all: friendliness simply means he treats everyone the way a friend would. He is compassionate too — tender toward anyone who suffers — and that tenderness makes him, in the end, a giver of fearlessness to every living being. This, really, is what a true renunciate looks like. He has let go of 'mine': the very notion that this belongs to me no longer arises in him. He has let go of 'I' as well: the sense of being a separate someone has simply departed. Pleasure and pain land on him the same way — neither one pulls him toward craving or pushes him into aversion, because for him the two are equal. And he is forbearing: insulted or struck, he stays exactly as he was, unmoved.
Close to the Sanskrit
And here, having taken recourse to the distinction between self and Lord, in the universal form, in the Lord, a yoga characterized by fixing the mind was taught, and also the performance of action for the Lord's sake. Because of 'now, even if you are unable for this' (BG 12.11) indicating an effect of ignorance, [the text] shows that karma-yoga is not tenable for the seer of non-difference, the meditator on the Imperishable; and likewise the impossibility of meditation on the Imperishable for the karma-yogin. Having said, by 'they attain Me alone' (BG 12.4), that meditators on the Imperishable have independence in attaining aloneness, [the Lord] has shown, because of the dependence of the others, their subordination to the Lord — 'I am their deliverer' (BG 12.7). For if they were held to be the Lord's very self, because they see non-difference — they being of the very nature of the Imperishable itself — then this statement of the act of delivering would be unfitting with respect to them. And because the Lord, utterly wishing Arjuna's welfare, teaches him a karma-yoga not yet joined to right vision, precisely one possessing the vision of difference. Nor does anyone, having known the self as the Lord by valid means, wish to attain the status of being anyone's subordinate — because that would be a contradiction. Therefore, for the meditators on the Imperishable, established in right vision, renunciates who have abandoned every craving, [the Lord], about to speak directly the cause of immortality — the whole host of qualities beginning with 'one who hates no being' — proceeds —
One who does not hate — [he is] not a hater: even the cause of his own suffering, he hates nothing at all, for he sees all beings as the self. Friendly — the state of being a friend; friendliness: 'he behaves in the manner of a friend' — thus [he is called] friendly. Compassionate too — compassion is kindness, tenderness toward those who suffer; one possessing that is compassionate, a giver of fearlessness to all beings — such is the meaning: the renunciate. Free of 'mine' — devoid of the notion 'mine'. Egoless — one from whom the notion 'I' has departed. One for whom pleasure and pain are equal — he for whom, in the two being equal, pain and pleasure do not provoke aversion or attraction, he is one for whom pleasure and pain are equal. Forbearing — possessing forbearance: whether reviled or struck, he simply remains unperturbed.
▸Gītā Vāhini
భక్తునకు మొదటి లక్షణము, ద్వేషము లేకుండుట; రెండవ లక్షణము, మైత్రి కలిగియుండుట; ఇంత మాత్రము చేతనే విడువక దీనులయందును, దుఃఖితులయందును కరుణ కూడనూ ఉండవలెనని శాసించినాడు మువ్వ గోపాలుడు.
వీటన్నింటినీ అతి శ్రద్ధతో వింటున్న అర్జునుడు “కృష్ణా! ఈ మూడు లక్షణములు, లక్ష్యము తప్పక ఆచిరించిన, అనుష్ఠించిన చాలునా? లేక ఇంకనూ కొన్ని ఇట్టి లక్షణములేవైననూ కలవా? తెలుపుడు” అని అడిగెను. “అర్జునా! పంట పెట్టినంత మాత్రమున పైరు పెరిగి పెద్దది కాగలదా? ఫలమివ్వగలదా? దానికి తగిన నీరూ, ఎరువులు అవసరము లేదా? ఇంత మాత్రము తెలిసికొనలేవా? నేనింతకు పూర్వము చెప్పిన ద్వేష నిర్మూలము, మైత్రి నిర్మాణము పైరు పెట్టుట మాత్రమే. దీనికి “నిర్మమః”, “నిరహంకారః” అని రెండు ప్రధాన పోషణలు అవసరము. అనగా నీరు, ఎరువు వంటివి. ఇవి లేక ఆనందమను పంటను ఎట్టి వాడైననూ అనుభవించలేడు” అని భగవానుడు విశదీకరించెను.
In plain words
The first mark of the devotee is freedom from hatred; the second, friendliness. And not stopping with only this much, Muvva Gopāla ordained that there must also be compassion for the helpless and the sorrowing.
Arjuna, who was listening to all this very closely, asked: “Kṛṣṇa! If one practises and observes these three marks without missing the aim, is that enough? Or are there still other marks of this kind? Tell me.” “Arjuna! Merely by putting in a crop, can the seedlings grow big? Can they bear fruit? Do they not need the proper water and manure? Can you not grasp even this much? The uprooting of hatred and the building up of friendliness of which I spoke earlier are no more than putting in the seedlings. For these, two chief nourishments are needed, called “nirmamaḥ” and “nirahaṅkāraḥ”; that is, they are like water and manure. Without these, no one, whoever he may be, can enjoy the crop of Ānanda,” the Lord explained.