15.3 Cut what you cannot see Krishna speaks
न रूपमस्येह तथोपलभ्यते नान्तो न चादिर्न च संप्रतिष्ठा
अश्वत्थमेनं सुविरूढमूल मसङ्गशस्त्रेण दृढेन छित्त्वा
na rūpam asyeha tathopalabhyate
nānto na chādir na cha sampratiṣhṭhā
aśhvattham enaṁ su-virūḍha-mūlam
asaṅga-śhastreṇa dṛiḍhena chhittvā
Its form is not perceived here as it is — neither its end, nor its beginning, nor its middle. Having cut this deep-rooted fig with the strong axe of non-attachment,
Explanation
Its shape cannot be made out — and the instruction is to cut it anyway.
No end, no beginning, no middle perceived. Then, in the same breath: take the axe of asaṅga, non-attachment, and cut.
The Gita is not asking for the tree to be understood first. It is saying that the understanding follows the cut, which reverses the order most philosophy assumes.
Going further
Word by word
- na
- not
- rūpam
- form
- asya
- of this
- iha
- in this world
- tathā
- as such
- upalabhyate
- is perceived
- na
- neither
- antaḥ
- end
- na
- nor
- cha
- also
- ādiḥ
- beginning
- na
- never
- cha
- also
- sampratiṣhṭhā
- the basis
- aśhvattham
- sacred fig tree
- enam
- this
- su-virūḍha-mūlam
- deep-rooted
- asaṅga-śhastreṇa
- by the axe of detachment
- dṛiḍhena
- strong
- chhittvā
- having cut down
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Neither its end, nor its beginning, nor its middle is perceived — and then, in the same breath, cut it.
The instruction is to take an axe to something whose extent you cannot see. The axe is named: asaṅga-śhastreṇa, the weapon of non-attachment. It is worth noticing that the Gita does not ask you to understand the tree first.