Pain Is an Illusion

मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदु:खदा: |

आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत || 2.14||

Meaning of the Shloka: O Son of Kunti! The interaction between your senses and the objects around you results in happiness and sadness. You must see past the discomfort to realize their fleeting nature and bear them as is. (Bhagvad Gita 2.14)

Context: Arjuna was on the verge of abandoning his duties — surrendering before the war began, despite being a bonafide warrior. The underlying cause was the pain of loss of life and prosperity that the war was about to bring.

He visualized women being widowed and sons being orphaned. He saw empires going bankrupt while keeping the war machine alive. Consequently, he started second-guessing his commitment to this path.

The origin of pain

Our five sense organs (eyes, ears, tongue, skin, and nose) and five action organs (arms, legs, genitals, excretory organs, and voice box) have a natural tendency to desire corresponding pleasureful objects.

For instance, eyes seek beautiful visuals and genitals want to spread the DNA. Similarly, the tongue wants tasty food while the skin longs for comfort.

We experience pain when we use the power of the mind (guided by knowledge or truth) to stop these sense and action organs from going after their corresponding pleasureful objects. Pain also emerges when we detach any of these ten organs from their union with such objects.

You may have experienced difficulty in putting the phone away while scrolling through social media. It can also be challenging not to binge-watch a great TV show on Netflix.

It is crucial to notice that the sense and action organs do not have their own agency. They follow the commands of the mind, which is further guided by knowledge (or truth or God). Moreover, the body that these ten organs belong to is temporary as shit — just like the pleasureful objects.

To put it all together, the Dashendriya (= ten faculties of knowledge; five senses, and five action organs) are as temporary as the objects they desperately seek. Their interaction, whether it is attachment or detachment, produces natural reactions from the Dashendriya.

How to overcome pain

Just like the pleasure you experience from social media, fast food, or an attractive person’s company is temporary, so is the pain experienced when working out, putting the phone down, or blocking distractions that promise cheap dopamine hits.

When your eyes are forced to read a useful book rather than binge-watching a popular web series, the discomfort is short-lived. Similarly, waking up early in the morning to work only brings fleeting distress to your body’s sense of touch (experienced via the skin).

Our proclivity to give into our emotions with the slightest sign of trouble makes us blind to the truth about pain. As we all understand that life is temporary, we often forget that the losses we endure due to various sacrifices are temporary too.

The reason why you quit fast food is the same reason you disregard the displeasure of working a few extra hours every day for your dream.

Conclusion: Just ride the waves

As long as it isn’t some critical, unforeseen failure, pain is an illusion. 

The critical, unforeseen damage like getting sick, having your belongings stolen, etc., is very real. If you are experiencing it, prioritize them above all. Looking after yourself and doing your due diligence toward your body, home, and community is a man’s God-given duty.

Whenever you encounter any pain on that dutiful path, you must remind yourself about the fleeting nature of your emotions and keep going.

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Next Chapter: The Temporary Is to Be Ignored

Previous Chapter: Death Is a Change of State

Index (with Prologue): Krishna Said That: Prologue

Pain is temporary, CTE is permanent