II l. Fight, but with unshaken smile (2.38-39)

untempted by pleasure

unrepulsed by pain

undeterred by losses

not working for some little gain

undaunted facing failure and

unexcited by success
valiant amidst defeat or victory
even in the toughest test

celebrating life with grace and poise

Not to win or to avoid forfeit,

but just to sport

your personal best

and to stretch your own limits

when you fight the war

just playing

in your role/s all the way upto
and beyond your edge

in this strange and bewildering

battle of life

there will be no way
for guilt, regret, ignorance, blame,

and their smoke-depression: sin

to even arise or haunt you...

established in one's pure
eternal nature
one can celebrate
what one must do
the warrior fights
peacemaker unites
and you can do either-
when the time is right..

The claim to glory,
in heaven and earth
is by doing whatever is necessary
whenever the moment needs you to

such is the wisdom of "Saankhya"
And now assimilate
the way of Yoga
which brings freedom
while living in the world
overflowing with committments too!

That karmaa could ever tie you down
will appear a joke
if you ruminate and act
on what i am about to tell you...

previous

Mahatma Gandhi's version

38. Hold alike pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat, and gird up thy loins for the fight; so doing thou shalt not incur sin.

39. Thus have I set before thee the attitude of Knowledge; hear now the attitude of Action; resorting to this attitude thou shalt cast off the bondage of action.

Sanskrit
sukhaduhkhe same krutvaa laabhaalaabhou jayaajayou

tato yuddhaaya yujyasva naivam paapamavaapsyasi (2.38)

esha teabhihitaa saankhye buddhiryoge tvimaamshruNu

buddhya yukto yayaa paartha karmabandham prahaasyasi(2.39)