Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, Verse 38 (BG 6.38) — Meaning, Translation & Commentary

It is possible that a faithful seeker walking the path toward the attainment of Brahman may be overtaken by death, or may fall from yoga due to insufficient restraint and discipline. To illustrate this fall, the great sage Vyasa has placed in the mouth of Arjuna a most apt and powerful example, one that is frequently cited in literary circles. Sometimes in the summer season, from the side of mountains, a cloud formation rises upward like a canopy, visible to the eye. Yet when struck by the swift force of the wind, that mass of cloud is scattered into countless smaller fragments. These cloud fragments, entirely dependent upon the mercy of the powerful wind, wander aimlessly hither and thither. These summer clouds can neither fulfill the hopes of the farmers nor quench the thirst of the parched. Finding no secure place, they themselves are finally destroyed. Arjuna's question is this: Will not the fate of one who has fallen from yoga be like that of the cloud? Why does Arjuna ask this question? He himself provides the reason.