Shloka 17
Daivī–Āsurī Sampad-Vibhāga (दैवी–आसुरी संपद्विभागः) | Division of Constructive and Destructive Dispositions
यो न हृष्यति न द्वेष्टि न शोचति न काडुक्षति । शुभाशुभपरित्यागी भक्तिमान् यः स मे प्रिय:
yo na hṛṣyati na dveṣṭi na śocati na kāṅkṣati | śubhāśubha-parityāgī bhaktimān yaḥ sa me priyaḥ ||
One who is not elated, does not hate, does not grieve, and does not crave; who has renounced attachment to both auspicious and inauspicious outcomes—such a devoted one is dear to Me.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The core teaching is that the person dear to the Lord is emotionally steady—neither exhilarated nor hateful, neither grieving nor craving—and is detached from both ‘good’ and ‘bad’ results, acting without clinging to outcomes while remaining devoted.
In the Bhīṣma Parva context (the battlefield instruction setting), this verse characterizes the ideal devotee: amid the turmoil of war and duty, the teaching defines spiritual maturity as inner balance and relinquishment of attachment to outcomes, rather than withdrawal from action.