na ca Å›aknomy avasthÄtuá¹
bhramatīva ca me manaḥ
nimittÄni ca paÅ›yÄmi
viparÄ«tÄni keÅ›ava
na - nor; ca - also; Å›aknomi - am I able; avasthÄtum - to stay; bhramati - forgetting; iva - as; ca - and; me - my; manaḥ - mind; nimittÄni - causes; ca - also; paÅ›yÄmi - I see; viparÄ«tÄni - just the opposite; keÅ›ava - O killer of the demon Keśī (Kṛṣṇa).
Due to his impatience, Arjuna was unable to stay on the battleï¬eld, and he was forgetting himself on account of this weakness of his mind. Excessive attachment for material things puts a man in such a bewildering condition of existence. Bhayaá¹ dvitÄ«yÄbhiniveÅ›ataḥ syÄt (BhÄg. 11.2.37): such fearfulness and loss of mental equilibrium take place in persons who are too affected by material conditions. Arjuna envisioned only painful reverses in the battleï¬eld – he would not be happy even by gaining victory over the foe. The words nimittÄni viparÄ«tÄni are signiï¬cant. When a man sees only frustration in his expectations, he thinks, “Why am I here?†Everyone is interested in himself and his own welfare. No one is interested in the Supreme Self. Arjuna is showing ignorance of his real self-interest by Kṛṣṇa’s will. One’s real self-interest lies in Viṣṇu, or Kṛṣṇa. The conditioned soul forgets this, and therefore suffers material pains. Arjuna thought that his victory in the battle would only be a cause of lamentation for him.