Lucidity's Folly Research Paper

Lucidity’s Folly
In the fourteenth teaching, Krishna goes on to explain to Arjuna about “a knowledge” that, “knowing it, all the sages have reached perfection.” This is the knowledge of the three qualities of nature- lucidity, passion, and dark inertia- which inherently form when the world is created by Krishna. These three qualities bind the self to the mortal body; the ultimate goal of man is to understand and ascend above them in order to share in the infinite spirit. While lucidity may seem like a positive quality to achieve, a close reading reveals that Krishna warns Arjuna of the danger in falling to lucidity. Although necessary for detachment, Lucidity can be a perilous trap to fall into because it can lead to an endless cycle of reincarnation.
Krishna uses positively connotated words, juxtaposed with negative words in order to subtly warn Arjuna about the pitfalls of lucidity. Lucidity is described using words like “light” and “untainted” which generally imply safety and purity, but it is actually a road block on the path to transcendence. It is very close to being in line with Krishna but having this quality blocks one from the ultimate spirit. In teaching fourteen, verse six, Krishna states that lucidity

Krishna states that, “he who remains disinterested, unmoved by qualities of nature, he never wavers knowing that only qualities are in motion” (122.23). Krishna explains that one must detach oneself from the qualities of nature in order to move beyond them. One must know and acknowledge they exist but be “unmoved” by them. Detachment is a key part of action throughout the book, as detached action is the way to obtain closeness with Krishna. The ability to move beyond the qualities is a key part of detachment, and one must transcend in order to act with