Bhagavad Gita 10.38
दण्डो दमयतामस्मि नीतिरस्मि जिगीषताम् | मौनं चैवास्मि गुह्यानां ज्ञानं ज्ञानवतामहम् ||
daṇḍo damayatām asmi nītir asmi jigīṣatām | maunaṁ caivāsmi guhyānāṁ jñānaṁ jñānavatām aham ||
Translation
Among controllers I am the rod of punishment. Among the conquering, statecraft. Among secrets I am silence. Among the knowing, knowledge.
Reflection
What is the rod and what is the silence you need today?
Read this verse in its chapter: Chapter Ten
Four more, drawn from political and contemplative life. The danda, the rod of punishment, among those who restrain. Niti, statecraft, among those who would conquer. Silence among secrets. Knowledge among the knowers. The first two will surprise the same reader who was troubled by gambling. Krishna does not flinch from political vibhutis. The proper use of force and the proper use of strategy both belong to His list. The last two are the contemplative pair. Silence is the deepest of secrets because the deepest things are not transmissible by words and have to be received in stillness. Knowledge among the knowing is the inward principle the chapter has been pointing to throughout. The verse runs a complete arc inside its two lines, from the rod that rules a kingdom to the silence that rules a self.