Bhagavad Gita 8.25
धूमो रात्रिस्तथा कृष्णः षण्मासा दक्षिणायनम् | तत्र चान्द्रमसं ज्योतिर्योगी प्राप्य निवर्तते ||
dhūmo rātris tathā kṛṣṇaḥ ṣaṇ-māsā dakṣiṇāyanam | tatra cāndramasaṁ jyotir yogī prāpya nivartate ||
Translation
Smoke, night, the dark fortnight, the six months of the sun's southern path, the yogi departing then attains the lunar light and returns.
Reflection
Where have you been settling for partial light when fuller was possible?
Read this verse in its chapter: Chapter Eight
The dark path. Smoke, night, the waning fortnight, the six months of the sun's southern course. The yogi who departs at these times reaches the moon's light and returns. The picture is again qualitative. Smoke, not fire. Night, not day. Waning, not waxing. The departure is in a partial light, and the partial light gives only a partial result. The man reaches the lunar realm, enjoys the merit, and is returned. The verse is not punitive. It is descriptive. The departure matches what the man has built. The yogi who has built only smoke leaves in smoke. The verse is a quiet call to build the other.