Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 8: The Imperishable Absolute

Bhagavad Gita 8.23

yatra kāle tvanāvṛttimāvṛttiṃ caiva yoginaḥ | prayātā yānti taṃ kālaṃ vakṣyāmi bharatarṣabha ||

I will now tell you, best of the Bharatas, of the times at which yogis depart and do not return, and of the times at which they depart and return.

Modern context

Krishna now turns to an old teaching from the Upanishads about the two paths the departed take, one of no return and one of return. It uses the imagery of times and seasons. Many commentators read these not as literal calendar dates but as symbols for inner states: light and clarity on one side, smoke and obscurity on the other. The question underneath is simple. Is a person's life oriented toward the light, or toward the shadows?