Arjuna asked, "Krishna! Tell me when the body has to be yielded to death, so that one can escape the cycle of birth and death; tell me also which period of time one should avoid." Krishna replied, "Partha! Your question is very timely and urgent. Sometimes, you make Me marvel at your intelligence and you make Me very happy. At other times, you make Me laugh at your ignorance. Your egoism and sense of attachment cause this confusion. Let that pass. Let us come to your question."

"The Yogis who practise Nish-kama-karma pass away in Tejas, during day, while there is light, in the bright half of the month, and in the six month period of Uttarayana. They have as their first state Agni or fire. Hence, their path is known as Devayana, or since Agni is known also as Archi in the Vedas, Archiraadimarga. Such Yogis emerge from Prakaasa (effulgence) and travelling through Prakaasa they merge in Prakaasa itself. They attain Brahmam and are not born again."

"The Yogis who practise Sa-kama-karma pass away in Dhuma (smoke) at night, during the dark half of the month during the six months of Dakshinayana; they pass along Dhumadi-marga and reach Swarga or heaven and there enjoy the pleasures they have yearned for and worked for; when the stock of merit is exhausted, they get born again."

"Both these categories of men are called Yogis; they will exist so long as aspirants and active progressive individuals exist in the world."

"Here, a doubt may reasonably arise: How is it that the bright half of the month is auspicious, while the dark half is not? What, again, is to happen to those who die, when it is neither bright nor dark, neither day nor night? This is a legitimate doubt and everyone has a right to know the answer."

"Now you must first understand what is meant by Sukla Paksha or the bright fortnight. It is the half-month when the light of the moon increases day by day. But what is the relationship of the light of the moon to man and his death? The moon is the symbol of the mind of man. 'Chandramaa manaso jaathah; out of the moon was the Manas (mind) born.' The bright half of the moon, therefore signifies the progress of the mind spiritually, in divine discipline; the full-moon signifies the fullness of that achievement. The bright half is, thus, the period when spiritual progress is attained. For the body, the visible moon; for the mind, the symbolic moon-deity presiding over the mind! The increasing splendour of the mind due to the increasing realisation of one's own divinity is what is meant by the word, 'Suklapaksha'."

"And what of Uttarayana? Be free from doubt on that score, too. Worship offered knowing the meaning of every rite, Sadhana practised knowing the implications of every step, these cleanse the heart more effectively, and loosen the chains of doubt.