Acts which are expressions of Dharma are deathless and only those who know that they are deathless can perform them. That is the highest destiny of man. Instead of reaching it, he is intent on doing acts against Dharma. Man is everywhere degrading himself from his status as a child of eternity to the status of a child of Futility, from an Amrithaputhra to an Anrithaputhra! Holding nectar in the grasp, he is drinking the poison of sensual pleasure. Neglecting the joy of the contemplation of the fundamental Atmic reality of the Universe, he is entangling himself in the external trappings of this objective world or appearances. One can only bewail that this fate has overwhelmed man!

In the Gita too it is declared "I am the bliss of Brahmam, of Positive Immortality, of Timeless Dharma, and Eternal Bliss". The sloka is in the XIV Chapter:

Brahmanohi prathishta - aham amrithasya avyayasya cha
Saaswathasya cha dharmasya sukhasya - aikaanthikasya cha

It is this Amrithadharma that is described in the Upanishads and since the Gita is the kernel of the Upanishads, the same is emphasised in the Gita too. The Dharmic way of life is as the very breath: It is the road to self-relisation. Those who walk along it are dear to the Lord; He dwells with all who are truthful, whose deeds spring from Dharma. That is the reason why the Gita teaches Arjuna to develop certain qualities, which help the practice of Atmic Dharma. These are delineated in slokas 13 to 19 of the XII Chapter. Those who have drunk deep at the fountain of the Gita will remember these. The most important of the slokas in this context is:

Ye thu dharmyaamritham idam yathoktham Paryupaasathe
Sraddhadhaanaa math paramaa bhakthaasthe atheeva math priyaah

What a grand idea this sloka conveys! That is the concluding sloka of the series which gives the qualities one has to develop. It calls the entire group Dharmyaamritham, the Dharmic way to immortality! The Lord has declared therein that those who have these qualities, those who trust in Him as the only ultimate Goal, those who are attached to Him as the single-mindedly are dearest and nearest to Him.