If Time Heals Everything, Why Do Some Wounds Stay? The Gita's Answers

कालः सर्वभूतानि भूतानि भावयति च।
(Time creates and dissolves all beings.) — Bhagavad Gita 11.32

We've all heard it: "Time heals all wounds." Yet, in the quiet spaces of our hearts, some aches remain — untouched by the years, unmoved by the seasons. If time is so powerful, why do some pains refuse to dissolve? Why do certain scars feel as fresh today as they did long ago?
The Bhagavad Gita offers a profound and silent answer. It does not shout it across the pages. Instead, it whispers it, in between the lines of wisdom, duty, and devotion — asking us to look beyond time itself.
The Gita explains that healing is not the work of time alone. Time merely provides the space for healing. It is the purification of consciousness — the internal awareness of the self (Atman) — that actually repairs wounds.
Without introspection and spiritual realization, time becomes just an endless loop, not a balm. Pain lingers because consciousness remains attached to the suffering rather than transcending it.

One of the strongest teachings of the Gita is the binding force of Moha — delusion and emotional attachment. When the mind is tied too deeply to outcomes, relationships, or identities, the wounds associated with them persist.
Time flows, but attachment freezes the emotional experience, looping the mind back into old griefs. Thus, some wounds stay because the chain of attachment remains unbroken.
The Gita speaks extensively of Ahamkara — the false self, or ego. Wounds that touch our pride, identity, or sense of self are particularly resistant to healing.
The ego holds on to pain as a way of justifying its existence, constantly reinforcing the narrative of being wronged, broken, or incomplete. Healing begins only when identification with the ego weakens and the soul recognizes its eternal nature beyond temporary experiences.
Desires are natural, but unfulfilled desires can morph into deep sorrow, says the Gita.
When wounds arise from unachieved aspirations or broken dreams, time cannot erase them until the underlying desire is either fulfilled or relinquished. The more intense the desire, the deeper the wound embeds itself in memory.
Thus, not all wounds are time-sensitive; they are desire-sensitive.
The Gita’s central teaching of Karma Yoga — action without attachment to the fruits — offers another key.
When actions are done with heavy expectation or emotional investment in the outcome, any resulting disappointment can scar the psyche. Without practicing detached action, people remain entangled in their karmic reactions, allowing emotional wounds to sustain across years and even lifetimes.
In the deeper philosophy of the Gita, there is the concept of Samskaras — subtle impressions left on the soul from past actions across many births.
Some pains do not originate in this life at all but are carried impressions seeking resolution. In such cases, time in one lifetime is not enough to heal what was accumulated over many. Healing comes only through deep spiritual purification and realization of the soul’s true identity.
The Gita repeats the truth: You are not the body, nor the mind — you are the eternal Atman.
Wounds stay when we live in ignorance of this reality, believing ourselves to be the sum of our temporary experiences. Pain clings to the false identity, while the true self remains untouched. Real healing begins when knowledge of the Atman dawns, naturally reducing the power of emotional wounds.
The Gita does not endorse passivity. It teaches that healing is a conscious, disciplined journey.
Meditation (Dhyana), devotion (Bhakti), disciplined action (Tapasya), and self-inquiry (Vichara) are all active paths to transform suffering into wisdom. Time only opens the door; the soul must walk through it with awareness, courage, and surrender.
The Gita, in its quiet yet mighty voice, reveals that time is not the healer — awareness is. Time merely offers the soil. It is up to the soul to plant the seeds of wisdom, detachment, and devotion.
Pain that stays is a messenger, not a mistake. It points to something unlearned, something unintegrated within.
Rather than waiting for time to wash away sorrow like a tide, the Gita urges us to step within, look at the wound, and recognize:
"I am not this pain. I am the witness. I am the eternal soul."

When the soul awakens to its true nature, even the deepest wounds lose their sharpness. They remain, perhaps, as quiet lessons — but not as prisons.
In this silent revolution of consciousness, true healing occurs — not because time moves, but because we do.

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