Sanskrit
अग्निर्ज्योतिरहः शुक्लः षण्मासा उत्तरायणम् । तत्र प्रयाता गच्छन्ति ब्रह्म ब्रह्मविदो जनाः ॥
agnir jyotir ahaḥ śuklaḥ ṣaṇmāsā uttarāyaṇam tatra prayātā gacchanti brahma brahmavido janāḥ
Translation
Fire, light, day-time, the bright fortnight, the six months of the northern path—then, going forth, the men who know the Eternal go to the Eternal.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
The first of the two paths: fire, light, daytime, the bright fortnight, the six months of the sun’s northern course (uttarayana) — traveling by this route, those who know brahman go to brahman, without return. The symbolism runs consistently toward brightness and increase, and verse 25 builds its mirror image out of exactly the opposite associations.