Bhagavad Gita BG 1.37
Chapter 1, Verse 37 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
तस्मान्नार्हा वयं हन्तुं धार्तराष्ट्रान्स्वबान्धवान् । स्वजनं हि कथं हत्वा सुखिनः स्याम माधव ॥ ३७ ॥
tasmān nārhā vayaṃ hantuṃ dhārtarāṣṭrān svabāndhavān svajanam hi kathaṃ hatvā sukhinaḥ syāma mādhava
Meaning
Therefore we are not justified in killing Dhritarashtra's sons, our own kinsmen. O Madhava, how could we be happy after slaying our own people?
Understanding
Arjuna's moral argument crystallises: we are not justified (na arhāḥ) in killing our own kin. He poses a rhetorical question that is genuinely profound — how could we be happy (sukhinaḥ) after killing our own people? This question anticipates one of the Gita's central teachings: true happiness does not come from possessions or power but from a deeper source. Arjuna's question is right; only his conclusion is wrong.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| तस्मात् | tasmāt | therefore |
| न अर्हाः | na arhāḥ | not justified / not worthy |
| स्वबान्धवान् | svabāndhavān | our own kinsmen |
| सुखिनः | sukhinaḥ | happy / content |
| माधव | mādhava | O Madhava — Krishna (lord of fortune) |
| वयम् | vayam | we |
| हन्तुम् | hantum | to kill / to slay |
| धार्तराष्ट्रान् | dhārtarāṣṭrān | the sons of Dhritarashtra |
| हि | hi | indeed / for (causal particle) |
| कथम् | katham | how / in what way |
| हत्वा | hatvā | having slain / by killing |
| स्याम | syāma | would we be / could we be |