Bhagavad Gita BG 1.46
Chapter 1, Verse 46 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
यदि मामप्रतीकारमशस्त्रं शस्त्रपाणयः । धार्तराष्ट्रा रणे हन्युस्तन्मे क्षेमतरं भवेत् ॥ ४६ ॥
yadi mām apratīkāram aśastraṃ śastra-pāṇayaḥ dhārtarāṣṭrā raṇe hanyus tan me kṣema-taraṃ bhavet
Meaning
If the armed sons of Dhritarashtra were to kill me in battle — unarmed and unresisting — that would be better for me.
Understanding
Arjuna reaches his ultimate conclusion: it would be better for him to be killed unarmed and without resistance than to kill his kinsmen. This is the nadir of his warrior identity — the great Arjuna, the greatest archer of his age, says he would rather die as a passive victim than fight. Some commentators see a faint nobility here (the willingness to die rather than sin); others see the final triumph of grief over reason. Krishna will address both aspects in his teaching.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| अप्रतीकारम् | apratīkāram | without resistance / without fighting back |
| अशस्त्रम् | aśastram | unarmed / without weapons |
| शस्त्रपाणयः | śastra-pāṇayaḥ | the armed ones / those with weapons in hand |
| हन्युः | hanyuḥ | were to kill / should kill |
| क्षेमतरम् | kṣema-taram | better / more auspicious / more conducive to welfare |
| यदि | yadi | if (conditional) |
| माम् | mām | me |
| धार्तराष्ट्राः | dhārtarāṣṭrāḥ | the sons of Dhritarashtra (Kauravas) |
| रणे | raṇe | in battle / in the fight |
| तत् | tat | that (outcome) |
| मे | me | for me / to me |
| भवेत् | bhavet | would be / might be |