Bhagavad Gita BG 2.11
Chapter 2, Verse 11 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
श्रीभगवानुवाच । अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे । गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥ ११ ॥
śrī bhagavān uvāca aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṃ prajñā-vādāṃś ca bhāṣase gatāsūn agatāsūṃś ca nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ
Meaning
The Blessed Lord said: You grieve for those who are not to be grieved for, yet you speak words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the living nor for the dead.
Understanding
This is Krishna's first philosophical statement — and it cuts to the heart. He tells Arjuna: you grieve for the wrong things (aśocyān — those not worthy of grief), yet you speak as if you were wise (prajñā-vādān). The wise (paṇḍitāḥ) grieve for neither the living (agatāsūn) nor the dead (gatāsūn). Why? Because the soul is eternal — neither born nor dying. This single verse announces the entire philosophical framework of the Sankhya teaching that follows.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| अशोच्यान् | aśocyān | those not worthy of grief / those not to be grieved for |
| अन्वशोचः | anvaśocaḥ | you are grieving / you lament |
| प्रज्ञावादान् | prajñā-vādān | words of wisdom / learned speech |
| गतासून् | gatāsūn | those who have died / the dead (gone-life-force) |
| अगतासून् | agatāsūn | the living (not-yet-gone-life-force) |
| पण्डिताः | paṇḍitāḥ | the wise / the learned |
| श्रीभगवान् उवाच | śrī bhagavān uvāca | The Blessed Lord said (speaker attribution) |
| त्वम् | tvam | you (subject) |
| च | ca | and / yet (conjunction) |
| भाषसे | bhāṣase | you speak / you utter |
| न अनुशोचन्ति | nānuśocanti | do not grieve / do not mourn |