Bhagavad Gītā › Chapter 2 › Verse 19
Bhagavad Gītā 2.19: The self is never harmed
य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् ।
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥
ya enaṃ vetti hantāraṃ yaścainaṃ manyate hatam
ubhau tau na vijānīto nāyaṃ hanti na hanyate
Recitation: NehalDaveND (Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 4.0, adapted, original recording
Meaning
One who thinks this self a slayer and one who thinks it slain, both fail to understand: it neither slays nor is slain. The verse speaks of the self (ātman), not of bodies and actions in the world, which remain subject to dharma; the Kaṭha Upaniṣad contains a closely parallel verse.
For children
Krishna says: “The real you deep inside can never be hurt, and it never hurts anyone. If someone thinks it can, they don’t understand yet.”
Kṛṣṇa continues to answer Arjuna’s grief about the people he may have to face in battle.
Word by word
य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं — Whoever thinks this self can harm
- enam: this (the self)
- vetti: knows, thinks
- hantṛ: one who kills
यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् — or thinks it can be harmed
- manyate: thinks
- hata: killed
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो — neither of them understands
- ubhau: both
- vijānītaḥ: the two understand
नायं हन्ति न हन्यते — it does not destroy, and it is not destroyed
- ayam: this one
- hanti: kills
- hanyate: is killed
Kṛṣṇa speaks this verse. The Sanskrit is checked against four editions; meanings and word notes are simple learning aids written for MahaPrabha Gurukul, awaiting review by a Sanskrit teacher.