Bhagavad Gītā › Chapter 2 › Verse 35
Bhagavad Gītā 2.35: What others will think
भयाद्रणादुपरतं मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः ।
येषां च त्वं बहुमतो भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् ॥
bhayādraṇāduparataṃ maṃsyante tvāṃ mahārathāḥ
yeṣāṃ ca tvaṃ bahumato bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam
Recitation: NehalDaveND (Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 4.0, adapted, original recording
Meaning
The great chariot-warriors will think you withdrew from battle out of fear, and you will be held lightly by those who once esteemed you. Kṛṣṇa points out that Arjuna’s compassionate motive would not be visible to others; his withdrawal would be read as cowardice.
For children
Krishna says: “If you leave now, the other brave warriors will think you ran away because you were scared.”
Kṛṣṇa continues: Arjuna’s fellow warriors would not see his compassion, only his retreat.
Word by word
भयाद्रणादुपरतं — That you left the battle out of fear
- bhaya: fear
- raṇa: battle
- uparata: withdrawn
मंस्यन्ते त्वां महारथाः — is what the great warriors will think
- maṃsyante: will think
- mahāratha: great chariot-warrior
येषां च त्वं बहुमतो — and those who held you in high regard
- bahumata: highly esteemed
भूत्वा यास्यसि लाघवम् — will now think little of you
- yāsyasi: you will go to
- lāghava: lightness, being thought little of
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.