Bhagavad Gītā › Chapter 3 › Verse 35
Bhagavad Gītā 3.35: Your own path
श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् ।
स्वधर्मे निधनं श्रेयः परधर्मो भयावहः ॥
śreyānsvadharmo viguṇaḥ paradharmātsvanuṣṭhitāt
svadharme nidhanaṃ śreyaḥ paradharmo bhayāvahaḥ
Recitation: NehalDaveND (Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 4.0, adapted, original recording
Meaning
Better one’s own dharma, though imperfect, than the dharma of another well performed; better even death in one’s own dharma, for another’s dharma is fraught with fear. For Arjuna, a warrior thinking of a mendicant’s life (2.5), this is pointed advice: authenticity to one’s own calling outweighs a borrowed perfection.
For children
Krishna says: “It’s better to do your own job, even if it isn’t perfect, than to copy someone else’s job.”
Kṛṣṇa brings 3.33–3.34 back to Arjuna: follow your own dharma.
Word by word
श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः — Better is your own path, even done imperfectly
- śreyān: better
- svadharma: one’s own duty or path
- viguṇa: imperfect
परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् — than another’s path, done well
- paradharma: another’s duty or path
- svanuṣṭhita: well performed
स्वधर्मे निधनं श्रेयः — better to give everything on your own path
- nidhana: death, the end
- śreyas: better
परधर्मो भयावहः — another’s path brings fear
- bhayāvaha: bringing fear
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.