BHAGAVAD-GITA 1:28

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 1:28

 

arjuna uvaca

drstvemam sva-janam krsna

yuyutsum samupasthitam

sidanti mama gatrani

mukham ca parisusyati

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

arjunah uvaca--Arjuna said; drstva--after seeing; imam--all these; sva

janam--kinsmen; krsna--O Krsna; yuyutsum--all in a fighting spirit;

samupasthitam--present; sidanti--are quivering; mama--my;

gatrani--limbs of the body; mukham--mouth; ca--also; parisusyati--is

drying up.

 

TRANSLATION

 

Arjuna said: My dear Krsna, seeing my friends and relatives present

before me in such a fighting spirit, I feel the limbs of my body

quivering and my mouth drying up.

 

PURPORT

 

Any man who has genuine devotion to the Lord has all the good

qualities which are found in godly persons or in the demigods, whereas

the nondevotee, however advanced he may be in material qualifications

by education and culture, lacks in godly qualities. As such, Arjuna,

just after seeing his kinsmen, friends and relatives on the

battlefield, was at once overwhelmed by compassion for them who had so

decided to fight amongst themselves. As far as his soldiers were

concerned, he was sympathetic from the beginning, but he felt

compassion even for the soldiers of the opposite party, foreseeing

their imminent death. And while he was so thinking, the limbs of his

body began to quiver, and his mouth became dry. He was more or less

astonished to see their fighting spirit. Practically the whole

community, all blood relatives of Arjuna, had come to fight with him.

This overwhelmed a kind devotee like Arjuna. Although it is not

mentioned here, still one can easily imagine that not only were

Arjuna's bodily limbs quivering and his mouth drying up, but he was

also crying out of compassion. Such symptoms in Arjuna were not due to

weakness but to his softheartedness, a characteristic of a pure

devotee of the Lord. It is said therefore:

 

yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincana

sarvair gunais tatra samasate surah

harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-guna

mano-rathenasati dhavato bahih

 

"One who has unflinching devotion for the Personality of Godhead has all the

good qualities of the demigods. But one who is not a devotee of the

Lord has only material qualifications that are of little value. This

is because he is hovering on the mental plane and is certain to be

attracted by the glaring material energy." (SB. 5.18.12)

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.