The Chariot in the Middle of Two Armies

 

(Mahābhārata, Bhīṣma-parva, Chapters 25–42 — The Bhagavad Gītā)

The dawn of the eighteenth day before the great battle of Kurukṣetra began with conches and kettle-drums. Arjuna asked his charioteer Śrī Kṛṣṇa to halt their chariot between the two armies so he could look upon friend and foe alike.

Suddenly the mighty warrior’s bow Gāṇḍīva felt unbearably heavy. He saw grandsire Bhīṣma, his guru Droṇa, cousins, uncles, even childhood friends standing opposite him. Sorrow washed over him and he whispered,

“गाण्डीवं स्रंसते हस्तात् – Gāṇḍīva slips from my hand.
My skin burns; I can no longer stand, O Keśava.”

He slumped onto the seat, declaring he would not fight.

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Kṛṣṇa’s First Rebuke

Kṛṣṇa looked at Arjuna’s tear-streaked face and spoke sharply:

“क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ
न एतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते।”
“klaibyaṁ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha,
na etat tvayy upapadyate.”
“Yield not to unmanliness, O son of Pṛthā; it befits you not!”

Arjuna protested: how could slaughtering elders ever be righteous?

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The Teaching of the Immortal Self

Smiling, Kṛṣṇa began the immortal instruction later called Bhagavad Gītā:

“न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्नायं
भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः।” (2.20)
“The Self is never born, nor does It die; having once been, It never ceases to be.”

He reminded Arjuna that bodies perish but ātman remains unchanged. Therefore to fight for dharma is not to annihilate souls.

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The Law of Selfless Action

Seeing doubt linger, Kṛṣṇa revealed the secret of niṣkāma-karma:

“कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते
मा फलेषु कदाचन।
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा
ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥” (2.47)

“You have a right to action alone, never to its fruits.
Let not the fruits of action be your motive;
nor let your attachment be to inaction.”

Act because it is right, not because it profits you.

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The Cosmic Vision

To dispel every trace of fear, Kṛṣṇa granted Arjuna divya-cakṣus—divine sight. Arjuna beheld the Viśvarūpa, the cosmic form that contained suns, planets, and all warriors already destined to fall. Stunned, he folded his palms:

“नमो स्तु ते देव वर प्रसीद।”
“Salutations to You, O Supreme God—be gracious!”

Kṛṣṇa answered that He Himself descends age after age:

“यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य
ग्लानिर्भवति भारत…
तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम्।” (4.7)
“Whenever righteousness wanes and unrighteousness rises, I manifest Myself.”

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Arjuna Rises

Understanding flashed in Arjuna’s eyes. He lifted Gāṇḍīva and declared:

“नष्टो मोहः स्मृतिर्लब्धा
त्वत्प्रसादान्मयाच्युत।”
“My delusion is destroyed, memory restored, by Your grace, O Achyuta.”

The conch Devadatta sang once more, signaling battle joined—and with it the triumph of duty over doubt.

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Key Sanskrit Lines to Memorize

#	Sanskrit (Devanāgarī)	Transliteration	Core Meaning
1	क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ / न एतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते	klaibyaṁ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha	“Do not yield to weakness.”
2	न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचित्	na jāyate mriyate vā kadācit	“The Self is never born nor dies.”
3	कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन	karmaṇy-eva-adhikāras-te mā phaleṣu kadācana	“Your right is to action, never to its fruits.”
4	यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत	yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata	“Whenever righteousness declines…”
5	नष्टो मॊहः स्मृतिर्लब्धा	naṣṭo mohaḥ smṛtir labdhā	“My delusion is gone; memory regained.”

Memorize these five phrases; they capture the heart of Kṛṣṇa’s counsel—courage, immortality of the soul, selfless action, divine intervention for dharma, and enlightened resolve.