Bhagavad-gétä As It

Is
Chapter 1 - Observing the Armies
 Chapter 1
Sainya-darçana: “Observing the Armies”
Also called
Arjuna-viñäda-yoga: “The Despondency of
Arjuna”
Chapter Outline:
1 Dåtaräñöra’s question
2-11 Duryodhana’s diplomacy
12-20 Signs of victory
21-26 Kåñëa as bhakta-vatsala
27-46 Arjuna’s doubts
 Signs of Victory (12-20)
Saïjaya describes various signs of victory for
the Päëòava army, especially the
transcendental sound of the conchshells of
Kåñëa and Arjuna, which shattered the hearts
of the sons of Dhåtaräñöra. From this section
we can take an important lesson regarding our
position in the material world. As Dhåtaräñöra
couldn’t see the imminent destruction of his
sons in spite of so many signs described by
Saïjaya, similarly, the conditioned soul, blind to
self realization, cannot see the inevitable
destruction of his “fallible soldiers”.
 tasya saïjanayan harñaà
kuru-våddhaù pitämahaù
siàha-nädaà vinadyoccaiù
çaìkhaà dadhmau pratäpavän

Then Bhéñma, the great valiant grandsire

of the Kuru dynasty, the grandfather of
the fighters, blew his conchshell very
loudly, making a sound like the roar of a
lion, giving Duryodhana joy.
 Bhéñma’s Response
Bhéñma did not answer Duryodhana’s words. Instead he
replied by blowing his conchshell, which meant: “Despite
your heroic words, victory or defeat lies in the Lord’s
hands. I will do my duty and lay down my life for your
sake, but that will not guarantee your victory.”
The conchshell, being a symbol of Viñëu, indicated that
Duryodhana had no chance of victory in the battle,
because Kåñëa, the origin of Viñëu, was present on the
opposing side.
Surrender Unto Me

PeA
Like Bhismadeva, we should understand that the results
are in Kåñëa’s hands, but we must perform our duties to
the best of our capacity: “Work as if everything
depends on you; pray as if everything depends on
 Bhéñmadeva
Bhéñma was a great
devotee of Kåñëa who, by
the inconceivable
arrangements of
providence, happened to
be fighting on
Duryodhana’s side.
At the end of the battle of
Kurukñetra he gave us
priceless instructions while
laying on the bed of
arrows.
Bhéñmadeva said:
On the battlefield, the flowing hair of Lord Kåñëa turned
ashen due to the dust raised by the hoofs of the horses. And
because of His labor, beads of sweat wetted His face. All
these decorations, intensified by the wounds dealt by my
sharp arrows, were enjoyed by Him. Let my mind thus go
unto Çré Kåñëa.
 Bhéñmadeva’s Transcendental
Relationship with Kåñëa
Çréla Prabhupäda explains in his purport to the
quoted verse (SB 1.9.34):
“Çré Bhéñmadeva is a great devotee of the
Lord in the relation of servitorship. Thus his
throwing of sharp arrows at the transcendental
body of the Lord is as good as the worship of
another devotee who throws soft roses upon
Him”… “The Lord enjoyed the wounds created
by His great devotee Bhéñmadeva, and
because Bhéñmadeva is a devotee in the
chivalrous relation, he fixes up his mind on
Kåñëa in that wounded condition”.
 kuru-våddhaù pitämahaù
SP’s Lect. BG 1.12 London 73: Not that the poor
soldiers would fight and the leaders would remain in a
secure place, no… Kuru-vrddha, the oldest man in
the dynasty, Kuru dynasty, pitmäha, he's the
grandfather of Arjuna and Duryodhana. Bhismadeva,
at such an old age also came. This is ksatriya spirit.

PeA
Similarly, we should not think that “Let someone do it,
I’ll stay in a safe position”. No, we should also come
forwards and fight for Kåñëa. When a devotee takes
risks to spread Kåñëa consciousness, both his
spiritual master and Kåñëa become very happy with
him.
 Çréla Prabhupäda’s Mood &
Mission
Once Prabhupäda’s was preparing to
fly to London, but because his health
was weak some of his senior disciples
were requesting him not to travel for
some time:

He turned to them and said with

complete clarity and gravity, "I
simply want the benediction, like
Arjuna, to fight for Kåñëa to the
last breath." He said it with such
deep conviction that we all fell
utterly silent in appreciation of
his full surrender to the Lord and
the great sacrifice he continues
to make in the service of Kåñëa,
for our and the world's benefit.

A Transcendental Diary, Vol 3

After that, the
conchshells, drums,
bugles, trumpets and
horns were all suddenly
sounded, and the
combined sound was
tumultuous.

On the other side, both

Lord Kåñëa and Arjuna,
stationed on a great
chariot drawn by white
horses, sounded their
transcendental
conchshells.

Bg 1.13-14
Arjuna’s Outstanding Position
• Kåñëa, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, had agreed to become his
charioteer.
• Agni had donated the chariot, Gäëòéva
bow, as well as Arjuna’s inexhaustible
quiver.
• Citraratha, the chief of the Gandharvas,
donated the beautiful white horses
• Indra/Maya Dänava had given him his
conchshell.
Kåñëa and His devotee Arjuna
are on the same platform.
Therefore Mädhava and
Päëòava blew Their
transcendental conchshells.
This is not ordinary...
Arjuna, as Kåñëa's associate,
is equally powerful. Nobody
can be an associate of Kåñëa
without being very, very
advanced. Just like fire can
mix with fire, similarly water
can mix with water; similarly,
unless one is transcendentally
advanced, he cannot be an
associate of Kåñëa.
Lect. BG 1.13-14 London 73
 More Signs of Victory
• çvetair hayair: Arjuna means, white, clear, “one of
pure deeds.” We can relate this to his white horses
(compared to purified senses).
• divyau çaìkhau: In contrast with the conchshell blown
by Bhéñmadeva, the conchshells in the hands of
Kåñëa and Arjuna are described as transcendental.
The sounding of the transcendental conchshells
indicated that there was no hope of victory for the
other side because Kåñëa was on the side of the
Päëòavas. Jayas tu päëòu-puträëäà yeñäà pakñe
janärdanaù.
• Mädhava: Whenever and wherever the Lord is
present, the goddess of fortune is also there because
the goddess of fortune never lives alone without her
husband.
 päïcajanyaà håñékeço
devadattaà dhanaïjayaù
pauëòraà dadhmau mahä-çaìkhaà
bhéma-karmä våkodaraù
Lord Kåñëa blew His conchshell, called Päïcajanya;
Arjuna blew his, the Devadatta; and Bhéma, the
voracious eater and performer of herculean tasks,
blew his terrific conchshell, called Pauëòra.

SP’s pp:
Lord Kåñëa is referred to as Håñékeça in this verse
because He is the owner of all senses. The living entities
are part and parcel of Him, and therefore the senses of
the living entities are also part and parcel of His
senses…
 Håñékeça
The Lord, situated in the
hearts of all living
entities, directs their
senses. But He directs in
terms of the surrender of
the living entity, and in
the case of a pure
devotee He directly
controls the senses.
 The Message of the
Conchshells
Thus the outstanding nature of the Päëdava
army is indicated:
“On the other side, however, there were no
such credits, nor the presence of Lord
Kåñëa, the supreme director, nor that of the
goddess of fortune. So they were
predestined to lose the battle—and that was
the message announced by the sounds of
the conchshells.”

SP’s pp, 15
 Dåtaräñöra’s Responsibility
16-18 King Yudhiñöhira, the son of Kunté, blew his
conchshell, the Ananta-vijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew
the Sughoña and Maëipuñpaka. That great archer the King of
Käçé, the great fighter Çikhaëòé, Dhåñöadyumna, Viräöa, the
unconquerable Sätyaké, Drupada, the sons of Draupadé, and
the others, O King, such as the mighty-armed son of
Subhadrä, all blew their respective conchshells.

• påthivé-pate (lord of the earth): Indicates Dhåtaräñöra’s

responsibility for the destruction of the dynasty.
• SP’s pp: Saïjaya informed King Dhåtaräñöra very tactfully that
his unwise policy of deceiving the sons of Päëòu and
endeavoring to enthrone his own sons was not very laudable.
The signs already clearly indicated that the whole Kuru dynasty
would be killed in that great battle. Beginning with the grandsire,
Bhéñma, down to the grandsons like Abhimanyu and others—
including kings from many states of the world—all were present
there, and all were doomed. The whole catastrophe was due to
King Dhåtaräñöra, because he encouraged the policy followed
by his sons.
 Becoming Fearless Under
Kåñëa’s Shelter
19 The blowing of these different conchshells
became uproarious. Vibrating both in the sky and on
the earth, it shattered the hearts of the sons of
Dhåtaräñöra.

SP’s pp: When Bhéñma and the others on the side of

Duryodhana blew their respective conchshells, there was
no heart-breaking on the part of the Päëòavas. Such
occurrences are not mentioned, but in this particular
verse it is mentioned that the hearts of the sons of
Dhåtaräñöra were shattered by the sounds vibrated by
the Päëòavas' party. This is due to the Päëòavas and
their confidence in Lord Kåñëa. One who takes shelter
of the Supreme Lord has nothing to fear, even in the
midst of the greatest calamity.
 Becoming Fearless Under
Kåñëa’s Shelter

Personal Aplication:
In pairs, share your realizations of
a situation in your life when you felt
fearless by taking shelter of Kåñëa.
 kapi-dhvajaù
20 At that time Arjuna, the son of Päëòu, seated in
the chariot bearing the flag marked with Hanumän,
took up his bow and prepared to shoot his arrows. O
King, after looking at the sons of Dhåtaräñöra drawn
in military array, Arjuna then spoke to Lord Kåñëa
these words.

SP’s pp: The emblem of Hanumän on the flag of Arjuna

is another sign of victory because Hanumän cooperated
with Lord Räma in the battle between Räma and
Rävaëa, and Lord Räma emerged victorious. Now both
Räma and Hanumän were present on the chariot of
Arjuna to help him.

(Read meeting of Bhéma and Hanumän in SUM)

Nowadays, every nation has
a different type of flag.
Arjuna also had his flag on
the top of his chariot and it
was marked with Hanumän,
who fought for Lord
Rämacandra.
He is fighting for Kåñëa. So
he is also following the
footsteps of Vajrängaji.
Vaisnavism is like that.
Mahäjano yena gataù sa
panthäù. Vaisnava should
follow his previous authority.
 Conclusion
So, in spite of all auspicious signs on the Päëòava’s side, Dhåtaräñöra
couldn’t see it. Similarly, spiritually blind people can’t appreciate the all
auspicious path of devotional service, nor do they acknowledge the futility
of material life, which is doomed in all respects. As explained in the SB
and Mahäbhärata:
SB 2.1.4
dehäpatya-kalaträdiñv ätma-sainyeñv asatsv api
teñäà pramatto nidhanaà paçyann api na paçyati
“Persons devoid of ätma-tattva do not inquire into the problems of life,
being too attached to the fallible soldiers like the body, children and wife.
Although sufficiently experienced, they still do not see their inevitable
destruction.”

Mahäbhärata (Vana-parva 313.116)

ahany ahani bhütäni gacchantéha yamälayam
çeñäù sthävaram icchanti kim äçcaryam ataù param
"Day after day countless living entities in this world go to the kingdom of
The Chariot of the Body
Following in Arjuna’s Footsteps -
PeA
From our part, we should try to put ourselves in a position similar to Arjuna’s,
accepting all auspicious elements for our devotional service:

• First of all, we should take to Kåñëa’s side (give up material life);

• Then, accept residence in a holy place, or make the place we reside holy
(Dharma-kñetre);
• Purify our senses by devotional service (white horses);
• Make our body a temple for the Lord (transcendental chariot);
• Become absorbed in transcendental sound vibration (divya-çaìkha)
• Ask Kåñëa to kindly take His seat in our heart (Pärtha-särathi);
• Give the reins (mind) in Kåñëa’s hands and ask Him to guide our life
(Håñékeça);
• Use everything in Krsna’s service (As Arjuna used his divine weapons);
• Be ready to fight for Kåñëa, following in the footsteps of previous äcäryas
(kapi-dhvajaù)
• Surrender to Kåñëa and aks for instructions (as Arjuna in Bg 2.7);
• Listen to Kåñëa’s instructions carefully (as Kåñëa requests in 7.1);
• Declare like Arjuna: ‘kariñye vacanam tava’(Bg 18.73).
• Book distribution (shooting arrows)
• Engage our resources in Krsna’s service ( Laksmi)
• Declare war agaist Maya
 Objectives
Understanding:
• Identified the signs of victory of the
Pandavas. (Bhagavad-gétä 1.12-20)
Personal Aplication:
• Discussed how to become fearless by taking
shelter of Kåñëa.
• Discussed the relevance of Arjuna’s depicting
his flag with Hanumän. (Bhagavad-gétä 1.20)
• Discussed how to bring signs of victory into
our lives, following in Arjuna’s footsteps.
This is Vaiñëavism
So any activities of the
Vaiñëava, they should
always pray to the
previous äcärya, “Kindly
help me. Kindly...”
This is Vaiñëava, always
thinking himself
helpless, helpless. And
begging help from the
previous äcärya.

Bhagavad-gétä 1.20
London, July 17, 1973