Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1

As we have mentioned in the introduction, Bhagavad Gita is a conversation between Lord Krishna and one of the Pandavas, Arjun. This conversation happens at the verge of Mahabharat or when the war was about to begin.

Today we will start with the first chapter of Bhagavad Gita, a conversation between King Dhritarashtra and his minister Sanjay.

Dhritarashtra was blind, so he couldn’t see what was happening in the war field. But, being in Hastinapur, the King was eager to know the happenings. That is where he called his minister Sanjay who was possessed to see and hear events taking place at distant places. Using the miraculous power of Sanjay, Dhritarashtra asked him to describe the battleground and pass information about the opponent team and mainly Krishna and Arjun.

Dhritarashtra shows the desire to know things that the Kaurava sons and Pandava son were doing on the battlefield.

Sanjay told the King that the Pandava army is standing like military, and King Duryodhan went to his Guru Dronacharya.

Duryodhan said to Dronacharya, Hey Guru, the army of Pandavas is so strategically arranged by your disciple, the son of Drupad.

He further said they have many powerful warriors like Bheem and Arjun. They have the best men like Dhrishtaketu, Chekitan, the gallant King of Kashi, Purujit, Kuntibhoj, and Shaibya. Also, they have mighty bows and weapons!

O best of Brahmins, we too have the generals in our army who are especially qualified.

We have people like Bheeshma, Karna, Kripa, Ashwatthama, and more who always remain victorious.

The heroic warriors won’t think twice before giving life to me. All my men are skilled and experienced with different kinds of weapons.

We have a much bigger army, and we excel in strength too. Grandsire Bheeshma is there to organize and order us while the opponent team has marshal of Bheem only.

Therefore, I now call all the generals of the Kaurava army and tell them to give their fullest support to our Grandsire Bheeshma against your strategic points.

Listening to this, the glorious and powerful father Bheeshma filled his lungs with utmost strength and blew the conch so loudly like a lion’s roar, as Duryodhana wanted.

Afterward, in sync, the conches, kettledrums, bugles, trumpets, and every musical instrument there was played that the sound was extremely overwhelming.

Then in the team of Pandavas, Madhav and Arjun blew their Divine conch shells. Both were seated in a glorious chariot led by beautiful and mesmerizing white horses. Upon which all the Pandavas, five sons of Draupadi, and all the Kings blew their almighty conch shells.

It was such a terrific sound that went even to the sky and thundered the earth that the hearts of your sons got shattered, O Dhritarashtra.

After this, Arjun having the Hanuman on the flag of his chariot, took his mighty bow and pointed toward the opponent’s army. Meanwhile, Arjun spoke the following words to Krishna.

O Krishna, please take the chariot in the middle of the field to see all the warriors on the battlefield and see all the people against whom I would fight in this great war.

Sanjay said: O Dhritarashtra, hearing these words from Arjun, Krishna drew the magnificent chariot forward and stood it in the middle of the field.

There were Bheeshma, Dronacharya, and all the other kings that Krishna told Arjun to observe.

Arjun could see his fathers, grandfathers, gurus, sons, nephews, grand-nephews, friends, and other well-wishers from the middle of the ground.

Arjun was filled up with joy and compassion seeing his every loved one on the battlefield. However, he also realized a deep sorrow seeing all his kinsmen standing on the battlefield, ready to kill each other. Such sorrow Arjun expressed to Krishna.

Arjun further said O Krishna, seeing my brothers and fathers having desire to kill each other, my mouth is drying. My limbs are shaking, and my bow is slipping from my hands.

My whole body is shivering and having goosebumps. My skin feels like burning, and I am in deep confusion; I do not want to be a killer; how can I kill my own brothers and family.

O Krishna, I do not want this victory that comes from killing my own people. I do not want this happiness and such a kingdom where the throne is built of the corpses of my own relatives. What is the use of such victory when no one would be there to celebrate it with me?

Even if they are the great sinners, the sin of killing them will destroy us. I don’t want such sin on my head, and what will I answer to God after departing from this world.

They are all dipped in greed, and they don’t see anything but the kingdom. However, we don’t have to kill them to win it all; let them be and let them take everything, Krishna.

Arjun further said to Krishna that when a dynasty is destroyed, the rest of the family has to suffer, and it becomes irreligious. The family corrupts, and the women get bound to unwanted progeny.

These unwanted descendants destroy the values of the family, and they destroy the traditions. It all ruins the variety of social and family welfare activities. O Krishna, I have also heard that those who destroy family traditions go to hell and suffer there for an endless time.

We should not have set our minds for such a war that destroys the dynasties. Such war would not give any pleasure. Hence it is better if the enemies kill me and take over the throne.

Sanjay further said that speaking this, Arjun drops his bow and arrows in the chariot and sinks himself into the seat of the chariot with a mind having thousands of questions and grief.