Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verse 35

Chapter 11 – Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga · Speaker: Sanjaya

Sanskrit verse

सञ्जय उवाच ।
एतच्छ्रुत्वा वचनं केशवस्य
कृताञ्जलिर्वेपमानः किरीटी ।
नमस्कृत्वा भूय एवाह कृष्णं
सगद्गदं भीतभीतः प्रणम्य ॥

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca .
etacchrutvā vacanaṃ keśavasya kṛtāñjalirvepamānaḥ kirīṭī .
namaskṛtvā bhūya evāha kṛṣṇaṃ sagadgadaṃ bhītabhītaḥ praṇamya ॥

Meaning

Sanjaya said: Hearing these words of Keshava, the diadem-wearing Arjuna, palms joined and trembling, bowed down; and overwhelmed with fear, prostrating himself once more, he spoke again to Krishna in a choked voice.

Word meanings

एतत् – this
श्रुत्वा – having heard
वचनम् – speech, words
केशवस्य – of Keshava (Krishna)
कृताञ्जलिः – with joined palms
वेपमानः – trembling
किरीटी – the diademed one, Arjuna
नमस्कृत्वा – having saluted
भूयः – again
एव – indeed
आह – said
कृष्णम् – to Krishna
सगद्गदम् – with a faltering, choked voice
भीतभीतः – utterly terrified
प्रणम्य – having bowed down

Anvaya (word order)

सञ्जयः उवाच — केशवस्य एतत् वचनम् श्रुत्वा किरीटी कृताञ्जलिः वेपमानः नमस्कृत्वा भीतभीतः प्रणम्य भूयः एव कृष्णम् सगद्गदम् आह ।

Explanation

After the Lord’s words — ‘I am Time’ and ‘be merely the instrument’ — Sanjaya takes up the thread of the story again and describes Arjuna’s condition to Dhritarashtra. The picture is deeply moving: Arjuna stands with joined palms, trembling, bowing again and again, his throat choked with feeling. The doubled word ‘bhita-bhitah’ conveys the intensity of his fear, while ‘sagadgadam’, with a faltering voice, shows that it is not fear alone but fear mingled with a surge of devotion.

Sanjaya calls Arjuna ‘Kiriti’ here, the wearer of the celestial diadem given to him by Indra. The contrast seems deliberate: the hero honoured by the gods, crowned with a divine diadem, now trembles like a child before the Lord. Before God every rank and honour shrinks. Shankara suggests that Sanjaya describes this scene in the hope that Dhritarashtra will understand: if the invincible Arjuna has the Lord Himself on his side, the Kauravas cannot win, and the king should turn towards peace.

The verse shows fear and devotion meeting. Arjuna has seen the Lord’s majesty, and the natural response to majesty is awe and dread. Yet he does not flee. He bows, and then opens his mouth in praise. This marks the beginning of Arjuna’s celebrated hymn in the verses that follow (36–46).

Context

In verses 32–34 the Lord revealed Himself as Time and urged Arjuna to fight. Now Sanjaya tells Dhritarashtra how Arjuna responded on hearing this. From the next verse Arjuna’s heartfelt hymn of praise begins.

Life lesson

Before the glory of God even the greatest hero becomes humble, and that humility is itself a mark of true greatness. When fear turns into surrender, it becomes devotion.

Key terms

Kiriti: the diademed one — Arjuna, named for the crown given by Indra
Kritanjali: with palms joined in reverence
Sagadgada: with a voice choked by emotion