Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2, Verse 32

Chapter 2 – Sankhya Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् ।
सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥

Transliteration

yadṛcchayā copapannaṃ svargadvāramapāvṛtam .
sukhinaḥ kṣatriyāḥ pārtha labhante yuddhamīdṛśam ॥

Meaning

Happy indeed are the kshatriyas, O Partha, to whom such a war comes unsought, like an open door to heaven.

Word meanings

यदृच्छया – of its own accord, unsought
च – and
उपपन्नम् – come about
स्वर्गद्वारम् – the gate of heaven
अपावृतम् – opened wide
सुखिनः – fortunate, happy
क्षत्रियाः – kshatriyas
पार्थ – O Partha
लभन्ते – obtain
युद्धम् – war
ईदृशम् – such

Anvaya (word order)

पार्थ, यदृच्छया च उपपन्नम् अपावृतं स्वर्गद्वारम् ईदृशं युद्धं सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः लभन्ते ।

Explanation

Continuing the argument from svadharma, Krishna presents this war as a rare opportunity. You did not seek it, He says; it has come ‘yadricchaya’, of its own accord, through circumstances. And it is an open door to heaven.

According to the ancient warrior code, a warrior who fights bravely in a righteous war attains heaven. Krishna speaks here in terms of Arjuna's own traditional beliefs, which Arjuna himself knows and accepts. In Chapter 1 Arjuna feared that the war would lead to hell; Krishna turns this around, saying a righteous war opens the gate of heaven.

By saying ‘sukhinah kshatriyah’, fortunate are the warriors, Krishna points out that not everyone receives such an opportunity. A warrior's life finds its meaning in proving his dharma in exactly such a crisis.

It should be remembered that heaven is not the Gita's final goal. Later (2.42–2.46) Krishna will teach Arjuna to rise above even the desire for such rewards. Here He meets Arjuna at his own level, reasoning from his own convictions. In life too, when a hard responsibility arrives unasked, we should see it not as a burden but as a chance to prove our worth.

Context

In 2.31 Krishna said that nothing is higher for a kshatriya than a righteous war. Here He calls this war an open door to heaven. In the next verse (2.33) He describes what Arjuna would lose by refusing to fight.

Life lesson

When a demanding responsibility enters life unasked, see it as a fortunate opportunity. It is in such moments that character and ability are refined.

Key terms

Yadriccha: by chance, of its own accord
Svarga-dvara: the gate of heaven
Apavrita: wide open