Chapter 1Verse 9 of 47

Bhagavad Gita 1.9

अन्ये च बहवः शूरा मदर्थे त्यक्तजीविताः । नानाशस्त्रप्रहरणाः सर्वे युद्धविशारदाः ॥

anye ca bahavaḥ śūrā mad-arthe tyakta-jīvitāḥ | nānā-śastra-praharaṇāḥ sarve yuddha-viśāradāḥ ||

Translation

And many other heroes, ready to give up their lives for my sake, armed with various weapons, all skilled in war.

Mad-arthe. For my sake. The whole war, the whole century of family rupture, the eleven akshauhinis of soldiers about to die, get a single owner here. Duryodhana names what no one is supposed to say out loud in front of one's teacher: that the men around him are dying not for dharma, not for kingdom, but for him. The honesty of it is almost moving. A person under enough pressure tells the truth by accident.

Reflection

What are people in your life carrying quietly so you don't have to?

Read this verse in its chapter: Chapter One

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