Sanskrit
एतच्छ्रुत्वा वचनं केशवस्य कृताञ्जलिर्वेपमानः किरीटी । नमस्कृत्वा भूय एवाह कृष्णम् सगद्गदं भीतभीतः प्रणम्य ॥
etac chrutvā vacanaṃ keśavasya kṛtāñjalir vepamānaḥ kirīṭī namaskṛtvā bhūya evāha kṛṣṇam sagadgadaṃ bhītabhītaḥ praṇamya
Translation
Having heard these words of Keshava, he who weareth a diadem, with joined palms, quaking and prostrating himself, spake again to Krishna, stammering with fear, casting down his face.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
Sanjaya’s narrating voice returns, last heard at verse 14, and the framing device it re-establishes matters here: this report of trembling and stammering speech is being relayed secondhand to a king who cannot see any of it. What’s notable is the trigger — it’s not the vision itself frightening Arjuna into speech this time, it’s specifically Krishna’s words, the “kālo’smi” declaration and the command to kill that followed it. Being shown the form was overwhelming; being told plainly what it means and what it requires of him is what actually breaks his composure enough to make him “bhītabhītaḥ,” afraid and afraid again. The trigger for this breakdown is not the vision but Krishna’s words — the kālo ‘smi declaration and the kill-order after it. Being shown the form was overwhelming; being told plainly what it means and requires is what makes Arjuna bhīta-bhītaḥ, “afraid and afraid again.””
Study deeper
Word by word
- etac chrutvā vacanaṃ keśavasyaएतच् छ्रुत्वा वचनं केशवस्य
- having heard this word of Keśava (etat + śrutvā + vacanam + keśavasya)
- kṛtāñjalir vepamānaḥ kirīṭīकृताञ्जलिः वेपमानः किरीटी
- with joined palms, trembling, the diademed one (kṛta-añjaliḥ + vepamānaḥ + kirīṭī)
- namaskṛtvā bhūya evāha kṛṣṇamनमस्कृत्वा भूय एवाह कृष्णं
- bowing, again addressed Krishna (namaskṛtvā + bhūyaḥ + eva + āha + kṛṣṇam)
- sagadgadaṃ bhītabhītaḥ praṇamyaसगद्गदं भीतभीतः प्रणंय
- in a faltering voice, terrified, prostrating (sa-gadgadam + bhīta-bhītaḥ + praṇamya)
Commentary
Site Commentary
There’s a quiet irony in who is receiving this account: Dhritarashtra, blind, is being told in careful physical detail — trembling hands, a stammering voice, a lowered face — about a vision that was granted to Arjuna precisely because ordinary sight couldn’t hold it. The one person in this exchange with functioning eyes is the one who will never see any of it; description is doing all the work sight would normally do.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Concepts
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- Sometimes the person who most needs to understand an experience is the one who wasn't there for it — practice describing what happened in enough concrete, physical detail, not just conclusions, that someone who missed it entirely can still follow what it meant.
Professional
- When reporting a critical incident to stakeholders who weren't in the room, resist compressing straight to the conclusion — concrete detail about what was tried, what broke, and who reacted how does for a remote audience what being present would have done.
Family & Social
- If someone in your family wasn't present for an event that shook you, don't just report the outcome — describe the physical, concrete texture of what happened; secondhand understanding depends on detail doing the work direct experience would otherwise have done.
Ask yourself
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