Sanskrit
अपरं भवतो जन्म परं जन्म विवस्वतः । कथमेतद्विजानीयां त्वमादौ प्रोक्तवानिति ॥
aparaṃ bhavato janma paraṃ janma vivasvataḥ katham etad vijānīyāṃ tvam ādau proktavān iti
Translation
Later was Thy birth, earlier the birth of Vivasvân; how then am I to understand that Thou declaredst it in the beginning?
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
Arjuna’s first real interruption of the discourse is a plain chronological objection: Vivasvân, the sun, was born long before Krishna, so how could Krishna have taught him “in the beginning”? It’s a reasonable, literal-minded question, and Krishna’s answer in the next verse won’t resolve it by revising the timeline — it will reframe what “birth” even means for him. The objection is honest and well-posed, and Krishna honours it by not dodging: BG 4.5–BG 4.6 grant the premise (Krishna too has had births) and then deny its force (he is not bound by them). This is the setup for the avatāra doctrine.
Study deeper
Word by word
- aparaṃ bhavato janmaअपरं भवतो जन्म
- later was your birth (aparam + bhavataḥ + janma)
- paraṃ janma vivasvataḥपरं जन्म विवस्वतः
- earlier the birth of Vivasvān (param + janma + vivasvataḥ)
- katham etad vijānīyāṃकथं एतद् विजानीयां
- how am I to understand this (katham + etat + vijānīyām)
- tvam ādau proktavān itiत्वं आदौ प्रोक्तवान् इति
- that you taught it in the beginning (tvam + ādau + proktavān + iti)
Commentary
Site Commentary
This is a different register of doubt than anything in Chapter 1. Arjuna’s earlier resistance was despair — an emotional collapse in the face of the war. Here he raises a plain logical inconsistency, calmly, as a question of fact. The Gita treats these as needing different responses: grief got addressed with reframing across Chapters 2-3, while a factual objection gets a factual-sounding answer in verse 5, even if that answer turns out to reframe the premise too.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Concepts
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- When you notice yourself doubting a decision, check whether it's emotional resistance or a genuine logical inconsistency — the two need different responses, and treating a logic problem as if it were fear (or vice versa) usually leaves it unresolved.
Professional
- When a colleague pushes back on your proposal, listen for whether it's a factual objection or an emotional one before responding — answering a genuine inconsistency with reassurance, or answering anxiety with data, both miss the actual concern.
Family & Social
- When someone close to you raises a specific, factual objection rather than an emotional complaint, resist the urge to respond as if you're managing their feelings — answer the actual inconsistency they've pointed out.
Ask yourself
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