A declaration · reflective in mood · easy to enter
“A victory that destroys your own people is not worth having.”
O Keshava, I see only inauspicious signs, and I see no good in killing my own people in battle.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallysigns · and · I see · opposite, inauspicious · O Keshava · not · and · good, welfare · I see · having killed · my own people · in battle
Arjuna says he sees bad signs and no real good in killing his own relatives in battle.
Arjuna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Arjuna Vishada Yoga" (The Yoga of Arjuna's Despair).
Verse 31 sits in Chapter 1 of the Bhagavad Gita — Arjuna Vishada Yoga, "The Yoga of Arjuna's Despair". The chapter has 47 verses in total.
You are about to send the message that will end a friendship, and every detail feels wrong. The mind keeps warning: forcing this will not make life better.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts attention from winning to the moral cost of winning.
What this verse means
Arjuna says he sees bad signs and no real good in killing his own relatives in battle.
Context & commentary
On Kurukshetra, Arjuna stands frozen before the two armies. After feeling his body fail and his mind shake, he tells Krishna that the signs around him feel wrong and that killing his own kin cannot lead to anything good.
Why this verse still matters
You are about to send the message that will end a friendship, and every detail feels wrong. The mind keeps warning: forcing this will not make life better.
“When the heart is already broken, even victory can look empty.”
Explore related themes: kurukshetra (95 verses), arjuna vishada (14 verses)