A declaration · reflective in mood · a little context helps
“Harming loved ones feels worse than losing your own life.”
If the armed sons of Dhritarashtra were to kill me in battle while I stood unresisting and without weapons, that would be far better for me.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallyif · me · unresisting, not striking back · without weapons · those holding weapons · the sons of Dhritarashtra · in battle · might kill · that · for me · more beneficial, better · would be
Arjuna says that even dying unarmed in battle would be better than fighting his own relatives.
Arjuna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Arjuna Vishada Yoga" (The Yoga of Arjuna's Despair).
Verse 46 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 standing in a doorway, keys in hand, about to leave a relationship or job that once felt safe. Part of you would rather be hurt than become the one who causes harm.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts the mind from winning at any cost to seeing the cost of violence itself.
What this verse means
Arjuna says that even dying unarmed in battle would be better than fighting his own relatives.
Context & commentary
On Kurukshetra, Arjuna has already rejected the war’s moral cost. Surrounded by Krishna and the opposing army, he says that if the armed sons of Dhritarashtra killed him while he stayed unarmed, that would be better than fighting kin.
Why this verse still matters
You are standing in a doorway, keys in hand, about to leave a relationship or job that once felt safe. Part of you would rather be hurt than become the one who causes harm.
“The heart can feel so burdened that even defeat seems kinder than harming loved ones.”
Explore related themes: kurukshetra (95 verses), arjuna vishada (14 verses)