A core teaching · reflective in mood · easy to enter
“True strength is quiet discipline, not self-display.”
Absence of pride, absence of pretence, nonviolence, forgiveness, simplicity, service to the teacher, purity, steadiness, and self-control.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallyabsence of pride · absence of pretence · nonviolence · forgiveness · simplicity · service to the teacher · purity · steadiness · self-control
A disciplined life is marked by humility, honesty, nonviolence, forgiveness, simplicity, respect for the teacher, cleanliness, steadiness, and self-mastery.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga" (Field and Knower of the Field).
Verse 8 sits in Chapter 13 of the Bhagavad Gita — Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga, "Field and Knower of the Field". The chapter has 35 verses in total.
You are about to send the message that could end a friendship, and your chest tightens. This verse asks whether you can stay honest, clean in motive, and steady instead of performing or striking out.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts attention from image-building to character-building, showing that inner discipline prepares the mind for truth.
What this verse means
A disciplined life is marked by humility, honesty, nonviolence, forgiveness, simplicity, respect for the teacher, cleanliness, steadiness, and self-mastery.
Context & commentary
On the battlefield, Arjuna is frozen, and Krishna begins listing the qualities that shape a person fit for clear seeing. After defining the field of body and mind, he names the inner discipline that makes wisdom possible.
Why this verse still matters
You are about to send the message that could end a friendship, and your chest tightens. This verse asks whether you can stay honest, clean in motive, and steady instead of performing or striking out.
“Real strength looks calm, clean, and unforced.”