Arjuna said: O Janardana, if you consider understanding superior to action, then why do you urge me to this terrible action, O Keshava? Your mixed words confuse my mind; tell me one clear thing by which I may attain what is good.
— Arjuna
❋
Bhagavad Gita · 3.1
Hindi · हिन्दी
अर्जुन बोले हे जनार्दन अगर आप कर्मसे बुद्धि ज्ञान को श्रेष्ठ मानते हैं, तो फिर हे केशव मुझे घोर कर्ममें क्यों लगाते हैं आप अपने मिले हुएसे वचनोंसे मेरी बुद्धिको मोहितसी कर रहे हैं । अतः आप निश्चय करके उस एक बात को कहिये, जिससे मैं कल्याणको प्राप्त हो जाऊँ ॥
Read literallyArjuna said · better, superior · if · than action · by you · considered · understanding · O Janardana · then · why · in action · terrible, dreadful · me · you engage, you urge · O Keshava
Understanding the verse
✦
Arjuna, confused by mixed words, asks Krishna for one clear instruction that leads to the good.
Arjuna is confused. Krishna seems to praise understanding over action, yet still asks him to fight. He asks for one clear instruction that will lead him toward what is good.
02
On the battlefield
Context & commentary
Arjuna's bow is still lowered on Kurukshetra. Krishna has begun teaching, but Arjuna hears a tension: wisdom sounds higher than action, yet battle still stands before him. This verse is Arjuna's demand for one clear path.
03
In your life
What it looks like today
You get two confident answers from two people you trust, and both cannot be followed at once. Instead of pretending to understand, you ask for the single clear step that matters.
The takeaway
“It is honest to ask for clarity when guidance feels split in two.”
Arjuna is confused. Krishna seems to praise understanding over action, yet still asks him to fight. He asks for one clear instruction that will lead him toward what is good.
Who speaks Bhagavad Gita 3.1?
Arjuna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Karma Yoga" (The Yoga of Action).
Which chapter of the Bhagavad Gita contains verse 3.1?
Verse 1 sits in Chapter 3 of the Bhagavad Gita — Karma Yoga, "The Yoga of Action". The chapter has 43 verses in total.
Why does Bhagavad Gita 3.1 matter today?
You get two confident answers from two people you trust, and both cannot be followed at once. Instead of pretending to understand, you ask for the single clear step that matters.
Arjuna, confused by mixed words, asks Krishna for one clear instruction that leads to the good.
What this verse means
Arjuna is confused. Krishna seems to praise understanding over action, yet still asks him to fight. He asks for one clear instruction that will lead him toward what is good.
Context & commentary
Arjuna's bow is still lowered on Kurukshetra. Krishna has begun teaching, but Arjuna hears a tension: wisdom sounds higher than action, yet battle still stands before him. This verse is Arjuna's demand for one clear path.
What it looks like today
You get two confident answers from two people you trust, and both cannot be followed at once. Instead of pretending to understand, you ask for the single clear step that matters.
“It is honest to ask for clarity when guidance feels split in two.”
Explore related themes: kurukshetra (95 verses)