टीका

Commentary

This verse is notable for Arjuna’s invocation of authority: “iti anushushruma” — thus we have heard from the disciplic succession. Arjuna is not making an original philosophical argument; he is citing received wisdom passed down through teacher-student lineages. This appeal to tradition is significant in a culture where knowledge was transmitted orally and the authority of what one had “heard” (shruta) was paramount.

The concept of “anushravana” — hearing from those who have heard before — is the foundation of the Vedic tradition. The Vedas themselves are called “shruti” — that which has been heard. Knowledge that comes through an unbroken chain of teachers is considered more reliable than individual reasoning alone, because each teacher has verified and embodied the teaching before passing it on. Arjuna here positions himself as a faithful student of this tradition, which makes his crisis all the more poignant: he is a man who knows the rules and feels their weight.

The word “niyatam vaasah” — indefinite or determined residence — in hell is not a casual threat. In the Indian cosmological imagination, hell (naraka) is not necessarily eternal but is a realm of purification and consequence that can last for extremely long periods before the soul moves on. The point is that the consequences of destroying family dharma are severe and long-lasting, extending beyond a single lifetime.

There is a touching humility in Arjuna’s citation of tradition here. He is not positioning himself as someone who has worked all this out independently. He is a student who has received teaching, who has trusted his teachers, and who is now applying what he was taught to the situation before him. That he comes to the wrong practical conclusion (that refusing to fight is the answer) does not diminish the sincerity of his reasoning.

This verse also sets up the essential tension of the entire Gita: Arjuna has learned from one tradition what he should do; Krishna will teach him, from a deeper tradition, why he is wrong. The resolution lies not in discarding tradition but in understanding it at a profounder level.