BG 1.3 — Arjuna-Viṣāda-Yoga

Bhagavad Gītā 1.3Chapter 1 · Arjuna-Viṣāda-Yoga · Arjuna → Krishna · anuṣṭubh

पश्यैतां पाण्डुपुत्राणामाचार्य महतीं चमूम् ।

व्यूढां द्रुपदपुत्रेण तव शिष्येण धीमता ॥

paśyaitāṃ pāṇḍu-putrāṇām ācārya mahatīṃ camūm

vyūḍhāṃ drupada-putreṇa tava śiṣyeṇa dhīmatā

spokensingle-voice recital; rendered via IndicF5 conditioned on a Sanskrit reference clip

meaning

Duryodhana says: Teacher, look at this great army of the Pandavas, so skillfully arrayed by Drupada's son, your own student.

ekras · bhāṣya

Duryodhana speaks. His first words to his teacher are a single sentence: "Teacher, look at this great Pandava army, drawn up by Drupada's son, your wise student." Each phrase is doing work. Teacher — Drona had taught both sides. Duryodhana addresses him as acarya to remind him: a teacher to both sides cannot favor one over the other. Drupada's son — Drupada once performed a yajna specifically to produce a child who would kill Drona. That child is Dhrishtadyumna, and he is now standing at the head of the Pandava army. Duryodhana could have just said Dhrishtadyumna; he says Drupada's son to bring up the old enmity. Your wise student — the words are sharp. Drona, in the simplicity of being a teacher to all, taught Dhrishtadyumna the same weapons-knowledge he taught Arjuna. And that student was wise enough to learn from his target.

Ramsukhdas Maharaj reads further: the Pandavas, whom Drona loved as his own, chose Drona's killer to be their commander. If they truly cared for Drona, they would not have given Dhrishtadyumna that authority. Even the relation Drona had trusted has turned. So Duryodhana has put three pressures into one sentence — Drona's neutrality as teacher to both, the threat from his own student, and the betrayal of those who used to love him.

Context

where

Chapter 1 · Arjuna-Viṣāda-Yoga · meter anuṣṭubh

who speaks

Arjuna → Krishna

preceded by — BG 1.2

Sañjaya said: seeing the Pāṇḍava forces drawn up in battle formation, King Duryodhana went to his teacher Droṇa and spoke.

What's going on

Duryodhana says: Teacher, look at this great army of the Pandavas, so skillfully arrayed by Drupada's son, your own student.

Sūtras through this verse (99)

ĀnandagiriclassicalA

The two-niṣṭhā axisbetween

1.1Means and end set out as one paired axis.───→here1.3───→2.39Wisdom closes, action opens. Same axis.

MadhvaclassicalT1

Hari is supreme — the running reading-ruleapproach

───→here1.3───→2.12Every soul named here is a real distinct self.

RamsukhdasclassicalA

What binds you (and how to let go)approach

───→here1.3───→2.47Hold no mine-ness on body or on fruit.

show all 99

Madhvaclassicalmadhva_pratibimba

Madhva Pratibimbaapproach · other

───→here1.3───→2.18Image perishes, source endures

MadhvaclassicalT2

Soul depends on Lord — the gap that does not closeapproach

───→here1.3───→2.18The mirror breaks but the sun is unhurt.

MadhvaclassicalT3

Ranking is real — and it never collapsesapproach

───→here1.3───→2.23Even great gods are unequal in their glory.

MadhvaclassicalT4

Liberation is bliss in body — not absorptionapproach

───→here1.3───→2.50Release is embodied, blissful, never merging.

MadhvaclassicalT5

Mirror-and-image — how seeming-action worksapproach

───→here1.3───→2.18The image perishes, but the source endures.

MadhvaclassicalT6

Citation is the spine — texts carry the loadapproach

───→here1.3───→2.23Nāradīya names what reason cannot prove.

MadhvaclassicalT7

Action and knowledge — never rivalsapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39The two paths name one practice, one fruit.

MadhvaclassicalT8

Direct vision — the only proximate causeapproach

───→here1.3───→2.46Scripture is a small well when the flood arrives.

MadhvaclassicalT9

Devotion and grace — what knowledge cannot do aloneapproach

───→here1.3───→2.23Without worship of Hari no one ever crosses.

MadhvaclassicalT11

Only revealed scripture decides — reason alone cannotapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13Self-survival is settled by śruti, not by reason.

MadhvaclassicalT12

Closure by gloss — the small repertoireapproach

───→here1.3───→2.55'Self' here means mind — a single word redirects.

Ramsukhdasclassical

Sādhaka Sañjīvanī commentary at this versebetween

───→here1.3───→

RamsukhdasclassicalB

This human birth — your one chance to actapproach

───→here1.3───→2.47Only a human body can do new action.

RamsukhdasclassicalC

Desire is the root — not actionapproach

───→here1.3───→2.55Drop desire, and the sense of doing falls.

RamsukhdasclassicalD

The three modes (sattva, rajas, tamas) at workapproach

───→here1.3───→2.45Rise above the modes, said in chapter two.

RamsukhdasclassicalE

Your own work as worshipapproach

───→here1.3───→2.31A warrior's own duty is the war he faces.

RamsukhdasclassicalF

Surrender — the single shelterapproach

───→here1.3───→2.41A one-pointed mind is the seeker's mark.

RamsukhdasclassicalG

Equanimity in everythingapproach

───→here1.3───→2.14Bear pleasure and pain as a passing season.

RamsukhdasclassicalH

All paths arrive at the same roomapproach

───→here1.3───→2.55Each path names its sage in its own words.

RamsukhdasclassicalJ

Divine vs demonic patternsapproach

───→here1.3───→3.37The enemy is desire turning into anger.

RamsukhdasclassicalK

The body is not yoursapproach

───→here1.3───→3.27The modes act, but ego claims the deed.

ĀnandagiriclassicalE

Pūrvapakṣa via nanu / āśaṅkyabetween

1.1Dialectical chain present from line one.───→here1.3───→2.39Nanu… tatrāha: one pair, named.

ĀnandagiriclassicalL

Akṣarayojanā — word-fit firstbetween

1.2Same form repeats on the next verse.───→here1.3───→2.10Word-fit holds even at the dialogue's pivot.

Ekrasmodernkarma_yoga

Karma yoga — the apprentice pathapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→2.47Right to action

Ekrasmodernend_of_life

End of life — the threshold tourapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→2.13Bodies pass, the dehī does not

Ekrasmodernstress

Stress — panic to shelterapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→1.29The body fails

Ekrasmodernvairagya

Vairāgya — dispassion as instrumentapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→2.55Sthitaprajna defined

Ekrasmodernleadership

Leadership — svadharma in actionapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→3.20Janaka, lokasangraha

Ekrasmoderntrigunametry

Trigunametry — guṇas as embodied statesapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→2.41Single-pointed buddhi

Ekrasmodernparadox_of_doership

Paradox of doership — kartṛtvaapproach · v2

───→here1.3───→3.27Modes act, ego claims

Ekrasmodernanger_management

Anger Managementapproach · other

───→here1.3───→2.62Brooding breeds attachment

Ekrasmodernfamily_conflict

Family Conflictapproach · other

───→here1.3───→1.31Bad omens

Śaṅkaraclassicalshankara_jnana_nishtha

Shankara Jnana Nishthaapproach · other

───→here1.3───→2.10Thesis flat

ŚaṅkaraclassicalA

Sorrow and delusion are the diseaseapproach

───→here1.3───→2.10Sorrow and delusion are the seed of saṁsāra.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalB

Knowledge alone, with all action laid downapproach

───→here1.3───→2.10First lay down all action, then knowledge frees.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalC

Knowledge plus action will not save youapproach

───→here1.3───→2.10Some say: combine knowledge with rites.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalD

The fit student vs the unfit studentapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39So far for the seeker of the real; now hear yoga.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalE

Ignorance is the only enemyapproach

───→here1.3───→2.69Wisdom rises; ignorance fades like dawn-darkness.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalG

After knowing, act only to hold the worldapproach

───→here1.3───→3.20Janaka acted only to hold the world together.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalJ

Scripture stands behind every claimapproach

───→here1.3───→2.10Pāṇḍitya is knowing the Self — Bṛhadāraṇyaka.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalK

Liberation while still embodiedapproach

───→here1.3───→2.72Standing in this state, one reaches Brahman..

ĀnandagiriclassicalB

Three hexads = tat tvam asiapproach

───→here1.3───→2.1First hexad opens, tvam-pada implicit.

ĀnandagiriclassicalC

Adhikāra: seeker vs. fulfilledapproach

───→here1.3───→2.47Primary fitness needs ripened conditions.

ĀnandagiriclassicalD

Praśna-bīja chapter openingsapproach

───→here1.3───→3.1Buddhi-vyākulatva named the seed.

ĀnandagiriclassicalF

Which karma? — fourfold typologyapproach

───→here1.3───→2.47No-fruit ≠ no-karma: kāmya-tyāga ≠ nitya-tyāga.

ĀnandagiriclassicalG

Anūdyate, na vidhīyateapproach

───→here1.3───→2.55A description, not a command. Anchor.

ĀnandagiriclassicalH

Phala-saṃkalpa is the only upādhiapproach

───→here1.3───→2.47Action stays; the wish for fruit goes.

ĀnandagiriclassicalK

Upasaṃhāra — recap as instrumentapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Wisdom section wound up here.

JayatīrthaclassicalA

Body and embodied — the inference runs on the dehī sideapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13Same I as a child is now in this body.

JayatīrthaclassicalB

Pañcabheda — the five distinctions enforced verse by verseapproach

───→here1.3───→2.12Plurals block monistic absorption.

JayatīrthaclassicalC

Refuting Śaṅkara-style readings, named or unnamedapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13One-self-many-bodies runs out of grammar.

JayatīrthaclassicalD

Saṅgati declared at the head of every adhyāyaapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Wrap prior section, then announce next.

JayatīrthaclassicalE

Vishnu-sarvottamatva read into apparently neutral wordsapproach

───→here1.3───→3.15Brahmodbhavam — born of parabrahman.

JayatīrthaclassicalG

Citation as proof — śruti, smṛti, MB, Aṣṭādhyāyī, Pañcarātraapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13Pratyabhijñā backed by śruti citation.

JayatīrthaclassicalH

Pūrva-pakṣa explicit — nanu / iti cet / ity ata āhaapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13Two objections, three pādas glossed.

JayatīrthaclassicalI

Lakṣaṇā-control — literal preferred when availableapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13Recognition is literal across bodies.

JayatīrthaclassicalJ

Reading the silence — iti śeṣaḥ and iti bhāvaḥapproach

───→here1.3───→2.11Madhva first speaks, Jayatīrtha supplies.

MadhusūdanaclassicalK

Arjuna's grief has two roots, not onebetween

1.1Discrimination overrun by grief and confusion.───→here1.3───→2.1Pity and despair treated as guests, not host.

Madhusūdanaclassicalmadhusudan_bhagavad_arpana

Madhusudan Bhagavad Arpanaapproach · other

───→here1.3───→2.47Fruit-free action cannot bind

Gauravmoderncivilizational_air_conditioning

Civilizational Air Conditioningapproach

───→here1.3───→2.62'Dhyayato vishayan pumsah sangas teshupajayate, sangat sanjayate kamah.' The out

Gauravmoderneminem_dsm_arjuna

Eminem Dsm Arjunaapproach

───→here1.3───→1.28Arjuna at the edge: 'Drishtvemam svajanam Krishna yuyutsum samupasthitam, sidant

Gauravmodernheart_leadership

Heart Leadershipapproach

───→here1.3───→2.48'Yoga-sthah kuru karmani sangam tyaktva Dhananjaya, siddhy-asiddhyoh samo bhutva

Gauravmodernkarma_yoga_hand

Karma Yoga Handapproach

───→here1.3───→2.47Middle finger. Nishkama karma plus the failure-gym. 'Karmany evadhikaras te, ma

Gauravmodernmemorial_pastoral

Memorial Pastoralapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13The memorial-register anchor. 'Dehino'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara, ta

Gauravmodernsanatana_dharma_101

Sanatana Dharma 101approach

───→here1.3───→2.13Reincarnation pillar. 'Dehino'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara, tatha deha

Gauravmodernthree_yogas_braid

Three Yogas Braidapproach

───→here1.3───→3.3'Loke'smin dvi-vidha nishtha pura prokta mayanagha, jnana-yogena samkhyanam karm

Gauravmodernwitness_self_neti_neti

Witness Self Neti Netiapproach

───→here1.3───→2.13Body changes. 'Dehino'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara.' Gaurav opens the

MadhusūdanaclassicalA

Three groups of six: you, the Lord, the joiningapproach

───→here1.3───→3.1The whole map laid out at chapter three's door.

MadhusūdanaclassicalB

Different students need different teachingsapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Two minds, two paths, never one rule for all.

MadhusūdanaclassicalC

Action purifies before knowing can landapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Pure mind for knowing, impure mind for acting.

MadhusūdanaclassicalD

Offer the act to the Lord and it stops bindingapproach

───→here1.3───→2.47Action offered, fruit-free, cannot bear bondage.

MadhusūdanaclassicalG

Knowing and acting cannot run togetherapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Like light and dark, they cannot share a place.

MadhusūdanaclassicalI

Liberation while alive — the body finishes its runapproach

───→here1.3───→3.1The architecture ends in living-liberation, then bodily.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalJ

Sañjaya's frame — evidentiary, not ornamentalbetween

1.2Dṛṣṭvā tu — Sañjaya speaks to be heard later.───→here1.3───→11.50Sañjaya names the viśva-rūpa as witness.

VallabhaclassicalJ

Strategic silence — pointers, not absencesbetween

1.1See Viṭṭhaleśa's hand for chapter one's gloss.───→here1.3───→1.31The despondency catalogue goes to Viṭṭhaleśa.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalA

The carama-śloka as retroactive bracketapproach

───→here1.3───→2.10The teaching opens at the carama-bracket.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalC

Antaryāmin — the indweller as standing referentapproach

───→here1.3───→3.30'Mayi sarvāṇi karmāṇi': read as antaryāmin.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalE

Pūrva-pakṣa — name the rival, close the doorapproach

───→here1.3───→2.12Plurals refute the unitary-self read.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalF

Saṅgati — anticipation-and-resolutionapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39What chapter 3 will resolve, named here.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalG

Three yogas — three angles on one configurationapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Sāṅkhya and yoga: not two roads.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalH

Mā śucaḥ — the inclusio of evolving griefapproach

───→here1.3───→2.10Krishna smiles before the first mā-śucaḥ.

VallabhaclassicalC

Drop the doer, not the deedapproach

───→here1.3───→3.1Drop something inside the act, not the act.

VallabhaclassicalD

Chapter-opening preludesapproach

───→here1.3───→2.1Six-verse prelude lays out the whole map.

VallabhaclassicalE

Three paths, one teaching orderapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39The yoga-mind is just the sāṅkhya-mind, retold.

VallabhaclassicalF

Soul as part of the highest Personapproach

───→here1.3───→2.12The eternal among the eternal, conscious among the conscious.

VallabhaclassicalH

Stilling the mind — into the Lordapproach

───→here1.3───→2.48Yoga itself is just sameness of mind.

VallabhaclassicalI

A closed three-source citation gridapproach

───→here1.3───→2.11Vallabha quotes his own Nibandha at verse two.

ŚrīdharaclassicalA

The Gītā as raft across griefbetween

1.1A raft of teaching crosses the grief-sea.───→here1.3───→2.7I am sunk in pity; ask, do not order.

ŚrīdharaclassicalB

The Lord descends out of compassionbetween

1.1The first epithet: supremely compassionate.───→here1.3───→4.7When right wanes, I take a body.

ŚrīdharaclassicalE

Inner cleansing reconciles work and knowingapproach

───→here1.3───→2.39Work polishes the inner instrument first.

ŚrīdharaclassicalF

The Lord inside as inner rulerapproach

───→here1.3───→3.30Lay every act in Me; I move within.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalA

Knowing and acting are one powerapproach

───→here1.3───→2.24The self is one unbroken awareness.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalF

Three guṇas: contractions of one consciousnessapproach

───→here1.3───→2.45Exit the modes — not better modes are the goal.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalG

Saṃvit: one referent under many namesapproach

───→here1.3───→2.20Cit alone — the self cannot be destroyed.

RāmānujaclassicalB

The śāstra is one bracket (2.12 → 18.66)approach

───→here1.3───→2.10Bracket opens here.

RāmānujaclassicalD

Karma-yoga as kainkarya (worship)approach

───→here1.3───→2.47Act, but not for the fruit of acting.

Śabda · lemmas (12 unique · 13 occurrences)

पश्य paś — to see (verbal root, suppletive of √dṛś) · present imperative 2nd person singular verb
आचार्य ācārya — teacher, preceptor · vocative masculine singular noun · also at 1.2, 1.26, 1.34, 6.44, 13.7

show all 12

पुत्राणाम्·पुत्रेण putra ×2 — son, child · genitive masculine plural noun / instrumental masculine singular noun
एताम् etad — this (proximal demonstrative) · accusative feminine singular noun
पाण्डु pāṇḍu — Pāṇḍu (father of the Pāṇḍavas); also: pale · compound
महतीम् mahat — great, large; the cosmic intellect (mahattattva) · accusative feminine singular noun
चमूम् camū — army, division · accusative feminine singular noun
व्यूढाम् √vyūh — to arrange in array, marshal (vi- + √ūh) · accusative feminine singular participle noun
द्रुपद drupada — Drupada (king of Pāñcāla, father of Draupadī) · compound
तव tvad — you (2nd person pronoun stem) · genitive singular noun
शिष्येण śiṣya — disciple, student (from √śās) · instrumental masculine singular noun
धीमता dhīmat — wise, intelligent (dhī + -mat) · instrumental masculine singular noun

Praśna · so what (7)

01Duryodhana opens with 'paśya' (behold) — is genuine seeing possible when the one commanding it is driven by fear and political calculation, or does motivated perception always distort what it surveys?
02He identifies Droṇa as 'ācārya' of the Pāṇḍavas, not his own — what does this rhetorical attribution reveal about the relationship between student, teacher, and loyalty when dharma and kula (clan duty) conflict?

show all 7

03Dhṛṣṭadyumna learned his craft from the very teacher he now opposes: does the transmission of vidyā (knowledge) create an obligation of alignment, or does vidyā become autonomous once given — with implications for how we hold intellectual lineage?
04Duryodhana's inner viṣāda (dejection) precedes Arjuna's famous collapse in 1.28 — why does the Gītā let the antagonist model despondency first, and what does this structural mirroring suggest about the universality of the affliction both Kṛṣṇa and Droṇa are asked to address?
05The vyūha is attributed to drupada-putra (son of Drupada), invoking an old teacher-student enmity rather than present military facts — in what situations do we weaponize history (past grievances, prior relationships) to manufacture urgency, and what is the cost?
06Śaṅkara withholds commentary entirely until 2.10, treating Chapter 1 as preliminary affliction rather than instruction — what does it mean to distinguish between the chapter of symptoms and the chapter of teaching, and when is silence the most honest response?
07Madhusūdana reads Duryodhana's speech as concealed dveṣa (enmity) toward Droṇa himself — how often does ostensible counsel ('look at this problem') mask an accusation, and what discernment practice helps one distinguish genuine consultation from disguised attack?

Vyavahāra · try it in your life

Advaita

When facing a high-stakes confrontation at work or home, notice the impulse to inventory threats — listing who is aligned against you, how strong they are, what ground you might lose. This cataloguing is ahaṃkāra (ego-sense) in motion, mistaking the field of appearances for the whole of reality. The Advaita practice: pause before the inventory and ask what remains when the surveyor and the surveyed are set aside. Use the pause not to avoid planning but to ground planning in awareness rather than fear — so that whatever action follows is not driven by the contraction of viṣāda.

Viśiṣṭādvaita

In any relationship where you hold a position of guidance — as manager, parent, or mentor — notice when the person you are guiding is subtly appealing to your pride or competitive instincts to draw you into their agenda. Rāmānuja's reading asks: are you acting from kainkarya (service) to the larger good, or are you being recruited into someone else's battle? Before responding to such an appeal, re-anchor in the question: whose sārathi (charioteer) am I actually serving here?

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Dvaita

Madhva's hermeneutic insists that every jīva is parādhīna (dependent) — no human being is the autonomous author of outcomes, however commanding their position. In professional life this means: when your team looks strong or weak, resist the temptation to attribute that strength or weakness entirely to your own leadership. Cultivate the habit of acknowledging the confluence of factors — others' efforts, prior conditions, grace — that produced the situation. This is not passivity; it is accurate accounting that prevents the hubris Duryodhana displays.

Śuddhādvaita

Vallabha reads Duryodhana's inward downcast mood as unwitting viraha — the ache of a soul that has not yet recognized the source of its longing. In daily life: when anxiety about a looming challenge produces that hollow, contracted feeling in the chest, do not immediately strategize it away. Sit with it briefly as a Puṣṭi practitioner would — recognizing the ache as prasāda, a sign that the soul is being summoned toward something larger than the immediate contest. Let the discomfort dissolve into bhajana (devotional engagement) rather than tighten into tactical obsession.

Bhakti

Śrīdhara's reading highlights Duryodhana's rhetorical precision: he names Dhṛṣṭadyumna as 'son of Drupada' to activate an old wound in his teacher rather than naming the present military threat clearly. In conversations — especially difficult ones with authority figures or peers — examine whether you are naming the actual issue or the historical grievance behind it. The practice: before delivering difficult feedback or a hard request, ask yourself which name you are using and why. Clarity of naming is itself a form of bhakti (devotion) to truth.

Advaita-Bhakti

Madhusūdana's close reading reveals that Duryodhana's speech contains concealed dveṣa (enmity) dressed as counsel — he appears to be informing Droṇa but is actually accusing him. This dynamic appears in every organizational and family system: the advisor who 'just wants you to be aware' of a problem they helped create, the colleague whose concern is really a claim on your loyalty. The advaita-bhakti practice is threefold — hear the surface request, sense the undercurrent of attachment or resentment, and respond to the deeper āśaya (intention) with compassion rather than collusion, just as Kṛṣṇa will respond to Arjuna's deeper question rather than his stated one.

Adhiṣṭhāna · substrate signature

substratev2.6-frozen

parserByT5-Sanskrit-multitask (Nehrdich/Hellwig/Keutzer EMNLP 2024)

mūlaBelvalkar critical edition (BORI 1947), via Ambuda multi-witness

show all metadata

weightsa=1 · b=0.01 · e_v=0.005 · z=0.2 · h=0 · th=0.01

anchorfit on Ramsukhdas's Sādhak Sañjīvanī (1980), frozen across the eight-commentator panel; cross-validated R@4 = 71.6% on Śaṅkara

extracted2026-04-21

methodPaper 1, Section II.B

↓ view raw per-verse object (JSON)↗ per-verse-object schema ↗ substrate code (MIT) + data (CC-BY 4.0)

The schema generalizes to any bounded-polysemy corpus with discrete primary text units, attested witness traditions, identifiable schools, and formal substrate. Port the per-verse object; refit weights on a domain-appropriate Layer-3 anchor; ship.

Bhagavad Gītā Chapter 1, Verse 3: Arjuna to Krishna — Arjuna-Viṣāda-Yoga