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Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 1.29
वेपथुश्च शरीरे मे रोमहर्षश्च जायते ।
गाण्डीवं स्रंसते हस्तात्त्वक्चैव परिदह्यते ॥ २९ ॥
vepathuś ca śarīre me
roma-harṣaś ca jāyate
gāṇḍīvaṁ sraṁsate hastāt
tvak caiva paridahyate
My whole body is trembling, my hair is standing on end, my bow Gāṇḍīva is slipping from my hand, and my skin is burning.
Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.ioWhat this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.
3 study points
Arjuna’s body trembles, his hair stands on end, Gāṇḍīva slips from his hand, and his skin burns.
Trembling and hair standing on end can come from spiritual ecstasy or great material fear, but there is no fear in transcendental realization.
Arjuna’s symptoms come from fear of losing life, and all these symptoms arise from a material conception of life.
These notes cover verses 1.28–30
Signs of compassion (9 points) S.No Body part Sign
Limbs Quivering
Mouth Drying up
Whole body Trembling
Hair Standing on end
Hands Gandiva bow slipping
Skin Burning
Legs Unable to stand any longer due to impatience
“Forgetting myself and mind reeling” — Due to weakness of the heart
Sees only causes of misfortune
Causes of compassion — different viewpoints
Compassion due to soft heartedness of a pure devotee (1.28) – Ref. SB 5.18.12
By unflinching devotion unto Supreme Lord – all good qualities manifest
Non-devotee in contrast – He may be advanced by education & culture, but lacks godly qualities; hovering on mental plane, he is certain to be attracted by glaring energy
What indicates his soft-heartedness – Arjuna is sympathetic for “both the parties”
False compassion due to material fear, namely loss of life – Indicates material conception of life (1.29 – 1.30)
Impatience – Due to this impatience Arjuna was unable to stay on the battlefield
Weakness of mind – Thus he was forgetting himself
Excessive attachment to material things – This puts a man in such a bewildered condition
Two kinds of trembling / Standing of hairs (1.29)
Great spiritual ecstasy
Great fear under material condition
Trembling mentioned in 1.29 is due to material fear – as evident from the symptoms from 1.29, slipping of Gandiva and burning skin
Cause of fearfulness — Ref. SB 11.2.37 “bhayam dvitiyabhinivesatahsyat…”
Such fearfulness and loss of equilibrium takes place in a person too affected by material conditions
Practical application – Do not be disturbed by material temporary changes because that is the nature of the material world
Importance of Nimittani-viparitani — To see only causes of misfortune
Only pain and frustration
To see only painful reverses
Sees only frustration in expectations
No happiness – Not to be happy even by victory, it would only give lamentation
Causes of such frustrations in life
Misdirected interest – Only interested in one’s own welfare
Ignorance of real self-interest – Real self-interest is Vishnu’s satisfaction
Conditional nature is to forget this real self interest – this is the cause of material pain
Is Arjuna a conditioned soul – Arjuna is showing ignorance of his real self-interest by Krishna’s will ARJUNA’S SECOND ARGUMENT — LOSS OF ENJOYMENT (1.31 — 1.35)
Refutation:
Lord Krishna refutes this argument in Texts 2.31 — 2.32
Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.
The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.
Key ideas: saṁśaya, viṣāda.
Take one thing from this verse into your day.
What does BG 1.29 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to questions & crisis?
Write down the real question behind your current dilemma.
Mahābhārata episodes and stories from the purports that shed light on this verse.
Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.
Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.