Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 1, Verse 13
ततः शङ्खाश्च भेर्यश्च पणवानकगोमुखाः।
सहसैवाभ्यहन्यन्त स शब्दस्तुमुलोऽभवत्।।
सहसैवाभ्यहन्यन्त स शब्दस्तुमुलोऽभवत्।।
tataḥ śaṅkhāśca bheryaśca paṇavānaka-gomukhāḥ
sahasaivābhyahanyanta sa śabdastumulo ’bhavat
also searched as "tatah shankhashcha bheryashcha panavanakagomukhah"
Translation
Then suddenly conchs, kettle drums, trumpets, tabors, and blow horns blared forth, and the sound was terrific.
Vāṇi's rendering
At once conches, kettledrums, drums, and horns crashed out together — a tremendous roar.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ततःtataḥ | then, after that |
| शङ्खाःśaṅkhāḥ | conches |
| चca | and |
| भेर्यःbheryaḥ | kettledrums |
| चca | and |
| पणवानकगोमुखाःpaṇavānaka-gomukhāḥ | small hand-drums, larger war-drums, and cow-horn trumpets |
| सहसाsahasā | all at once, suddenly |
| एवeva | indeed (joins as sahasaivābhyahanyanta) |
| अभ्यहन्यन्तabhyahanyanta | were struck, were sounded |
| सःsaḥ | that |
| शब्दःśabdaḥ | sound, din |
| तुमुलःtumulaḥ | tumultuous, overwhelming |
| अभवत्abhavat | became, arose |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1 Verse 13 mean?
It records the Kaurava army answering Bhishma's single conch with everything it has — conches, kettledrums, hand-drums, war-drums, horns — struck all at once. The word tumulaḥ means the din was overwhelming, past sorting into separate sounds. Nothing has happened yet. This is preparation making itself audible, the army steadying its own nerve before the first arrow.
What is the meaning of tatah shankhashcha bheryashcha panavanakagomukhah?
Then conches and kettledrums, tabors, drums and cow-horns — sounded together in a single crash. Sanjaya is naming instruments the way a witness names what he cannot yet believe. The listing itself carries the weight: five kinds of noise, one moment, no gap between them. The verse ends by admitting the sound could not be described, only called tumultuous.
Why does the Gita spend a verse on battle noise?
Because the noise is part of the fear. Arjuna will collapse a few verses later, and this roar is what he stands inside while it happens. The Gītā is careful about atmosphere — it wants you to hear what he heard. Your own crises arrive with a soundtrack too, and it is rarely silence.
Is the loud sound in this verse a sign of courage or fear?
Both, and the Gītā does not separate them. An army that must announce itself is an army managing its own dread. Real steadiness makes less noise, not more. When you find yourself talking loudly about how ready you are, that is worth noticing — not as failure, but as information about where you actually stand.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Bhishma blew first, alone, for one man's comfort. The answer is not one sound but every sound at once — the whole Kaurava line crashing in behind him, drums, horns, conches, until nothing can be heard. Noise is what an army makes when it needs to believe in itself. Notice that no arrow has flown yet; this is the sound of readiness that has not yet become action. You know this roar. It is the hour before the difficult conversation, the morning of the surgery, the day the letter comes. The field goes loud before it goes still. Stand in the noise; it is not yet the fight.