Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 1, Verse 15
पाञ्चजन्यं हृषीकेशो देवदत्तं धनंजयः।
पौण्ड्रं दध्मौ महाशङ्खं भीमकर्मा वृकोदरः।।
पौण्ड्रं दध्मौ महाशङ्खं भीमकर्मा वृकोदरः।।
pāñcajanyaṁ hṛṣīkeśo devadattaṁ dhanañjayaḥ
pauṇḍraṁ dadhmau mahā-śaṅkhaṁ bhīma-karmā vṛkodaraḥ
also searched as "Panchajanyam Hrishikesho Devadattam Dhananjayah"
Translation
Sri Krishna blew his conch, Pancajanya, Arjuna his Devadatta, and Bhima of terrible deeds blew his great conch, Paundra.
Vāṇi's rendering
Krishna blew Panchajanya, Arjuna Devadatta; Bhima of terrible deeds blew his great conch Paundra.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| पाञ्चजन्यम्pāñcajanyaṁ | Pāñcajanya — the conch of Krishna, born of the demon Pañcajana |
| हृषीकेशःhṛṣīkeśaḥ | Hṛṣīkeśa, master of the senses — Krishna (written hṛṣīkeśo before the soft consonant) |
| देवदत्तम्devadattaṁ | Devadatta, 'god-given' — Arjuna's conch |
| धनञ्जयःdhanañjayaḥ | Dhanañjaya, winner of wealth — Arjuna |
| पौण्ड्रम्pauṇḍraṁ | Pauṇḍra — Bhīma's conch |
| दध्मौdadhmau | blew |
| महाशङ्खम्mahā-śaṅkhaṁ | the great conch |
| भीमकर्माbhīma-karmā | he of terrible deeds |
| वृकोदरःvṛkodaraḥ | wolf-belly — Bhīma |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1 Verse 15 mean?
It is the Pāṇḍava answer to Duryodhana's side. Krishna sounds Pāñcajanya, Arjuna sounds Devadatta, Bhīma sounds Pauṇḍra. No speech, no threat — only sound. The verse names each conch as carefully as each man, because on this field a thing's name is its history, and the history is about to be spent.
What does Panchajanyam Hrishikesho Devadattam Dhananjayah mean?
Pāñcajanya was blown by Hṛṣīkeśa, Devadatta by Dhanañjaya. Hṛṣīkeśa means the one who governs the senses; Dhanañjaya, the one who wins wealth. The line pairs each warrior with the instrument that carries his reputation, so that the conches announce not just an army but the character of the men behind it.
Why is Krishna called Hrishikesha in this verse?
Because the name fits the moment. Hṛṣīkeśa is the lord of the senses, and every sense on that field is about to be flooded — noise, dust, fear. The one who blows the first conch is also the one who steadies what the conch disturbs. The title is placed here deliberately, not decoratively.
Why is Bhima described as 'of terrible deeds' here?
Bhīma-karmā is plain description, not praise or apology. Bhīma's strength has already done frightening things and will do more before the war ends. The Gītā does not soften him. It sets his name beside his conch and lets both sound, because the field is no place for polite portraits.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Nobody is called by their given name here. Krishna is Hṛṣīkeśa, master of the senses. Arjuna is Dhanañjaya, winner of wealth. Bhīma is Vṛkodara, wolf-belly, and the verse adds bhīma-karmā, of terrible deeds, as though the name needed a warning label. The conches have names too, older than the men holding them. This is what a beginning sounds like: everything announcing what it is, before anything is done. Notice that the epithets were earned, not given. You will be named by what you do in the next hour, not by what you were called at birth.