Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 1, Verse 17
काश्यश्च परमेष्वासः शिखण्डी च महारथः।
धृष्टद्युम्नो विराटश्च सात्यकिश्चापराजितः।।
धृष्टद्युम्नो विराटश्च सात्यकिश्चापराजितः।।
kāśyaśca parameṣvāsaḥ śikhaṇḍī ca mahā-rathaḥ
dhṛṣṭadyumno virāṭaśca sātyakiś cāparājitaḥ
also searched as "kashyashcha parameshvasah shikhandi cha maharathah"
Translation
And the King of Kasi, the supreme bowman, Sikandi the mighty warrior, Dhrstadyumna, and Virata; and Satyaki, the invincible;
Vāṇi's rendering
The great archer of Kashi blew his conch, with Shikhandi, Dhrishtadyumna, Virata, and unbeaten Satyaki.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| काश्यःkāśyaḥ | the king of Kāśī (Varanasi) |
| चca | and (joins with the previous word as kāśyaś ca) |
| परमेष्वासःparama-iṣvāsaḥ | supreme archer; one whose bow is the greatest (written parameṣvāsaḥ by sandhi) |
| शिखण्डीśikhaṇḍī | Śikhaṇḍī, the warrior born a woman |
| चca | and |
| महारथःmahā-rathaḥ | a great chariot-warrior; one who fights ten thousand alone |
| धृष्टद्युम्नःdhṛṣṭadyumnaḥ | Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Draupadī's brother (appearing as dhṛṣṭadyumno before the next word) |
| विराटःvirāṭaḥ | Virāṭa, the king who sheltered the Pāṇḍavas in hiding |
| चca | and (joined as virāṭaś ca) |
| सात्यकिःsātyakiḥ | Sātyaki, Krishna's own disciple in arms (written sātyakiś before ca) |
| चca | and (joined with the following word as cāparājitaḥ) |
| अपराजितःaparājitaḥ | never defeated; unbeaten |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1 Verse 17 mean?
Sanjaya continues the roll call of the Pāṇḍava army: the great archer of Kāśī, Śikhaṇḍī, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa, and the undefeated Sātyaki. Each name is a weight dropped into a blind king's ear. Dhṛtarāṣṭra asked what was happening; he is being told, one warrior at a time, exactly what his sons face.
What does the line kashyashcha parameshvasah shikhandi cha maharathah refer to?
It names the king of Kāśī, called parama-iṣvāsa — the supreme bowman — and beside him Śikhaṇḍī, ranked mahā-ratha, a warrior counted worth ten thousand. The verse places them shoulder to shoulder without comment. Rank here is earned on the field, not granted by birth or by anyone's opinion of who belongs.
Why is Shikhandi important in this list?
Śikhaṇḍī was born a woman and became a man; Bhīṣma has vowed never to raise a weapon against him. That vow will end the war's greatest warrior. The Gītā's opening does not explain this. It simply seats Śikhaṇḍī among the mighty and moves on, letting the history speak when the time comes.
What can I take from a verse that is only a list of names?
That being named is not a small thing. Every warrior here arrives carrying something — a defeat, a strange birth, an old debt — and the field takes them all. Before Krishna speaks a word, the Gītā has already established that you do not need a clean history to be counted present.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
View on the App Store
Commentary
Five names, and one of them changes everything. Śikhaṇḍī stands in this list as an equal — a great chariot-warrior — though the field knows what Bhīṣma will not shoot at. Dhṛṣṭadyumna was born to kill Drona. Sātyaki has never lost. Sanjaya is not padding a report; he is telling a blind king that each of these men carries a history the war will finish. You are counted the same way. Whatever you were given at birth, whatever was done to you, stands in the line with you and takes its place. Nothing in your past disqualifies you from the field.