Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 1, Verse 39
कथं न ज्ञेयमस्माभिः पापादस्मान्निवर्तितुम्।
कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं प्रपश्यद्भिर्जनार्दन।।
कुलक्षयकृतं दोषं प्रपश्यद्भिर्जनार्दन।।
kathaṁ na jñeyam asmābhiḥ pāpād asmān nivartitum
kula-kṣaya-kṛtaṁ doṣaṁ prapaśyadbhir janārdana
also searched as "katham na jneyam asmabhih papad asman nivartitum"
Translation
Why should we not learn to shun this crime—we who see the evil of ruining a clan, O Krishna?
Vāṇi's rendering
But we see it clearly. Knowing what family-ruin brings, should we not turn back from this sin?
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| कथम्kathaṁ | how, why |
| नna | not |
| ज्ञेयम्jñeyam | to be known, to be understood |
| अस्माभिःasmābhiḥ | by us |
| पापात्pāpād | from sin, from this evil deed |
| अस्मात्asmān | from this (sandhi: asmāt + nivartitum) |
| निवर्तितुम्nivartitum | to turn back, to withdraw |
| कुल-क्षय-कृतम्kula-kṣaya-kṛtaṁ | caused by the ruin of the family |
| दोषम्doṣaṁ | the evil, the flaw |
| प्रपश्यद्भिःprapaśyadbhir | by those who see clearly (by us who see) |
| जनार्दनjanārdana | O Janārdana — Krishna, stirrer of men |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1 Verse 39 mean?
Arjuna argues that since he and his side can see what the ruin of a family costs, they should be the ones to step away. He turns knowledge into grounds for retreat. The insight is real; the conclusion is not. Krishna will spend the next chapters showing that clear seeing must lead into action, not out of it.
Katham na jneyam asmabhih - what is Arjuna asking here?
He is asking why they should not learn to turn back from this sin. It sounds like a moral question and it is half of one. But he addresses Krishna as Janārdana, the stirrer of men, in the very breath he asks to be left undisturbed. The question is already looking for the answer it wants.
Is Arjuna right that destroying a family is sinful?
He is not wrong about the cost. Kula-kṣaya truly wrecks what it touches, and the Gītā never pretends otherwise. What Arjuna gets wrong is the inference — that because the cost is heavy, the duty dissolves. Krishna does not deny the grief. He denies that grief settles the question of what must be done.
How does this verse apply to my own decisions?
You have almost certainly used clarity as a reason to stall. Once you can name every harm a course of action might cause, stepping back feels like wisdom rather than fear. Arjuna's speech is the polished version of that move. Ask honestly whether your seeing is preparing you to act, or excusing you from it.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Notice the pride hidden in the word we. Those men are blinded by greed, Arjuna says; we are not — we see. And having seen, surely we may withdraw. It is the finest argument in his whole collapse, and it is still an argument for stepping back. Clear sight has become his reason to do nothing. He even calls Krishna Janārdana, stirrer of men, while pleading to be left unstirred. Watch for this in yourself. When you understand a situation better than everyone in it, understanding is the likeliest place to hide. Seeing is not yet the same as standing.