Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 11, Verse 28
यथा नदीनां बहवोऽम्बुवेगाः
समुद्रमेवाभिमुखाः द्रवन्ति।
तथा तवामी नरलोकवीरा
विशन्ति वक्त्राण्यभिविज्वलन्ति।।
समुद्रमेवाभिमुखाः द्रवन्ति।
तथा तवामी नरलोकवीरा
विशन्ति वक्त्राण्यभिविज्वलन्ति।।
yathā nadīnāṁ bahavo ’mbu-vegāḥ
samudram evābhimukhā dravanti
tathā tavāmī nara-loka-vīrā
viśanti vaktrāṇy abhivijvalanti
also searched as "yatha nadinam bahavo 'mbu-vegah"
Translation
As many torrents of rivers flow towards the ocean, so do these heroes of the world of men enter into Your flaming mouths.
Vāṇi's rendering
As rivers in flood race only toward the ocean, these heroes of the world pour into your burning mouths.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| यथाyathā | just as |
| नदीनाम्nadīnām | of rivers |
| बहवःbahavaḥ | many (appears as bahavo before the next word) |
| अम्बुवेगाःambu-vegāḥ | rushing floods of water (the initial a is swallowed in sandhi: 'mbu) |
| समुद्रम्samudram | toward the ocean |
| एवeva | only, and nowhere else |
| अभिमुखाःabhimukhāḥ | faces turned that way (joined with eva as evābhimukhā) |
| द्रवन्तिdravanti | they race, they pour |
| तथाtathā | so too |
| तवtava | your (joined with the next word as tavāmī) |
| अमीamī | these here |
| नरलोकवीराःnara-loka-vīrāḥ | the heroes of the world of men |
| विशन्तिviśanti | they enter |
| वक्त्राणिvaktrāṇi | mouths (appears as vaktrāṇy before the next word) |
| अभिविज्वलन्तिabhivijvalanti | blazing on every side |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 Verse 28 mean?
Arjuna, seeing the vast form, watches the warriors of both armies stream into Krishna's blazing mouths — and the only comparison he can find is water. Rivers in flood do not choose the ocean; the ocean is simply where the ground leads. The dying are not being seized. They are going home along the slope they were always on.
What is the meaning of yatha nadinam bahavo ambuvegah?
Many torrents of many rivers, each with its own name and course, all running to one sea. Arjuna uses it for the kings and champions of the world pouring into the burning mouths of the viśvarūpa. The image says something gentler than it looks: nothing is lost, everything arrives.
Why does Arjuna compare warriors to rivers?
Because a river cannot be blamed and cannot be stopped. Arjuna has spent the whole Gītā believing his choice will kill these men. The simile removes him from the causal chain without removing him from the field. He still must act. He is simply not the ocean.
Is this verse about death or about surrender?
Both, and they are the same motion here. The rivers are not destroyed in the sea; they stop being separate. What frightens Arjuna is the fire; what the image quietly offers is arrival. Where you are heading has never depended on your consent — only your manner of going.
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Commentary
Arjuna is not describing courage. He is describing gravity. A river in flood has no opinion about the sea; it simply cannot go anywhere else. The heroes he names — the ones he feared to kill, the ones he thought his arrows would decide — are already moving the only direction there is. Nothing is being taken from them. They are arriving. This is the image that breaks Arjuna's arithmetic: he had counted himself the cause of their deaths. The river does not cause the ocean. Look at what you believe you are deciding. Some of it is only the slope of the ground.