Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 18, Verse 1
अर्जुन उवाच
संन्यासस्य महाबाहो तत्त्वमिच्छामि वेदितुम्।
त्यागस्य च हृषीकेश पृथक्केशिनिषूदन।।
संन्यासस्य महाबाहो तत्त्वमिच्छामि वेदितुम्।
त्यागस्य च हृषीकेश पृथक्केशिनिषूदन।।
arjuna uvāca
sannyāsasya mahā-bāho tattvam icchāmi veditum
tyāgasya ca hṛṣīkeśa pṛthak keśi-niṣūdana
also searched as "sannyasasya mahabaho tattvam icchami veditum"
Translation
Arjuna said, "I desire to know the truth about renunciation and abnegation separately, O Krishna."
Vāṇi's rendering
I want to understand renunciation, Krishna — and relinquishment. What is the truth of each? How do they differ?
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| अर्जुनःarjuna | Arjuna |
| उवाचuvāca | said |
| संन्यासस्यsannyāsasya | of renunciation — the setting down of action itself |
| महाबाहोmahā-bāho | O mighty-armed one |
| तत्त्वम्tattvam | the truth, the real nature of it |
| इच्छामिicchāmi | I wish, I want |
| वेदितुम्veditum | to know |
| त्यागस्यtyāgasya | of relinquishment — the letting go of the fruit |
| चca | and |
| हृषीकेशhṛṣīkeśa | O Hṛṣīkeśa — Krishna, master of the senses |
| पृथक्pṛthak | separately, each one distinctly |
| केशिनिषूदनkeśi-niṣūdana | O slayer of Keśin — Krishna (sandhi joins pṛthak to this address) |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18 Verse 1 mean?
Arjuna opens the final chapter by asking Krishna to separate two ideas that keep overlapping — sannyāsa, giving up action, and tyāga, giving up the fruit of action. He wants the truth of each, distinctly. It is a question of accuracy, not of doubt, and Krishna answers it for the rest of the chapter.
What is the meaning of sannyasasya mahabaho tattvam icchami veditum?
It means: I want to know the truth of renunciation, O mighty-armed one. Arjuna is not asking permission to withdraw anymore. He is asking what renunciation actually is, and how it differs from relinquishment — the distinction on which everything he has been taught quietly rests.
What is the difference between sannyasa and tyaga in the Gita?
Sannyāsa is laying down the action; tyāga is doing the action and laying down its result. One empties the hands, the other empties the grip. Krishna will say that for someone in the world, tyāga is the living form of renunciation — you keep the work, and stop carrying what it earns.
Why does Arjuna call Krishna by three different names in this verse?
Mighty-armed, Hṛṣīkeśa, slayer of Keśin — strength, mastery of the senses, destroyer of what obstructs. Arjuna addresses the one he needs. A student who names his teacher carefully is a student who has stopped arguing. Ask your questions that way and notice how the answers change.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
The last chapter begins with a question, not an answer. Arjuna has heard seventeen chapters, and he has noticed something unresolved: Krishna keeps using two words. Sannyāsa — setting the work down. Tyāga — keeping the work and setting down its fruit. They sound alike. Arjuna wants them separated. Notice what kind of student he has become. In the second chapter he asked to be excused from acting; now he asks for a distinction. He uses three names for Krishna in one verse, and he does not plead once. When your question gets precise, you are already near the answer.