य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् ।
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥
उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥
Hindi · हिन्दी
जो मनुष्य इस अविनाशी शरीरीको मारनेवाला मानता है और जो मनुष्य इसको मरा मानता है, वे दोनों ही इसको नहीं जानते क्योंकि यह न मारता है और न मारा जाता है ॥
English
Whoever thinks this imperishable being is the killer, and whoever thinks it is killed, both do not understand. It neither kills nor is killed.
What this verse means
The true self cannot be killed, and it does not kill. Seeing it as either one is ignorance.
Context & commentary
On Kurukshetra, Arjuna stands frozen before battle. Krishna has just said the body ends, but the inner being does not. Now he sharpens the point: neither murder nor death touches that reality, so Arjuna’s terror is built on a false identification.
Why this verse still matters
You are about to send the message that ends a friendship, or walk away from a role that once defined you. The mind says, 'I am ruining everything.' This verse says the deepest part of you is untouched by such labels.
The takeaway
Fear loosens when you stop identifying life with what can be destroyed.
Word-by-word translation
यः (who) / एनम् (this) / वेत्ति (knows) / हन्तारम् (as killer) / यः (and who) / च (also) / एनम् (this) / मन्यते (thinks) / हतम् (killed) / उभौ (both) / तौ (those two) / न (not) / विजानीतः (understand) / न (not) / अयम् (this) / हन्ति (kills) / न (not) / हन्यते (is killed)
This verse is part of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2: Sankhya Yoga — The Yoga of Knowledge, which contains 72 verses.
Explore related themes: kurukshetra (95 verses)