Shloka 21

Puruṣottama-yoga

The Discipline of the Supreme Person) — Chapter 15 (Bhagavadgītā

Devanagari script

१९-२०)। इसलिये वचको भगवान्‌ने अपना स्वरूप बतलाया है। 3. कामधेनु समस्त गौओंमें श्रेष्ठ दिव्य गौ है

Transliteration

arjuna uvāca | atha keśava te vākyaṁ śrutvā hṛṣṭo 'smi mādhava |

Translation

অর্জুন বললেন: হে কেশব, হে মাধব, আপনার বাক্য শ্রবণ করে আমি আনন্দে পরিপূর্ণ হয়েছি। আপনার উপদেশে সকল উৎকর্ষের অন্তরে যে আপনারই দিব্য উপস্থিতি—তা স্পষ্ট হয়েছে, আর আসন্ন যুদ্ধের ধর্মসঙ্কটে আমার মন স্থির হয়েছে।

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'arjuna uvāca', 'definition': 'Arjuna said'}, {'term': 'atha', 'definition': 'now

• thereupon (marks a transition)'}, {'term': 'keśava', 'definition': 'Keśava (epithet of Kṛṣṇa

• ‘slayer of Keśin’ / ‘one with beautiful hair’)'}, {'term': 'te', 'definition': 'your'}, {'term': 'vākya', 'definition': 'speech

• teaching'}, {'term': 'śrutvā', 'definition': 'having heard'}, {'term': 'hṛṣṭaḥ asmi', 'definition': 'I am delighted

• I rejoice'}, {'term': 'mādhava', 'definition': 'Mādhava (epithet of Kṛṣṇa

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Arjuna
• Kṛṣṇa (Keśava, Mādhava)
• Kāmadhenu
• Vāsuki
• Śeṣanāga (Ananta)
• Varuṇa
• Aryamā
• Yama
• Kāla (Time)
• Prahlāda
• Siṁha (Lion)
• Garuḍa
• Rāma (Daśarathaputra)
• Jāhnavī (Gaṅgā)
• Bhagīrathī
• Ocean Churning (Samudramanthana)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Arjuna’s joy signals acceptance of Kṛṣṇa’s teaching that the Divine is present as the highest excellence in every class of beings and principles (vibhūtis). Ethically, it reframes worldly power, desire, and authority under dharma: what is ‘best’ is that which supports order, purity, and devotion rather than mere pleasure or domination.

What is happening in the narrative?

On the battlefield setting of the Mahābhārata, after Kṛṣṇa has described his vibhūtis (divine manifestations)—including exemplary beings like Kāmadhenu, Vāsuki, Śeṣa, Varuṇa, Aryamā, Yama, Time, Prahlāda, Garuḍa, and sacred Gaṅgā—Arjuna responds as the listener: he is pleased and mentally steadied by the revelation, preparing for further questions and the next phase of instruction.