Shloka 18
कर्मयोग–ज्ञानयज्ञ–अवतारोपदेश
Karma-Yoga, Jñāna-Yajña, and Avatāra Instruction
अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ता: शरीरिण:3 | अनाशिनोथप्रमेयस्य तस्माद् युध्यस्व भारत,इस नाशरहित, अप्रमेय, नित्यस्वरूप जीवात्माके ये सब शरीर नाशवान् कहे गये हैं। इसलिये हे भरतवंशी अर्जुन! तू युद्ध कर
antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ | anāśino 'prameyasya tasmād yudhyasva bhārata ||
Sanjaya said: These bodies are declared to have an end, while the embodied Self is spoken of as eternal. Therefore, O descendant of Bharata, fight—knowing that the imperishable, immeasurable reality within is not destroyed when the body perishes, and that your duty in this righteous conflict must not be abandoned out of grief or fear.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The body is finite and perishable, but the embodied Self is eternal, imperishable, and beyond full measurement; therefore one should not abandon one’s rightful duty out of sorrow for bodily destruction.
On the battlefield, the teaching urges Arjuna—addressed as Bhārata—to proceed with battle, grounding his resolve in the distinction between the perishing body and the deathless Self.