Shloka 36

ध्यानयोगः — Dhyāna-Yoga

Discipline of Meditation and Mental Restraint

Devanagari script

अपि चेदसि पापेभ्य: सर्वेभ्य: पापकृत्तम: । सर्व ज्ञानप्लवेनैव वृजिनं संतरिष्यसि,यदि तू अन्य सब पापियोंसे भी अधिक पाप करनेवाला है, तो भी तू ज्ञारूप नौकाद्वारा निःसंदेह सम्पूर्ण पाप-समुद्रसे भलीभाँति तर जायगाउ

Transliteration

api ced asi pāpebhyaḥ sarvebhyaḥ pāpakṛttamaḥ | sarva-jñāna-plavenaiva vṛjinaṃ santariṣyasi ||

Translation

నీవు సమస్త పాపులలో అత్యంత పాపకర్తవైనప్పటికీ, సంపూర్ణ జ్ఞానరూప నావ ద్వారానే నీవు నిశ్చయంగా పాపరూప సముద్రాన్ని దాటుతావు.

Word by Word

अपिeven; also

चेत्if

असिyou are

पापेभ्यःfrom/than sins (evil deeds)

सर्वेभ्यःfrom/than all

पापकृत्तमःthe greatest doer of sin; most sinful

सर्वज्ञानप्लवेनby the boat of complete knowledge

एवindeed; alone; surely

वृजिनम्evil; sin; wrongdoing

संतरिष्यसिyou will cross over; you will pass beyond

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arjuna

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even the gravest moral failing is not final: the verse teaches that transformative knowledge—clear discernment of truth and right conduct—can carry a person beyond accumulated wrongdoing, like a boat that ferries one across a dangerous expanse.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Bhīṣma Parva’s battlefield dialogue context, Arjuna speaks a reassurance about spiritual progress: despite fear of one’s own faults and past actions, the path of true knowledge provides a means to overcome moral distress and move toward right understanding and conduct.