Bhagavad Gita 1.18
Spoken by Sanjaya · Verse 18 of 47
द्रुपदो द्रौपदेयाश्च सर्वशः पृथिवीपते। सौभद्रश्च महाबाहुः शङ्खान् दध्मुः पृथक् पृथक्॥
drupado draupadeyāś ca sarvaśaḥ pṛthivīpate / saubhadraś ca mahābāhuḥ śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak
The next generation sounds its own conch — Arjuna's son among them.
Word by word (7)
- drupadaḥ
- — Drupada, king and father of Draupadi
- draupadeyāḥ
- — the sons of Draupadi — one from each Pandava brother
- sarvaśaḥ
- — on all sides / all together
- pṛthivī-pate
- — O lord of the earth (address to Dhritarashtra)
- saubhadraḥ
- — Abhimanyu, son of Subhadra (and Arjuna) · Arjuna's own son. Will die in the battle at age 16, trapped in the chakravyuha formation.
- mahā-bāhuḥ
- — the mighty-armed
- śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak
- — blew their conches separately / each one his own
Drupada, the sons of Draupadi — each one separately — and the mighty Abhimanyu, Arjuna's own son, all blew their individual conches.
A modern analogy
The 'pṛthak pṛthak' — each separately — is a small but significant detail. Even within a coalition, each person sounds their own note. The harmony is made of individual voices, not the erasure of them.
Take with you
- 'Pṛthak pṛthak' — each separately — teaches that collective action is still made of individual commitments.
- Abhimanyu is here: Arjuna's 16-year-old son. The next generation is already in the field. What we do now shapes those who come after.
- The Gita's opening symphony of conches ends with this verse — a full chorus of voices, each distinct, all committed.
Public-domain translations (2) compare all →
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
The sound of righteous forces pierces the hearts of those who know they are on the wrong side.
Even Arjuna's own sons are in this army — the personal stakes deepen.
Your right is to act — never to the fruits. Don't act for results. Don't hide in inaction.
Do the work rooted in yoga, unattached. Equanimity in success and failure — that IS yoga.
The wisdom-yoked person rises above good and bad karma alike. Yoga is supreme skill in action.
Therefore: do your required action without attachment — this is the path that leads to the Supreme.
Verse 18 of 47 · back to Chapter 1