Chapter 3, Verse 2
व्यामिश्रेणेव वाक्येन बुद्धिं मोहयसीव मे | तदेकं वद निश्चित्य येन श्रेयोऽहमाप्नुयाम् ||३-२||
vyāmiśreṇeva vākyena buddhiṃ mohayasīva me . tadekaṃ vada niścitya yena śreyo.ahamāpnuyām ||3-2||
Meaning
3.2 With this apparently perplexing speech, Thou confusest, as it were, my understanding; therefore tell me that one way for certain by which I may attain bliss.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Arjuna admits that Krishna's words, weaving together knowledge and action, feel vyamishra — intermingled, even contradictory. The honesty here is striking: rather than pretending to understand, he confesses his bewilderment and asks for one clear path that will lead to shreyas, the lasting good.
This is the posture of a true student. He does not demand many options or clever arguments; he wants nishchaya — a definite conclusion he can act upon. Krishna's teaching only seems mixed because Arjuna is still seeing knowledge and action as separate roads. The chapter ahead will reveal that the apparent contradiction dissolves once we understand the spirit in which action is performed. Confusion, met with humble inquiry, becomes the doorway to clarity.
💡 Key Takeaway
When a teaching overwhelms you, ask sincerely for the one clear next step instead of drowning in every possibility.
Related Verses
अर्जुन उवाच | अथ केन प्रयुक्तोऽयं पापं चरति पूरुषः | अनिच्छन्नपि वार्ष्णेय बलादिव नियोजितः ||३-३६||
arjuna uvāca . atha kena prayukto.ayaṃ pāpaṃ carati pūruṣaḥ . anicchannapi vārṣṇeya balādiva niyojitaḥ ||3-36||
3.36 Arjuna said But impelled by what does man commit sin, though against his wishes, O Varshneya (Krishna), constrained as it were, by force?