Love needs reverence.
Arjuna speaks to Krishna
सखेति मत्वा प्रसभं यदुक्तंहे कृष्ण हे यादव हे सखेति |अजानता महिमानं तवेदंमया प्रमादात्प्रणयेन वापि ||११-४१||
sakheti matvā prasabhaṃ yaduktaṃ he kṛṣṇa he yādava he sakheti . ajānatā mahimānaṃ tavedaṃ mayā pramādātpraṇayena vāpi ||11-41||
Use this verse to balance friendship and reverence.
Meaning
Thinking of You as my friend, whatever I rashly said, O Krishna, O Yadava, O friend, out of ignorance of Your greatness, carelessness, or affection.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Arjuna regrets casualness toward Krishna after seeing His greatness.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Friendship with Krishna remains beautiful, but Arjuna now adds reverence. Love should not become disrespect.
Read the traditional commentary
A tender new note enters Arjuna's hymn: remorse. Having seen Krishna's true majesty, he looks back on their long friendship and feels the weight of his easy familiarity. All those times he called out casually — 'Hey Krishna! Hey Yadava! Hey friend!' — were spoken sakha iti matva, treating the Supreme Lord as merely an equal companion. He confesses this was done ajanata, in ignorance of Krishna's real greatness.
Yet notice how he names the cause: pramadat pranayena va api — 'through carelessness, or through love'. Even his familiarity was rooted in genuine affection. This is the poignant heart of the verse.
Intimacy with the Divine is not wrong; it is precious. But the vision has shown Arjuna that the friend beside him is also the Lord of all worlds. True devotion holds both truths at once — the nearness of love and the reverence due to greatness. His remorse is itself a deepening of relationship, not its loss.
In daily life
Be intimate with Krishna but not careless.
A devotee may speak to Krishna personally while still maintaining sacred respect.
Try this today
Add one respectful gesture to your prayer.
I love Krishna with reverence.Reflect
Where has familiarity reduced my reverence?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘प्रणयेन वा अपि’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on friendship, in other chapters
- Verse 4.3The deepest wisdom opens itself to those who combine devotion with sincere, trusting closeness — not to the merely curious.
- Verse 10.37The sincere devotee is not separate from the Divine but becomes a vessel through which its light shines.
- Verse 7.17The purest devotion seeks the Divine for nothing but Itself — and there, love flows mutually between the soul and God.
- Verse 18.64The deepest spiritual truths are shared not as commands but as tender gifts of love to the beloved devotee.
Swipe left for 11.42 · Apology purifies love.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 11.41
Who says Bhagavad Gita 11.41, and to whom?
Arjuna speaks to Krishna in verse 11.41, in Chapter 11, Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga (Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 11.41 mean?
Thinking of You as my friend, whatever I rashly said, O Krishna, O Yadava, O friend, out of ignorance of Your greatness, carelessness, or affection. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 11.41 for daily life?
Be intimate with Krishna but not careless. A devotee may speak to Krishna personally while still maintaining sacred respect.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 11.41 mean?
सखा इति मत्वा — thinking (You) a friend; प्रसभम् — presumptuously / rashly; यत् उक्तम् — whatever was said; हे कृष्ण हे यादव हे सखे — O Krishna, O Yadava, O friend; अजानता — not knowing.
Where does verse 11.41 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 41 of 55 in Chapter 11, Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga. The next verse is 11.42.