Apology purifies love.
Arjuna speaks to Krishna
यच्चावहासार्थमसत्कृतोऽसिविहारशय्यासनभोजनेषु |एकोऽथवाप्यच्युत तत्समक्षंतत्क्षामये त्वामहमप्रमेयम् ||११-४२||
yaccāvahāsārthamasatkṛto.asi vihāraśayyāsanabhojaneṣu . eko.athavāpyacyuta tatsamakṣaṃ tatkṣāmaye tvāmahamaprameyam ||11-42||
Use this verse for apology and relationship repair.
Meaning
Whatever disrespect I showed You in jest while playing, resting, sitting, eating, alone or before others, O Achyuta, I ask Your forgiveness, O immeasurable one.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Arjuna asks forgiveness for informal disrespect.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
This verse teaches repair in sacred relationships. Even love may need apology when casualness crosses into disrespect.
Read the traditional commentary
Arjuna's remorse becomes wonderfully specific. He recalls the ordinary intimacies of friendship — joking together while at play, lounging on the same couch, sitting side by side, sharing meals, sometimes alone, sometimes before others. In all these moments, treating Krishna as a mere companion, he may have shown disrespect avahasa-artham, for the sake of fun. For all of it he now begs forgiveness.
The repeated word ksamaye — 'I implore forgiveness' — and the title Achyuta, the infallible, immeasurable one, mark the depth of his contrition. Yet there is profound beauty in what is revealed: the Supreme Lord had been Arjuna's everyday companion, sharing the small comforts of human life.
The Divine is not only the terrifying cosmic form; it walks beside us in the ordinary moments we scarcely notice. Arjuna's plea for pardon is also a recognition of how near the Divine has always been — present at the table and at play, patiently bearing our forgetfulness with love.
In daily life
Ask forgiveness where affection became careless.
A person may need to apologize to a parent, teacher, friend, or deity for careless words.
Try this today
Offer one sincere apology or corrective gesture.
I repair carelessness with humility.Reflect
Whom have I taken for granted?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘असत्कृतः असि’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on forgiveness, in other chapters
- Verse 12.13True devotion shows itself as freedom from ego and warmth toward every living being.
- Verse 16.3Cultivate strength tempered by forgiveness and purity tempered by humility — that balance marks a soul destined for the divine.
- 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.
Swipe left for 11.43 · Krishna is friend, father, guru, and Lord.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 11.42
Who says Bhagavad Gita 11.42, and to whom?
Arjuna speaks to Krishna in verse 11.42, in Chapter 11, Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga (Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 11.42 mean?
Whatever disrespect I showed You in jest while playing, resting, sitting, eating, alone or before others, O Achyuta, I ask Your forgiveness, O immeasurable one. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 11.42 for daily life?
Ask forgiveness where affection became careless. A person may need to apologize to a parent, teacher, friend, or deity for careless words.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 11.42 mean?
यत् च अवहासार्थम् — and whatever for the sake of fun / jest; असत्कृतः असि — You were treated with disrespect; विहारशय्यासनभोजनेषु — while playing, resting, sitting or eating; एकः अथवा अपि — alone or also (in company); अच्युत — O Achyuta (infallible one).
Where does verse 11.42 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 42 of 55 in Chapter 11, Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga. The next verse is 11.43.