Rise above heart-weakness into responsible courage.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते ।क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप ॥२-३॥
klaibyaṃ mā sma gamaḥ pārtha naitat tvayy upapadyate | kṣudraṃ hṛdaya-daurbalyaṃ tyaktvottiṣṭha parantapa ||2-3||
Use this verse as your daily courage reminder.
Meaning
O Partha, do not yield to weakness. This does not suit you. Give up this small weakness of heart and arise, O scorcher of foes.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Krishna calls Arjuna to rise, not by denying pain, but by refusing collapse.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
This verse is a direct call to inner leadership. Krishna distinguishes real compassion from weakness that paralyzes responsibility.
Read the traditional commentary
This verse is among the most electrifying commands in all of sacred literature. Krishna uses two names for Arjuna in quick succession that carry immense weight: 'Pārtha' (son of Pritha, connecting him to his noble lineage) and 'Parantapa' (scorcher of enemies, evoking his prowess). The contrast between what Arjuna is and what he is doing could not be starker.
'Klaibyam' is a strong word — it implies impotence not merely physical but spiritual and moral.
Krishna does not say 'your grief is understandable' or 'take your time.' He says: this weakness is 'kṣudram' — petty, small, unworthy of your soul's actual stature. The teaching here is that our highest identity always exceeds our momentary emotional state. We are larger than our fears.
The command 'uttiṣṭha' — arise — resonates through millennia. It is not a call to brute aggression but to conscious, grounded action rooted in one's true nature. In modern application, whenever we face overwhelming anxiety, grief, or paralysis, this verse is a reminder: the weakness you feel is not who you are. Abandon the smallness. Arise. Act from your deepest capacity, not from your smallest fear.
In daily life
When pressure comes, remember your identity before your fear.
Before a difficult meeting, a leader may remind themselves: I can be kind and still be firm.
Try this today
Stand up, breathe deeply, and take one courageous step you are avoiding.
I rise with courage and clarity.Reflect
Where do I need to rise instead of collapse?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘mā sma gamaḥ’ mean in this verse?
The Gita on courage, in other chapters
- Verse 11.34Engage life's hardest duties without being crushed by grief, resting the outcome in the Divine.
- Verse 18.43The life of action and leadership calls for courage, fortitude, generosity, and never fleeing rightful struggle.
- Verse 3.1 · ArjunaWhen spiritual ideals seem to clash with hard duties, bring the confusion into the open rather than using it as an excuse to retreat.
- Verse 4.13The divine creates the whole moving world yet remains untouched by it — the model for acting fully while staying inwardly free.
Swipe left for 2.4 · Respect must be held with responsibility.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 2.3
Who says Bhagavad Gita 2.3, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 2.3, in Chapter 2, Sankhya Yoga (Sankhya Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 2.3 mean?
O Partha, do not yield to weakness. This does not suit you. Give up this small weakness of heart and arise, O scorcher of foes. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 2.3 for daily life?
When pressure comes, remember your identity before your fear. Before a difficult meeting, a leader may remind themselves: I can be kind and still be firm.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 2.3 mean?
klaibyam — impotence, unmanliness, cowardice; mā sma gamaḥ — do not yield to, do not go toward; pārtha — O son of Pritha (Arjuna); na — not; etat — this.
Where does verse 2.3 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 3 of 72 in Chapter 2, Sankhya Yoga. The next verse is 2.4.