Verse 18.17
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
यस्य नाहंकृतो भावो बुद्धिर्यस्य न लिप्यते | हत्वापि स इमाँल्लोकान्न हन्ति न निबध्यते ||१७||
Transliteration (IAST)
yasya nāhaṁkṛto bhāvo buddhir yasya na lipyate | hatvāpi sa imāṁl lokān na hanti na nibadhyate ||17||
Word-by-Word Meanings
yasya-whose
na ahaṁkṛtaḥ-not ego-driven
bhāvaḥ-disposition/nature
buddhiḥ-intellect
na lipyate-is not tainted
hatvā api-even having slain
na hanti-does not slay
na nibadhyate-is not bound
Translation
One whose disposition is free from ego, whose intellect is not tainted - even though slaying these people, that person neither slays nor is bound.
Commentary
This powerful verse echoes 2.19 and directly addresses Arjuna's dilemma about killing in battle. Shankaracharya explains that one free from ahaṁkāra (ego-sense) does not incur sin because there is no identification with the act. Ramanuja clarifies this does not condone violence but describes the state of one who acts purely as an instrument of divine will in righteous duty.
Themes
karmajnanadharmaatman