द्रोणं च भीष्मं च जयद्रथं च कर्णं तथाऽन्यानपि योधवीरान्। मया हतांस्त्वं जहि मा व्यथिष्ठा युध्यस्व जेतासि रणे सपत्नान् ॥
droṇaṃ ca bhīṣmaṃ ca jayadrathaṃ ca karṇaṃ tathā'nyānapi yodhavīrān| mayā hatāṃstvaṃ jahi mā vyathiṣṭhā yudhyasva jetāsi raṇe sapatnān ||
Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Jayadratha, Karṇa — all already slain by Me! You kill them. Fear not — fight! You shall conquer!
Word by word (3)
- droṇaṃ ca bhīṣmaṃ ca jayadrathaṃ ca karṇaṃ tathānyān api yodhavīrān
- — Droṇa, and Bhīṣma, and Jayadratha, and Karṇa, and other battle-heroes · Four names + group: Droṇa (Arjuna's guru — the one who trained him), Bhīṣma (the grand patriarch — the one no one can kill unless he chooses to die), Jayadratha (king of Sindhu — important in the Mahābhārata for blocking the Pāṇḍavas on the critical 13th day), Karṇa (Arjuna's exact equal in skill and secret half-brother). These four represent different types of dharmic complexity: teacher, patriarch, political enemy, and personal rival. Yet all are explicitly named as mayā hatān (already slain by Me). The naming is theologically important: the cosmic order has specificity — not just 'armies' but THESE specific people, with their specific histories.
- mayā hatāṃs tvaṃ jahi
- — slain by Me, you kill them / kill those already slain by Me · Mayā hatān = (those) slain by Me (hatān = past passive participle of √han = to slay; mayā = instrumental: by Me). The paradox: they are already slain (hatān = past tense) yet Arjuna is commanded to slay them (jahi = imperative of √han = slay!). Both past and future tense apply to the same beings. From the eternal/cosmic perspective (kāla's viewpoint), they are already slain — the future is accomplished. From the temporal perspective (Arjuna's battlefield), they are alive and must be fought. This temporal paradox is resolved by karma yoga: act in time as if outcomes matter, while knowing from the eternal perspective that outcomes are already accomplished.
- mā vyathiṣṭhāḥ yudhyasva jetāsi raṇe sapatnān
- — be not distressed / fear not! Fight! You shall conquer your enemies in battle! · Mā vyathiṣṭhāḥ = be not distressed (mā = negative imperative; vyathiṣṭhāḥ = from √vyath = to be distressed, agitated; vyathā = the distress that has been Arjuna's affliction since Ch.1). Yudhyasva = fight! (imperative of √yudh = to fight). Jetāsi = you shall conquer (future: jetā = conqueror + asi = you are). Raṇe = in battle. Sapatnān = enemies, rivals. The three imperatives form a crescendo: mā vyathiṣṭhāḥ (stop the distress) → yudhyasva (act) → jetāsi (you will win). The sequence addresses Arjuna's three obstacles: emotional block → inaction → doubt about outcome. All three are answered in one verse.
Krishna names the four most challenging enemies specifically — Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Jayadratha, Karṇa — and says all are already slain by Him. Arjuna's role is just to kill those already slain. Then three imperatives: stop being distressed, fight, you will win.
A modern analogy
Like a general telling a hesitant soldier: 'The intelligence says the outcome is already decided. Your role is to execute the mission. Don't be paralyzed by doubt — act with full skill. You will succeed.' The certainty of the plan removes the burden of uncertainty from the instrument.
Sit with this: Krishna names Droṇa (Arjuna's teacher) among those already slain by God. If you knew that a painful outcome involving someone you deeply respect was already 'determined by the cosmic order' — would that ease or deepen your grief? How does acceptance of inevitability interact with care for individuals?
V34 is the application of V32-V33's principle to specific individuals. The shift from abstract (kālo'smi = I am Time) to specific (Droṇaṃ ca Bhīṣmaṃ ca = these people by name) is deliberately grounding: the cosmic principle must land in specific action. Mayā hatāṃs tvaṃ jahi (kill those already slain by Me) contains the key teaching: the temporal and eternal perspectives are simultaneously valid. In eternity, they are already slain (hatān); in time, they must be fought (jahi). The karma yogi holds BOTH without contradiction — acting with full temporal engagement while knowing the eternal outcome.
Karma-Yoga lens
Mā vyathiṣṭhāḥ (be not distressed) is the final resolution of Arjuna's vyathā (distress). In Ch.1.29 Arjuna said 'sīdanti mama gātram' (my limbs fail); Ch.2.1 described him as 'viṣādena abhipannam' (overwhelmed with grief). The entire Gita has been treating this vyathā. V34's mā vyathiṣṭhāḥ is the direct prescription: now that you know kālo'smi (V32) and nimitta-mātra (V33), there is no foundation left for vyathā. The karma yogi who acts without ego-authorship is immune to the distress of outcomes — because they have released the claim that the outcomes are theirs.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
Drona and Bhishma, Jayadratha, Karna and other brave warriors — these, killed by Me, do thou kill; fear not, fight, thou shalt conquer the enemies. [1]
Drona, Bhishma, Jayadratha, Karna as well as other brave warriors — these already slain by Me, do thou kill. Be not afraid. Fight. Thou shalt conquer the enemies in battle. [4]
Strike, strong-armed Prince, at Drona! at Bhishma strike! deal death on Karna, Jyadratha; stay all their warlike breath! 'Tis I who bid them perish! Thou wilt but slay the slain; fight! they must fall, and thou must live, victor upon this plain! [7]
Drona and Bhishma, and Jayadratha, and Karna, and also other heroic warriors, already slain by Me, do thou slay. Be not dismayed, fight; thou shalt conquer in battle thy foes. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
All sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra — Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Karṇa, our champions — rush rapidly into Your terrible, tusk-ridden mouths!
Arise and win glory! These warriors are already slain by Me — be merely the instrument, O Savyasācin!
Even the fathers-in-law and dearest friends — on both sides. No one is safely 'other.'
Hear again My supreme word, most secret of all — because you are deeply beloved to Me, I will speak your benefit.
Intellect, wisdom, patience, truth, calm, restraint, joy, pain, birth, death, fear, fearlessness — all arise from Me.
You alone fill the space between heaven and earth — three worlds tremble beholding Your marvellous, awful form!