Bhagavad Gita Chapter 1, Verse 18: Meaning and Special Explanation

Sloka (Verse):

द्रुपदो द्रौपदेयाश्च सर्वशः पृथिवीपते ।
सौभद्रश्च महाबाहुः शङ्खान्दध्मुः पृथक् पृथक् ॥१८॥

Drupado draupadeyāś ca sarvaśaḥ pṛthivī-pate ।
Saubhadraś ca mahā-bāhuḥ śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak ॥18॥

Word-by-Word Meaning:

drupadaḥ — King Drupada
draupadeyāḥ — the sons of Draupadi
ca — and
sarvaśaḥ — all
pṛthivī-pate — O King (addressing Dhritarashtra)
saubhadraḥ — the son of Subhadra (Abhimanyu)
ca — and
mahā-bāhuḥ — mighty-armed
śaṅkhān — conchshells
dadhmuḥ — blew
pṛthak pṛthak — each separately

Translation:

O King, Drupada, the sons of Draupadi, and the mighty-armed son of Subhadra, Abhimanyu — all of them blew their respective conchshells.

Purport

In this verse, Sanjaya conveys an important message to the blind King Dhritarashtra. He is not merely listing the great warriors on the side of the Pandavas, but subtly indicating how wrong Dhritarashtra's policies and decisions had been, and how terrible the consequences were about to become.

In verses 1.16, 1.17, and 1.18, one after another, the names of great warriors are being proclaimed — Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula, Sahadeva, the King of Kashi, Shikhandi, Dhrishtadyumna, Virata, Satyaki, Drupada, the five sons of Draupadi, and the mighty-armed Abhimanyu. All of them blew their conchshells — which was the declaration of war.

Here, Sanjaya addresses Dhritarashtra as "Prithivi-pate" — this is an honorific term of address. Although Dhritarashtra was a king, he was blind — not only in his eyes, but also in his conscience and sense of justice. This very blindness was leading him and his sons towards destruction.

Those who were on the side of the Pandavas were not merely brave warriors — they stood for dharma, for truth, and above all, for the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna. Drupada was the father of Draupadi. The five sons of Draupadi — Prativindhya, Sutasoma, Shrutakirti, Shatanika, and Shrutasena — were all brave and righteous. And Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadra, who was the nephew of Sri Krishna and the son of Arjuna — he was extremely valiant and powerful. He is called "Maha-bahu," meaning one whose arms are extremely strong.

All these great warriors blew their conchshells separately, declaring war. This conchshell sound was the signal of a righteous war.

Here, Sanjaya is trying to convey an important point. Dhritarashtra, by supporting the unrighteousness and injustice of his sons, had initiated a great catastrophe. The deception against the Pandavas, snatching their kingdom, and placing his sons on an unjust throne — all of this was a great mistake. And the price of this mistake would have to be paid by the entire Kuru dynasty.

In this war, not only Duryodhana or his brothers, but Grandsire Bhishma, Teacher Dronacharya, and countless kings and warriors who had come from various parts of the world would lose their lives. But the cause of this disaster was only one — Dhritarashtra's attachment and encouragement of unrighteousness.

There is a deep spiritual lesson here. Just as Dhritarashtra, blinded by attachment to his sons, supported unrighteousness, similarly we too often go astray due to our own illusions, pride, and selfishness. We fail to understand that Lord Sri Krishna is always on the side of dharma, and those who stand for dharma will be victorious.

Even though great warriors like Bhishma and Dronacharya were on the side of Duryodhana and his brothers, they would be defeated — because they were bound by their duty to fight on the side that opposed dharma, even though they themselves were not unrighteous, they personally were men of great virtue.

On the other hand, the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna Himself was on the side of the Pandavas — therefore their victory was inevitable.

From this verse, we learn — when the battle between dharma and adharma takes place in our lives, we should stand on the side of dharma and take shelter of Sri Krishna. Only then will peace, happiness, and ultimately liberation come into our lives.

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Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare।
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare॥