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Chapter 2 · Contents of the Gītā Summarized · 72 verses

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Soul & knowledgeChapter 2 · Contents of the Gītā Summarized

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 2.19

The eternal soul beyond bodily death

य एनं वेत्ति हन्तारं यश्चैनं मन्यते हतम् ।

उभौ तौ न विजानीतो नायं हन्ति न हन्यते ॥ १९ ॥

ya enaṁ vetti hantāraṁ

yaś cainaṁ manyate hatam

ubhau tau na vijānīto

nāyaṁ hanti na hanyate

Translation

Neither he who thinks the living entity the slayer nor he who thinks it slain is in knowledge, for the self slays not nor is slain.

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

1Those who think the soul kills or is killed lack knowledge: the soul neither kills nor is killed.
2Only the body can be killed. The soul is spiritual and cannot be killed by material weapons.
3This truth does not justify violence or animal slaughter. Arjuna fights for religious principles, not on a whim.

In the story

Chapter 2, Contents of the Gītā Summarized: the eternal soul beyond bodily death.

Theme summary

Discern the eternal self from the temporary.

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: ātmā, jñāna.

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

What does BG 2.19 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to soul & knowledge?

Spend five minutes reflecting on what in you does not change.

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

Ask about BG 2.19 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.