FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Bhagavad-gītā 1.16-18

అనన్తవిజయం రాజా కున్తీపుత్రో యుధిష్ఠిరః । నకులః సహదేవశ్చ సుఘోషమణిపుష్పకౌ ॥ ౧౬ ॥ కాశ్యశ్చ పరమేష్వాస: శిఖణ్డీ చ మహారథ: । ధృష్టద్యుమ్న‍ో విరాటశ్చ సాత్యకిశ్‍చాపరాజిత: ॥ ౧౭ ॥ ద్రుపదో ద్రౌపదేయాశ్చ సర్వశ: పృథివీపతే । సౌభద్రశ్చ మహాబాహు: శఙ్ఖాన్దధ్ము: పృథక్పృథక్ ॥ ౧౮ ॥
anantavijayaṁ rājā
[anantavijayam raajaa]
kuntī-putro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ
[kuntee-putro yudhishthirah]
nakulaḥ sahadevaś ca
[nakulah sahadevash cha]
sughoṣa-maṇipuṣpakau
[sughosha-manipushpakau]
kāśyaś ca parameṣv-āsaḥ
[kaashyash cha parameshv-aasah]
śikhaṇḍī ca mahā-rathaḥ
[shikhandee cha mahaa-rathah]
dhṛṣṭadyumno virāṭaś ca
[dhrishtadyumno viraatash cha]
sātyakiś cāparājitaḥ
[saatyakish chaaparaajitah]
drupado draupadeyāś ca
[drupado draupadeyaash cha]
sarvaśaḥ pṛthivī-pate
[sarvashah prithivee-pate]
saubhadraś ca mahā-bāhuḥ
[saubhadrash cha mahaa-baahuh]
śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak
[shankhaan dadhmuh prithak prithak]
Word-for-word
ananta - vijayam — the conch named Ananta-vijaya rājā — the king kuntī - putraḥ — the son of Kuntī yudhiṣṭhiraḥ — Yudhiṣṭhira nakulaḥ — Nakula sahadevaḥ — Sahadeva ca — and sughoṣa - maṇipuṣpakau — the conches named Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka kāśyaḥ — the King of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) ca — and parama - iṣu - āsaḥ — the great archer śikhaṇḍī — Śikhaṇḍī ca — also mahā - rathaḥ — one who can fight alone against thousands dhṛṣṭadyumnaḥ — Dhṛṣṭadyumna (the son of King Drupada) virāṭaḥ — Virāṭa (the prince who gave shelter to the Pāṇḍavas while they were in disguise) ca — also sātyakiḥ — Sātyaki (the same as Yuyudhāna, the charioteer of Lord Kṛṣṇa) ca — and aparājitaḥ — who had never been vanquished drupadaḥ — Drupada, the King of Pāñcāla draupadeyāḥ — the sons of Draupadī ca — also sarvaśaḥ — all pṛthivī - pate — O King saubhadraḥ — Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadrā ca — also mahā - bāhuḥ — mighty-armed śaṅkhān — conchshells dadhmuḥ — blew pṛthak pṛthak — each separately .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
anantavijayaṁ rājā
ananta - vijayam
the conch named Ananta-vijaya
rājā
the king
kuntī-putro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ
kuntī - putraḥ
the son of Kuntī
yudhiṣṭhiraḥ
Yudhiṣṭhira
nakulaḥ sahadevaś ca
nakulaḥ
Nakula
sahadevaḥ
Sahadeva
ca
and
sughoṣa-maṇipuṣpakau
sughoṣa - maṇipuṣpakau
the conches named Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka
kāśyaḥ
the King of Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)
kāśyaś ca parameṣv-āsaḥ
ca
and
parama - iṣu - āsaḥ
the great archer
śikhaṇḍī ca mahā-rathaḥ
śikhaṇḍī
Śikhaṇḍī
ca
also
mahā - rathaḥ
one who can fight alone against thousands
dhṛṣṭadyumno virāṭaś ca
dhṛṣṭadyumnaḥ
Dhṛṣṭadyumna (the son of King Drupada)
virāṭaḥ
Virāṭa (the prince who gave shelter to the Pāṇḍavas while they were in disguise)
ca
also
sātyakiś cāparājitaḥ
sātyakiḥ
Sātyaki (the same as Yuyudhāna, the charioteer of Lord Kṛṣṇa)
ca
and
aparājitaḥ
who had never been vanquished
drupado draupadeyāś ca
drupadaḥ
Drupada, the King of Pāñcāla
draupadeyāḥ
the sons of Draupadī
ca
also
sarvaśaḥ pṛthivī-pate
sarvaśaḥ
all
pṛthivī - pate
O King
saubhadraś ca mahā-bāhuḥ
saubhadraḥ
Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadrā
ca
also
mahā - bāhuḥ
mighty-armed
śaṅkhān dadhmuḥ pṛthak pṛthak
śaṅkhān
conchshells
dadhmuḥ
blew
pṛthak pṛthak
each separately .
Important Words
  • ananta - vijayam — the conch named Ananta-vijaya
    *Ananta* (endless) + *vijaya* (victory). Yudhiṣṭhira, who has known mostly defeat, blows the conch of *endless victory*. The name foreshadows the Gītā's redefinition of *jaya*: not outer triumph but inner constancy.
  • sughoṣa - maṇipuṣpakau — the conches Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka
    *Su-ghoṣa* ("sweet-sounding") and *Maṇi-puṣpaka* ("jewel-flowered"). Nakula and Sahadeva, the youngest twins, blow conches whose very names are aesthetic — sweet sound and jewel-flowering. Beauty has its place in dharma's chorus.
  • mahā - rathaḥ — one who can fight ten thousand bowmen
    The kṣatriya rating reappears — now applied to Śikhaṇḍī, the appointed instrument of Bhīṣma's fall. Vyāsa positions the future grandsire-slayer in a list of *mahā-rathas* without comment; the chapter has begun threading the war's outcome into its opening cast-list.
  • aparājitaḥ — the unconquered
    *A-parājita* — never defeated. Sātyaki's epithet. The verse positions an *unconquered* warrior on the Pāṇḍava side — a quiet rebuttal of Duryodhana's verses 4–9, where he listed strong enemies but could call none *aparājita*.
  • pṛthak pṛthak — each separately
    Repetition of *pṛthak* — *separately, separately*. Each warrior's conch is sounded *individually*. Vyāsa is making a point: the Pāṇḍava chorus is not undifferentiated noise; each devotee's voice is distinct. The collective is built of named individuals.
King Yudhiṣṭhira, the son of Kuntī, blew his conchshell, the Ananta-vijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew the Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka. That great archer the King of Kāśī, the great fighter Śikhaṇḍī, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa, the unconquerable Sātyaki, Drupada, the sons of Draupadī, and others, O King, such as the mighty-armed son of Subhadrā, all blew their respective conchshells.
Purport

Sañjaya informed King Dhṛtarāṣṭra very tactfully that his unwise policy of deceiving the sons of Pāṇḍu and endeavoring to enthrone his own sons on the seat of the kingdom was not very laudable. The signs already clearly indicated that the whole Kuru dynasty would be killed in that great battle. Beginning with the grandsire, Bhīṣma, down to the grandsons like Abhimanyu and others – including kings from many states of the world – all were present there, and all were doomed. The whole catastrophe was due to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra, because he encouraged the policy followed by his sons.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
15-16. Kṛṣṇa blew Pāṣcajanya, Arjuna blew Devadatta, and Bhīma of fearful deeds blew the great conch Pauṇḍra. Yudhiṣṭhira, son of Kuntī, blew Anantavijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew their conches Sughoṣa and Manipuṣpaka. 17-18. Then the king of Kāśī, the greatest archer, Śikhaṇḍī, a mahā-ratha, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa and Sātyaki, who could not be defeated, Drupada, the sons of Draupadī, and mighty-armed Abhimanyu blew their conches one after the other.
Commentary

The names of the conch shells are listed here, starting with Kṛṣṇa’s Pāṣcajanya.

The word aparājitaḥ means unconquerable. However, it can be read cāpa rājitaḥ, by including the previous ca as part of the word instead a separate word meaning “and”, in which case it means “equipped with a bow.”

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa Gauḍīya
Translation
15-16. Kṛṣṇa blew Paṣcajanya, Arjuna blew Devadatta, and Bhīma of fearful deeds blew the great conch Pauṇḍra. Yudhiṣṭhira, son of Kuntī, blew Anantavijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew their conches Sughoṣa and Manipuṣpaka. 17-18. Then the king of Kāṣī, who was the greatest archer, the mahāratha Śikhaṇḍi, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa and Sātyaki, who shone with his bow, Drupada, the sons of Draupadī, and mighty-armed Ahimanyu blew their conches one after the other, O lord of the earth.
Commentary

The names of the conches starting with Kṛṣṇa’s Paṅcajanya are listed. The word hṛṣikeśa (master of the senses) used in describing the Lord indicates that the Lord would help this army (He would help by directing their senses skilfully). Mentioning the names of the conches indicates that these persons had many conches of divine nature. The word rājā indicates that Yudhiṣṭhira had performed the rājāsūya sacrifice. [Note: He was not recognized as king until after the battle.] The word bhīma karma (man of ferocious actions) indicates that Bhīma had killed many demons such as Hiḍimbā. The word dhanaṣjaya indicates that Arjuna had gathered unlimited treasures when he went out to conquer the directions. Thus the outstanding nature of the Pāṇḍava army is indicated. The opposing army, not having these descriptive names, was therefore inferior. Kāśya indicates the king of Kāśi, who was a great archer (parameṣvāsaḥ). Sātyaki was shining with his bow (cāpa rājitaḥ). “O Dhṛtarāṣṭra, lord of the earth (pṛthivī pate), your bad advice has brought about this calamity in the form of the destruction of the dynasty.” That is the suggestion of addressing the king as “lord of the earth.”

Bhūrijana Dāsa Gauḍīya
Translation
King Yudhisthira, the son of Kunti, blew his conchshell, the Ananta‑vijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew the Sughosa and Manipuspaka. That great archer the King of Kasi, the great fighter Sikhandi, Dhrstadyumna, Virata, the unconquerable Satyaki, Drupada, the sons of Draupadi, and the others, O King, such as the mighty‑armed son of Subhadra, all blew their respective conchshells. (cn/DS) All these conchshells had very significant importance. Only all these warriors whose conchshells had names, survived the battlefield. Except the unconquerable Satyaki who also survived.
Study Notes — Gauranga Priya Dāsa
Gauranga Priya Dāsa Study
Bhakti-śāstrī Notes, ISKCON Chowpatty (2009)
Theme

COMMON THEME: All Pandavas blew conchshells and all other instruments that made a tumultuous sound

NAMES OF DIFFERENT CONCHSHELLS: S. No

Warriors

Conchshell

1.

Krishna

Panchajanya

2.

Arjuna

Devadatta

3.

Yudhishtara

Anantavijaya

4.

Bhima

Paundra

5.

Nakula

Sughosa

6.

Sahadeva

Manipushpaka

PLEASE NOTE: Text 1.13 has no purport. Text 1.14 purport is covered under the main theme ‘Signs of Victory of

Pandavas’ above. Purports for Texts 1.15 to 1.18 are presented in the ‘Focus of Learning’ sections below

Focus of Learning

(a) Sanjaya very tactfully informed King Dhrtarashtra of the following points through all the above

mentioned verses:

His unwise policy of deceiving the sons of Pandu and endeavoring to enthrone his own sons was not very laudable
All the signs indicate that the whole Kuru dynasty would be killed
From the grandsire Bhisma to the grandson Abhimanyu, and all the kings of all states were doomed
And Dhrtarashtra was the cause of the whole catastrophe because he encouraged the policy followed by his sons

(a) Message announced by conchshells – Blowing of conchshells announced the message that

Kauravas were predestined to lose the battle

(b) Importance of names

Hrsikesha
Owner of all senses / senses of living entities are part and parcels of His senses

▪ Impersonalists cannot account for the senses of the living entities and they are

always anxious to describe the living entities as sense-less or impersonal

Lord as Paramatma directs the senses according to the surrender of the living entity
Directly controls transcendental senses of a pure devotee like Arjuna
Govinda – Pleasure-giver to cows and senses
Dhananjaya – Arjuna helped elder brother to fetch wealth for different sacrifices
Vrkodara – Eat as voraciously as he could do herculean tasks (Bhima)
Few other names explained – Madhusudana / Vasudeva / Devaki-nandana / Yasoda-nandana / Partha-sarthy (Read 1.15 purport)
Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
1.16 Sri Sankaracharya did not comment on this sloka. The commentary starts from 2.10.
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
1.1 - 1.19 Dhrtarastra said - Sanjaya said Duryodhana, after viewing the forces of Pandavas protected by Bhima, and his own forces protected by Bhisma conveyed his views thus to Drona, his teacher, about the adeacy of Bhima's forces for conering the Kaurava forces and the inadeacy of his own forces for victory against the Pandava forces. He was grief-stricken within. Observing his (Duryodhana's) despondecny, Bhisma, in order to cheer him, roared like a lion, and then blowing his conch, made his side sound their conchs and kettle-drums, which made an uproar as a sign of victory. Then, having heard that great tumult, Arjuna and Sri Krsna the Lord of all lords, who was acting as the charioteer of Arjuna, sitting in their great chariot which was powerful enough to coner the three worlds; blew their divine conchs Srimad Pancajanya and Devadatta. Then, both Yudhisthira and Bhima blew their respective conchs separately. That tumult rent asunder the hearts of your sons, led by Duryodhana. The sons of Dhrtarastra then thought, 'Our cause is almost lost now itself.' So said Sanjaya to Dhrtarastra who was longing for their victory. Sanjaya said to Dhrtarastra: Then, seeing the Kauravas, who were ready for battle, Arjuna, who had Hanuman, noted for his exploit of burning Lanka, as the emblem on his flag on his chariot, directed his charioteer Sri Krsna, the Supreme Lord-who is overcome by parental love for those who take shelter in Him who is the treasure-house of knowledge, power, lordship, energy, potency and splendour, whose sportive delight brings about the origin, sustentation and dissolution of the entire cosmos at His will, who is the Lord of the senses, who controls in all ways the senses inner and outer of all, superior and inferior - by saying, 'Station my chariot in an appropriate place in order that I may see exactly my enemies who are eager for battle.'
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
1.12 1.29 Sri Abhinavgupta did not comment upon this sloka.
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
1.16. The king Yodhishthira, the son of Kunti, blew the Anantavijaya; Nakula and Sahadeva blew the Sughosha and the Manipushpaka.
Commentary

1.16 अनन्तविजयम् (the conch named) Anantavijayam? राजा the king? कुन्तीपुत्रः son of Kunti? युधिष्ठिरः Yudhishthira? नकुलः Nakula? सहदेवः Sahadeva? च and? सुघोषमणिपुष्पकौ (the conches named) Sughosha and Manipushpaka.No Commentary.

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
1.16 King Yudhisthira, son of Kunti, (blew) the Anantavijaya; Nakula and Sahadeva, the Sughosa and the Manipuspaka (respectively).
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
1.16 The King Dharmaraja, the son of Kunti, blew the Anantavijaya, Nakalu and Sahadeo, the Sugosh and Manipushpaka, respectively.
Related values & verses
Related values
Tyaga (Renunciation / Letting Go)Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)Ahimsa (Non-violence / Compassion)Tapas (Austerity / Discipline)Atma Nigraha (Self-control)Daksya (Resourcefulness / Skill)Abhaya (Fearlessness)
Related verses
BG 1.6 BG 1.15 BG 10.21 SB 1.8.43 SB 11.3.30 SB 10.13.22 CC Ādi 1.58 CC Ādi 10.7 CC Madhya 11.95 Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 3.2.10BRS 1.2.91
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Many devotees, named together, sound dharma in concert — collective service amplifies what individual service alone cannot achieve.
Practical Applications
  • Participate in a kīrtana you would normally skip; experience the multiplication of effect in collective chanting.
  • Show up for a community service even when your particular skill is not the headline contribution.
  • Trust that even minor participation matters when the whole community is sounding dharma.
Reflection Questions
  • Where do I disqualify myself from collective service because my role feels small?
  • How does my voice become richer when joined with others'?
Analogy

Many conches, each separately named — *pṛthak pṛthak* — sound across the field. This is not a single voice but a chorus of distinct devotional notes. Each devotee has his own conch, his own sound. The Lord's army is recognizable by individuality, not uniformity.

Stories
Yudhiṣṭhira and Ananta-vijaya

Yudhiṣṭhira's conch is named *Ananta-vijaya* — "infinite victory." It is a strange name for a king whose lifetime has been one long defeat — exiled twice, dressed in bark, his wife humiliated, his brothers separated, his kingdom gambled away. He has not been a winner in any worldly arithmetic.

Yet the conch knows what the world does not. *Ananta-vijaya* — the *endless* victory — is the victory that survives every loss because it is not located in outcomes. Kṛṣṇa will later teach Arjuna exactly this in chapter 2: that the inner victory of steady dharma cannot be undone by outer defeat. The eldest Pāṇḍava blows the conch that names the Gītā's own thesis.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

← Read full Chapter 1