Devanagari
यदृच्छया चोपपन्नं स्वर्गद्वारमपावृतम् ।
सुखिनः क्षत्रियाः पार्थ लभन्ते युद्धमीदृशम् ॥ ३२ ॥
Verse text
yadṛcchayā copapannaṁ
svarga-dvāram apāvṛtam
sukhinaḥ kṣatriyāḥ pārtha
labhante yuddham īdṛśam
Synonyms
yadṛcchayā
—
by its own accord
;
ca
—
also
;
upapannam
—
arrived at
;
svarga
—
of the heavenly planets
;
dvāram
—
door
;
apāvṛtam
—
wide open
;
sukhinaḥ
—
very happy
;
kṣatriyāḥ
—
the members of the royal order
;
pārtha
—
O son of Pṛthā
;
labhante
—
do achieve
;
yuddham
—
war
;
īdṛśam
—
like this.
Translation
O Pārtha, happy are the kṣatriyas to whom such fighting opportunities come unsought, opening for them the doors of the heavenly planets.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
32. Warriors are the happy who obtain such a battle which comes by chance and which opens the doors to heaven.
Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)
32. Warriors are the happy who obtain such a battle which comes just without effort and which opens the doors to heaven.
Purport
As supreme teacher of the world, Lord Kṛṣṇa condemns the attitude of Arjuna, who said, “I do not find any good in this fighting. It will cause perpetual habitation in hell.” Such statements by Arjuna were due to ignorance only. He wanted to become nonviolent in the discharge of his specific duty. For a kṣatriya to be on the battlefield and to become nonviolent is the philosophy of fools. In the Parāśara-smṛti, or religious codes made by Parāśara, the great sage and father of Vyāsadeva, it is stated:
kṣatriyo hi prajā rakṣan śastra-pāṇiḥ pradaṇḍayan nirjitya para-sainyādi kṣitiṁ dharmeṇa pālayet
“The kṣatriya’s duty is to protect the citizens from all kinds of difficulties, and for that reason he has to apply violence in suitable cases for law and order. Therefore he has to conquer the soldiers of inimical kings, and thus, with religious principles, he should rule over the world.”
Considering all aspects, Arjuna had no reason to refrain from fighting. If he should conquer his enemies, he would enjoy the kingdom; and if he should die in the battle, he would be elevated to the heavenly planets, whose doors were wide open to him. Fighting would be for his benefit in either case.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Moreover, more than even the victors, those who die in a just battle attain happiness. By killing Bhīṣma and others, you make them happier. Even without doing karma-yoga, one can attain Svarga through the battle, without any obstructions (apāvṛtam).
Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)
Moreover, since without your effort this war will bring great benefit, your fear is not justified. Ca is used here for emphasis only (yadṛcchayā ca—just without effort). Fortunate (sukhinaḥ) kṣatriyas obtain such wars— with great warriors such as Bhīṣma, which come to them without effort—because if they are victorious they attain fame and kingdom by honest effort, and if they die, they very quickly attain svarga. The Lord indicates this by saying that there is no obstacles to attain svarga (svarga dvāram apāvṛtam), whereas by performance of the jyotiṣṭoma sacrifice one attains svarga only after a long time. Thus the Lord indicates the superiority of fighting to sacrifices.
Surrender Unto Me
This is the goal of Karma‑kanda.