Verse 2.10

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.10:

तम् उवाच हृषीकेशः प्रहसन्न् इव भारत ।
सेनयोर् उभयोर् मध्ये विषीदन्तम् इदं वचः ॥ १० ॥

tam uvāca hṛṣīkeśaḥ prahasann iva bhārata |
senayor ubhayor madhye viṣīdantam idaṃ vacaḥ || 10 ||

tam–to him (Arjuna); uvāca–spoke; hṛṣīkeśaḥ–Śrī Kṛṣṇa; prahasan–smiling; iva–as if; bhārata–O descendant of Bhārata; senayoḥ–of the armies; ubhayoḥ–of both; madhye–in the midst; viṣīdantam–to the one afflicted by lamentation; idam–these; vacaḥ–words.

O descendant of Bhārata (Dhṛtarāṣṭra), at that time, Hṛṣīkeśa Śrī Kṛṣṇa, apparently smiling in the midst of both armies, spoke the following words to the grieving Arjuna.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

(By Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura; the innermost intention of the commentary named ‘the shower of essential meanings’)

To ridicule His friend Arjuna, who is in sakhya-bhāva, Kṛṣṇa shows him that it is improper to be aggrieved in this way, thus drowning him in an ocean of embarrassment. Śrī Kṛṣṇa remarks, “Oh, you are quite devoid of discrimination.” Yet Arjuna has accepted the position of Kṛṣṇa’s disciple, and it is improper to immerse a disciple in an ocean of shame in this way. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa is pursing His lips and trying to hide His smile. Here, the import of the word ‘Hṛṣīkeśa’ is that, although Kṛṣṇa was previously controlled by the loving statements of Arjuna, now, for Arjuna’s own welfare and out of love for him, Kṛṣṇa is controlling Arjuna’s mind.

The words senayor ubhayor madhye indicate that Arjuna’s grief and the instructions and assurances given by Śrī Bhagavān were equally visible to both armies. In other words, this message of Bhagavad-gītā was also manifest before all the ordinary persons present. It was not kept secret from anyone.