Gita 02.34 – Engage the power of honour to encourage honourable action

Audio link: https://www.thespiritualscientist.com/gita-02-34-engage-the-power-of-honor-to-encourage-honorable-action/

akīrtiṁ cāpi bhūtāni
kathayiṣyanti te ’vyayām
sambhāvitasya cākīrtir
maraṇād atiricyate (Bg 2.34)

Word-for-word:
akīrtim — infamy; ca — also; api — over and above; bhūtāni — all people; kathayiṣyanti — will speak; te — of you; avyayām — forever; sambhāvitasya — for a respectable man; ca — also; akīrtiḥ — ill fame; maraṇāt — than death; atiricyate — becomes more.

Translation:
People will always speak of your infamy, and for a respectable person, dishonor is worse than death.

Explanation:
Kṛṣṇa continues his reasoning to persuade Arjuna to fight, now focusing on the consequences of not fighting. In the previous verse, he states: sva-dharmaṁ kīrtiṁ ca hitvā pāpam—by abandoning one’s sva-dharma, one incurs pāpa. He has also hinted at akīrti, which was previously mentioned in verse 2.2.

Now, Kṛṣṇa emphasizes this point further, and he will continue to do so for the next two to three verses. Let us examine what he says here:
akīrtiṁ cāpi bhūtāni kathayiṣyanti: People in general will speak of your akīrti—your infamy and disgraceful action. It is not merely inglorious but ignominious—the dishonor of leaving the battlefield.
te ’vyayām: Kṛṣṇa has used the word avyayā to refer to the soul, which is immortal. However, here, he employs avyayā as an adjective for infamy, implying that this disgrace will persist indefinitely.
sambhāvitasya cākīrtir: For one who has been honored, the disgrace of infamy—
maraṇād atiricyate: —is worse than death.

Kṛṣṇa reminds Arjuna that he had declared himself ready to die: yadi mām apratīkāram aśastraṁ śastra-pāṇayaḥ dhārtarāṣṭrā raṇe hanyus tan me kṣema-taraṁ bhavet—a statement Arjuna made toward the end of the first chapter (1.45). In response, Kṛṣṇa now asserts ‘maraṇād atiricyate’, meaning that for Arjuna, the suffering of dishonor will be worse than death itself.

Here, honor seems to be given great importance. Why is that? To understand this, we must distinguish between honor, pride, and arrogance. Though they may seem similar, there are significant differences between them.

The word ‘honor’ is generally used in a positive sense. ‘Pride’, on the other hand, is often seen in a negative light, though it can also have a positive connotation. For instance, prestigious hotels or establishments may be named ‘Hotel Pride’ or ‘Executive Pride’. Similarly, we might say that a particular project is the pride of a city. The ISKCON temple in Delhi has also been referred to as the ‘Pride of India’.

The point is that pride is not always negative. Feeling proud of something glorious is not wrong if that pride inspires us to act in an honorable and virtuous way. Ultimately, the meaning of pride depends on its context and usage.

The word that carries a distinctly negative connotation is ‘arrogance’. Unlike pride, we do not see hotels named ‘Hotel Arrogance’ or landmarks called the ‘Arrogance of India’. Arrogance is unquestionably undesirable.

However, pride is not necessarily undesirable. Even Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasized honor in a positive sense. When his disciples took their initiation vows, he would say, “This is your word of honor.” If someone failed to keep their vows, he would ask, “What happened? How could you not keep your word of honor? Do you not have a sense of honor? You have taken a vow in front of the spiritual master, the Deities, and these venerable individuals—how could you not uphold it?”

The point is that we are expected to act honorably, and a sense of honor inspires us to do so. Similarly, honor is spoken of in a positive sense in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
In the section about Dhruva Mahārāja, it is stated:
aho tejaḥ kṣatriyāṇāṁ māna-bhaṅgam amṛṣyatām (SB 4.8.26)
“Just see the glorious effulgence of the kṣatriyas—they cannot tolerate insult or impugnment to their honor.”
This sense of honor enables them to perform heroic, courageous, and extraordinary deeds.

Here, Kṛṣṇa is using the power of honor to inspire Arjuna to act honorably. This is the overall strategy of varṇāśrama-dharma, and, more broadly, it is a fundamental strategy of society as well.

In any society, certain activities are honored while others are shamed. By scorning, condemning, and deriding specific actions, people are discouraged from engaging in them. For example, in today’s culture, there is increasing sensitization of the brutality of the crime of rape. In the past, when such incidents occurred, it was often the victim who was stigmatized, leaving them without the courage to report the crime. However, as cultural attitudes evolve, there is now greater support for victims. Condemnation, derision, and punishment are swiftly directed at the perpetrator rather than the victim.

By publicly scorning certain actions and those who commit them, society creates hesitation in people before engaging in dishonorable acts. In this way, the power of one’s sense of honor can be used to inspire or impel people toward ethical behavior.

Nobody wants to be disrespected by society. The need for respect and belonging is not merely an expression of ego—it is a fundamental human need. We all seek a sense of belonging. At the same time, everyone has a lower nature that can drive them toward wrongdoing. By honoring and encouraging what is right, noble, and virtuous, society helps individuals suppress, control, or even reject their negative tendencies and instead cultivate their higher virtues.

The same principle was channelized in the kṣatriya community, where heroic courage was highly honored. If a kṣatriya acted honorably and fought heroically—even against overwhelming odds—and emerged unscathed and victorious, they would be celebrated as a hero for generations to come.

For instance, when Arjuna single-handedly bested the Kaurava hordes, including their champions, at Virāṭa, he gained immortal fame. His heroic actions inspired other warriors to act courageously. Here, the power of honor is used to encourage and inspire heroic deeds.

However, if someone who has achieved such lasting fame were to falter at a critical moment—as Arjuna is doing now—acting in a cowardly manner and withdrawing from battle, people would talk about it, and his infamy would spread. For one who has been honored, such disgrace would be unbearable. The fear of infamy would impel a kṣatriya to act honorably. In this way, a kṣatriya would be deterred from taking a dishonorable course and would remain steadfast in the path of honor.

Kṛṣṇa is emphasizing the social reality rather than the underlying subtle psychological reality. The deeper psychological reality is that all human beings seek a sense of belonging, acceptance, and respect within their community. This innate longing is channeled and utilized within the varṇāśrama system.

Specifically, in the kṣatriya community, this need for honor was leveraged to discourage cowardice and to inspire heroic action. If Arjuna acts in a cowardly manner, he will have to bear the consequences of dishonor. Kṛṣṇa is using this reminder as a speed breaker—or even a stopper—to prevent Arjuna from following his misguided plan of avoiding the war.

Thank you.