Bhagavad Gita 18.66 · Sarva Dharman Parityajyaसर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज।अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥
sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śharaṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣhayiṣhyāmi mā śhuchaḥ
Sanskrit recitation
Surrender the weight · 18.56–18.66 · Teaching
Translation
Abandon all duties and take refuge in Me alone; I will liberate you from all sins; do not grieve.
Hindi translation
सम्पूर्ण धर्मोंका आश्रय छोड़कर तू केवल मेरी शरणमें आ जा। मैं तुझे सम्पूर्ण पापोंसे मुक्त कर दूँगा, चिन्ता मत कर।
Meaning
The Lord has described various kinds of knowledge and processes of religion – knowledge of the Supreme Brahman, knowledge of the Supersoul, knowledge of the different types of orders and statuses of social life, knowledge of the renounced order of life, knowledge of nonattachment, sense and mind control, meditation, etc. He has described in so many ways different types of religion. Now, in summarizing Bhagavad-gītā , the Lord says that Arjuna should give up all the processes that have been explained to him; he should simply surrender to Kṛṣṇa. That surrender will save him from all kinds of sinful reactions, for the Lord personally promises to protect him. In the Seventh Chapter it was said that only one who has become free from all sinful reactions can take to the worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Thus one may think that unless he is free from all sinful reactions he cannot take to the surrendering process. To such doubts it is here said that even if one is not free from all sinful reactions, simply by the process of surrendering to Śrī Kṛṣṇa he is automatically freed. There is no need of strenuous effort to free oneself from sinful reactions. One should unhesitatingly accept Kṛṣṇa as the supreme savior of all living entities. With faith and love, one should surrender unto Him. The process of surrender to Kṛṣṇa is described in the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (11.676): ānukūlyasya saṅkalpaḥ prātikūlyasya varjanam rakṣiṣyatīti viśvāso goptṛtve varaṇaṁ tathā ātma-nikṣepa-kārpaṇye ṣaḍ-vidhā śaraṇāgatiḥ According to the devotional process, one should simply accept such religious principles that will lead ultimately to the devotional service of the Lord. One may perform a particular occupational duty according to his position in the social order, but if by executing his duty one does not come to the point of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all his activities are in vain. Anything that does not lead to the perfectional stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness should be avoided. One should be confident that in all circumstances Kṛṣṇa will protect him from all difficulties. There is no need of thinking how one should keep the body and soul together. Kṛṣṇa will see to that. One should always think himself helpless and should consider Kṛṣṇa the only basis for his progress in life. As soon as one seriously engages himself in devotional service to the Lord in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness, at once he becomes freed from all contamination of material nature. There are different processes of religion and purificatory processes by cultivation of knowledge, meditation in the mystic yoga system, etc., but one who surrenders unto Kṛṣṇa does not have to execute so many methods. That simple surrender unto Kṛṣṇa will save him from unnecessarily wasting time. One can thus make all progress at once and be freed from all sinful reactions. One should be attracted by the beautiful vision of Kṛṣṇa. His name is Kṛṣṇa because He is all-attractive. One who becomes attracted by the beautiful, all-powerful, omnipotent vision of Kṛṣṇa is fortunate. There are different kinds of transcendentalists – some of them are attached to the impersonal Brahman vision, some of them are attracted by the Supersoul feature, etc., but one who is attracted to the personal feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and, above all, one who is attracted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Kṛṣṇa Himself, is the most perfect transcendentalist. In other words, devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, in full consciousness, is the most confidential part of knowledge, and this is the essence of the whole Bhagavad-gītā . Karma-yogīs, empiric philosophers, mystics and devotees are all called transcendentalists, but one who is a pure devotee is the best of all. The particular words used here, mā śucaḥ, “Don’t fear, don’t hesitate, don’t worry,” are very significant. One may be perplexed as to how one can give up all kinds of religious forms and simply surrender unto Kṛṣṇa, but such worry is useless.
After A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Surrender the weight· 18.56–18.66→
Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.
- 18.56Having taken refuge in Me and doing all actions, by My grace he obtains the eternal,…
- 18.57Mentally renouncing all actions in Me, having Me as the highest goal, and resorting to the…
- 18.58Fixing your mind on Me, you shall, by My grace, overcome all obstacles; but if you will…
- 18.59If, filled with egoism, thou thinkest, "I will not fight," then thy resolve is vain;…
- 18.60O Arjuna, bound by your own Karma (action) born of your own nature, that which from…
- 18.61The Lord dwells in the hearts of all beings, O Arjuna, causing all beings, by His illusory…
- 18.62Fly to Him for refuge with all your being, O Arjuna; by His grace you will obtain supreme…
- 18.63Thus, wisdom more secret than secrecy itself has been declared to you by me. Reflect on it…
- 18.64Hear again My supreme word, most secret of all; for you are dearly beloved of Me, I will…
- 18.65Fix your mind on Me, be devoted to Me, sacrifice to Me, bow down to Me. You will come to…
18.66Abandon all duties and take refuge in Me alone; I will liberate you from all sins; do not…
Word-by-word→
- mā
- do not
- aham
- I
- ekam
- only
- mām
- unto me
- sarva
- all
- tvām
- you
- vraja
- take
- parityajya
- abandoning
- śhuchaḥ
- fear
- śharaṇam
- take refuge
- pāpebhyaḥ
- from sinful reactions
- sarva-dharmān
- all varieties of dharmas
- mokṣhayiṣhyāmi
- shall liberate
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