Chapter 2 · Verse 5

Transcendental Knowledge

गुरूनहत्वा हि महानुभावान् श्रेयो भोक्तुं भैक्ष्यमपीह लोके। हत्वार्थकामांस्तु गुरूनिहैव भुञ्जीय भोगान् रुधिरप्रदिग्धान्
gurūnahatvā hi mahānubhāvān śhreyo bhoktuṁ bhaikṣhyamapīha loke hatvārtha-kāmāṁstu gurūnihaiva bhuñjīya bhogān rudhira-pradigdhān

Word Meanings

gurūn — teachers; ahatvā — not killing; hi — certainly; mahā-anubhāvān — noble elders; śhreyaḥ — better; bhoktum — to enjoy life; bhaikṣhyam — by begging; api — even; iha loke — in this world; hatvā — killing; artha — gain; kāmān — desiring; tu — but; gurūn — noble elders; iha — in this world; eva — certainly; bhuñjīya — enjoy; bhogān — pleasures; rudhira — blood; pradigdhān — tainted with

Translation

It is better to live in this world by begging than to slay these noble teachers. By killing them, whatever pleasures of wealth and desire I enjoy here would be stained with their blood.