Category:Arjuna As a Devotee of God
Theme Analysis
The process of understanding the Absolute Truth is often misunderstood by those who rely on academic scholarship or severe austerities. Through the example of Arjuna, Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that the supreme qualification for receiving transcendental knowledge is unalloyed devotion. Lord Kṛṣṇa explicitly states in the Bhagavad-gītā that He is revealing the supreme secret to Arjuna specifically because Arjuna is His pure devotee and intimate friend. This establishes the principle that the mystery of God can only be penetrated through the path of bhakti-yoga.
Arjuna’s character perfectly exemplifies the qualities of a pure devotee. He was not a renounced sannyāsī or a learned Vedāntist; he was a royal householder and a warrior. Yet, his softheartedness and initial reluctance to fight demonstrate a natural compassion born of spiritual advancement. However, the ultimate test of his devotion was his willingness to sacrifice his own desires and peaceful inclinations to satisfy the supreme will of the Lord. When Arjuna understood that Kṛṣṇa desired the battle, he fought vigorously, proving that true devotion means acting exclusively for the Lord's pleasure.
The reciprocation between the Supreme Lord and His pure devotee is a beautiful aspect of their relationship. Because Arjuna surrendered fully, Kṛṣṇa gladly accepted the menial role of a chariot driver, executing Arjuna's orders on the battlefield. Furthermore, out of mercy, Kṛṣṇa revealed His awe-inspiring universal form to satisfy Arjuna's request, simultaneously establishing Arjuna's authority and providing a standard for future generations to understand the all-pervasiveness of the Lord.
- The Only Qualification: Academic wisdom and renunciation are insufficient; the mysteries of the Bhagavad-gītā are revealed only to those who possess the qualification of being a devotee and friend of the Lord.
- Softheartedness and Compassion: Arjuna's initial hesitation to fight was not due to cowardice, but rather the natural, saintly softheartedness characteristic of a pure Vaiṣṇava.
- Sacrificing Personal Desire: The perfection of devotion is reached when the devotee abandons personal sense gratification and dovetails their actions entirely to satisfy the senses of the Supreme Lord.
- Divine Reciprocation: The Lord so loves His pure devotees that He willingly becomes their servant, as seen when Kṛṣṇa drove Arjuna's chariot, and reveals His most confidential forms to them.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Arjuna as a Devotee of God - The Supreme Qualification for Transcendental Knowledge.
Pages in category "Arjuna As a Devotee of God"
The following 75 pages are in this category, out of 75 total.
A
- All good counsel was available to Arjuna in the matter of executing the battle of Kuruksetra. In such auspicious conditions, arranged by the Lord for His eternal devotee, lay the signs of assured victory. BG 1972 purports
- All of them (Somadatta, Bhurisrava and Salya) appreciated the wonderful strength of Arjuna due to his being the devotee friend of the Lord, and thus Bhurisrava advised the sons of Dhrtarastra not to pick any quarrel or fight with them
- Although he (Arjuna) was born in royal family, but he was not a Vedanti or vast scholar in Vedic literature. No. But he was bhakta. That is the qualification. He was a devotee
- Although Lord Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He taught His disciple and devotee Arjuna how to lead a life ending in going back home, back to Godhead (tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so 'rjuna) - BG 4.9
- Always think of Me (Krsna) & become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend - BG 18.65
- Always think of Me and become My (Krsna's) devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you (Arjuna) are My very dear friend
- An advanced devotee like Arjuna understands Him (Krsna) and glorifies Him, saying, param brahma param dhama pavitram paramam bhavan: (BG 10.12) You are the Supreme Brahman, the supreme abode and purifier
- Arjuna also, by his devotional service, made Krsna his chariot driver; he ordered the Lord, "Put my chariot here," and the Lord executed his order. These are some examples of how a devotee can acquire the exalted position of conquering the unconquerable
- Arjuna is a devotee, and he is submissive, and he is in contact with Krsna as a friend. Therefore Krsna is revealing to him
- Arjuna is found to be similarly bewildered. All such bewilderment of the pure devotees of the Lord is specifically meant for their further advancement in knowledge of the Lord
- Arjuna wanted to see the universal form of the Supreme Lord, so out of His mercy upon His devotee Arjuna, Lord Krsna showed His universal form full of effulgence and opulence. BG 1972 purports
- Arjuna was a devotee, and he was in touch with the Supreme Lord in friendship. BG 1972 Introduction
- Arjuna, as a pure devotee of the Lord, never previously saw the contemplated universal form of the Lord (visva-rupa), but when he did see it, his curiosities were satisfied
- Arjuna, being a saintly devotee of the Lord, is always conscious of moral principles and therefore takes care to avoid such activities (killing one's own brother, father, or mother). BG 1972 purports
- Arjuna, out of his mercy, because he is a Vaisnava, a devotee, is opening for the common man the understanding of the all-pervasiveness of the Supreme Lord
- Arjuna, Prahlada, Janaka Maharaja, Bali Maharaja and many other devotees were not even in the renounced order of life, but were householders. Some of them, such as Prahlada Maharaja and Bali Maharaja, were born of demoniac families
- As a natural devotee of the Lord, Arjuna did not like to retaliate against his miscreant cousins and brothers, but it was the Lord's plan that they should all be killed. BG 1972 purports
- As a pure devotee of the Lord (Krsna), Arjuna agreed to fight in preference to his own decision, and thus Arjuna fought to assist the Lord in His mission of diminishing the burden of the world
- As a pure devotee of the Lord, Arjuna had no desire to fight with his cousins and brothers, but he was forced to come onto the battlefield by the obstinacy of Duryodhana, who was never agreeable to any peaceful negotiation. BG 1972 purports
- As far as a devotee is concerned, he is not eager to see the universal form, but because Arjuna wanted to see Krsna in this way, Krsna reveals this form. BG 1972 purports
- As friends, both of them (Krsna and Arjuna) were on the same level, but one of them voluntarily became a student of the other. Krsna was smiling because a friend had chosen to become a disciple. BG 1972 purports
B
- Being a pure devotee he (Arjuna) agreed to fight on God's instruction because he came to his senses & realized that satisfaction of God at the cost of his own satisfaction was his prime duty. He became akama. That is the perfect stage of a living being
- Being an unalloyed devotee of the Personality of Godhead, Marshal Arjuna was able to discuss the transcendental philosophy of Bhagavad-gita even on the battlefield of Kuruksetra
- Bhagavad-gita is instructed to Arjuna especially because Arjuna was a devotee of the Lord, a direct student of Krsna, and His intimate friend. BG 1972 Introduction
F
- Fighting is not very good business, killing. But sometimes, by killing, one can become a great devotee of Krsna. He (Arjuna) was a warrior, fighter. His business was to fight, but he fought for Krsna. Then he became a devotee
- First of all you become like Arjuna, friend of Krsna. Then you will see. Do you think you are as good as Arjuna? Krsna says Arjuna, addressing, that - I am instructing to you, My dear Arjuna, because you are My dear friend. And you are very great devotee
- For Arjuna at first fighting was not agreeable, but when he understood that the fighting was agreeable to the Lord, he accepted the fighting as agreeable. That is the position of a pure devotee
H
- He (Arjuna) began to offer his respectful obeisances to Krsna again and again, and with faltering voice he began to pray, not as a friend, but as a devotee in wonder. BG 1972 purports
- He (Arjuna) was a good man, religious man, devotee. Naturally he was not inclined to fight with his relatives, kinsmen
- He (Arjuna) was not only a great devotee of the Lord but that he was also highly enlightened and had complete control over his mind and senses. BG 1972 purports
- He (Krsna) tells Arjuna that He is relating this supreme secret to him because he is His devotee and His friend. The purport of this is that Bhagavad-gita is a treatise which is especially meant for the devotee of the Lord. BG 1972 Introduction
- He (Krsna) wanted to see His devotee and friend Arjuna as the hero of the Battle of Kuruksetra, and thus He waited for all the miscreants of the world to assemble. That, and nothing else, is the explanation of His waiting
I
- In a civilization where God is conspicuously banished, and there is no devotee warrior like Arjuna, the associates of the age of Kali take advantage of this lawless kingdom and arrange to kill innocent animals like the cow in secluded slaughterhouses
- In due course of time the authorized succession was broken and just to reestablish the true spirit of the knowledge, God again explained the same knowledge to Arjuna, who was a bona fide candidate for understanding due to his being a pure devotee of God
- In the BG Krsna tells His disciple Arjuna, "I am disclosing a most confidential part of knowledge to you, because you are My dear friend." As is stated in the Fourth Chapter, the BG is spoken to Arjuna because of his one qualification: he was a devotee
- In the Bhagavad-gita also, when there were talks between the Lord and His devotee Arjuna, there could not be any topic other than bhakti-yoga, however the mundane scholars may speculate on it in their own ways
- In the Bhagavad-gita Lord Krsna says to Arjuna - O Arjuna, I am now imparting the same knowledge (which was coming from Krsna) to you because you are My very dear friend and good devotee
- In the Fourth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gita (4.3), where we learn that Krsna spoke the Bhagavad-gita to Arjuna simply because he was the Lord's devotee and friend
- Intelligent men are attracted by the transcendental acting of the Lord with a pure, unalloyed devotee like Arjuna
K
- Krsna especially selected Arjuna for instruction in spiritual knowledge because Arjuna happened to be a great devotee and confidential friend. Similarly, great personalities also speak to the advanced, not to sudras, vaisyas, women or unintelligent men
- Krsna is everyone's Lord, yet because He was the transcendental friend of Arjuna, He gladly accepted the role of messenger, exactly like an ordinary friend. That is the beauty of the Lord's behavior with His pure devotees
- Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and Arjuna knows that, "I am not controller; I am controlled." He is devotee, he knows his position. Therefore he is now trying to control Krsna. He is ordering Krsna
- Krsna made Arjuna His representative because Arjuna was His devotee: bhakto 'si me sakha ceti
- Krsna said, "I will speak to you (Arjuna) Bhagavad-gita, and you will understand the mystery of it because you are My devotee." This is the qualification
- Krsna says to Arjuna "You are My very dear friend, you are My devotee. Therefore I'll reveal unto you. Not to others." This is the qualification of understanding God, to become devotee
O
- On the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, superficially two things were going on - the demons were being killed, and the devotee, Arjuna, was being protected. However, the results were the same for everyone
- One can perform all these, can accept bodily penances, give charity, study the Vedas, etc., but unless he is a devotee like Arjuna, it is not possible to see that universal form. BG 1972 purports
- One of the real devotees of Krishna was Arjuna during the appearance of Lord Krishna and as such the parampara of the Bhagavad-gita, which was broken prior to the occurrence of the battle of Kuruksetra, was reestablished at the battlefield
- One who is not taught by a bona fide spiritual master cannot understand the Vedic literature. To emphasize this point, Krsna clearly said that it was because Arjuna was His devotee and confidential friend that he could understand the mystery of the BG
- Out of his mercy, because he is a Vaisnava, a devotee, Arjuna is opening the understanding for the common man as far as the all-pervasiveness of the Supreme is concerned. BG 1972 purports
P
S
- Sri Arjuna is one of the typical pure devotees of the Lord reciprocating in the fraternal relationship, and the Lord's dealings with Arjuna are displays of friendship of the highest perfect order
- Such symptoms (his bodily limbs quivering and his mouth drying up) in Arjuna were not due to weakness but to his softheartedness, a characteristic of a pure devotee of the Lord. BG 1972 purports
T
- That very ancient science of the relationship with the Supreme is today told by Me to you (Arjuna) because you are My devotee as well as My friend; therefore you can understand the transcendental mystery of this science
- The beauty of the Lord is that the devotees who are connected with His activities are also glorified. Arjuna, Prahlada, Janaka Maharaja, Bali Maharaja and many other devotees were not even in the renounced order of life, but were householders
- The devotee does not desire any achievement other than pleasing the SP of Godhead. His life's mission is to please Krsna, and he can sacrifice everything for Krsna's satisfaction, just as Arjuna did in the Battle of Kuruksetra. BG 1972 purports
- The girl Yamuna knew it well that Arjuna was a great devotee of Lord Krsna and that if he would pray, Krsna would never deny his request
- The Lord (Krsna) admitted Arjuna to be His devotee and friend (BG 4.3), and therefore any sane man can guess that the discussion was on the topic of the bhakti-yoga system. Actually the whole Bhagavad-gita is based on the principle of bhakti-yoga
- The Lord wants to explain the above-mentioned system of knowledge (knowledge of the phenomenal world and the spirit behind it) because Arjuna is Krsna's confidential devotee and friend. BG 1972 purports
- The mission of Lord Krsna was performed on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, for by the Lord's mercy Arjuna was victorious due to being a great devotee whereas the others were killed simply by the Lord's glance, which cleansed them of all sinful activities
- The original form of the Lord, is Krsna with two hands, playing on the flute. Because Arjuna was a devotee and wanted to see the universal form, Krsna showed it to him, but that was not His actual form
- The path of light is to satisfy the senses of God. Misguided men, or less intelligent men, follow the path of self-realization without any attempt to satisfy the transcendental senses of God by following the path shown by Arjuna and other devotees of God
- These questions are asked by Arjuna for their (the demons and atheists) benefit. The superior devotee is not only concerned for his own understanding, but for the understanding of all mankind. BG 1972 purports
W
- When he (Maya Danava) was chased both by the fire and by the wheel of Lord Krsna, he took shelter of such a devotee as Arjuna, who saved him from the wrath of the fire of Lord Sri Krsna
- When He was present, everyone was attracted simply by Krsna's form, and because Krsna is director of the universe, He just banished the fear of Arjuna, His devotee, and showed him again His beautiful form of Krsna. BG 1972 purports
- When Krsna was present on this earth the bhakti-yoga principles defined in the Bhagavad-gita had become distorted; therefore the Lord had to reestablish the disciplic system beginning with Arjuna who was the most confidential friend & devotee of the Lord
- When there is injustice, it must be faced with fighting. That is Krsna's version. So Arjuna, as a Vaisnava, did not like to fight. But Krsna, as the supreme mediator . . . that is also good for everything. Whatever Krsna does, that is . . . - God is good