This shloka shows the next stage of Arjuna’s sorrow.

In the previous shloka, Arjuna said, “I do not see any good.” Now he expands that feeling. He says, “I do not desire victory. I do not desire kingdom. I do not desire pleasures. What is the use of kingdom? What is the use of enjoyments? What is the use of life itself?”

The words na kāṅkṣe vijayam mean “I do not desire victory.” This is a major reversal. Arjuna came to the battlefield as a warrior ready for a dharma-yuddha. Victory was not meant to be a personal trophy. The purpose of the war was the correction of adharma and the protection of dharma. But now that higher purpose has disappeared from his mind.

The words na ca rājyam mean “nor kingdom.” The kingdom too has lost meaning for him. Earlier, recovering the kingdom was connected to justice, responsibility, and dharma. The Pāṇḍavas had been wronged. They had tried peaceful means first. War came only as a last resort. But now Arjuna does not see the kingdom as a field for dharma. He sees it as an empty possession.

The words sukhāni ca mean “nor pleasures.” Pleasures are also rejected. In a sorrowful mind, even things that normally appear enjoyable become tasteless. Food, comfort, wealth, music, honor, celebration — everything feels empty.

Then Arjuna asks, kiṁ no rājyena govinda — “O Govinda, what use is kingdom for us?” The question is not a calm philosophical renunciation. It comes from grief. This is not the wisdom of someone who has understood the limitations of worldly things. It is the exhaustion of a mind that has become dependent on particular people.

Then he asks, kiṁ bhogair jīvitena vā — “What use are enjoyments, or even life itself?” This is the depth of the problem. The mind is now saying, “If these people are gone, what is the point of living?” That is the language of dependence.

This is different from true vairāgya. True vairāgya comes from clarity. It says, “I understand that kingdom, pleasure, and status are temporary. Let me live according to dharma.” Arjuna’s condition is not that. His mind is not steady and clear. It is sorrowful and clouded. He is not giving up kingdom because he sees truth clearly; he is dismissing everything because he cannot imagine life without svajana, his own people.

The key teaching is simple: when we depend too much on certain people, roles, or results, life begins to look meaningful only if they remain. If they are threatened, the mind says, “Nothing matters.” This is not wisdom. This is sorrow speaking.

Arjuna has forgotten the real purpose of the war: dharma. He is looking only at Bhīṣma, Droṇa, and the others as people whose presence makes life meaningful. Because of that, victory looks useless, kingdom looks useless, pleasure looks useless, and even life looks useless.

This is the continuing movement of saṃsāra: rāgaḥ has produced śokaḥ. Now śokaḥ is making everything appear empty. Soon this sorrow will produce mohaḥ — confused reasoning that will sound moral but will be rooted in attachment.