Explained: What does the iconic Oppenheimer Bhagavad Gita quote mean?

The release date of Oppenheimer is drawing closer with every passing day. It is one of the most anticipated films of 2023 and its story is based on the life of the theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. This physicist was the mastermind behind the invention of the first nuclear weapons.

This invention turned out to be a disaster as it did more harm to the world than good.

Robert Oppenheimer deeply regretted what he had done. After the detonation of the first atomic bomb on July 16, 1945, the physicist said:

"Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

This is a quote from the Hindu scripture Bhagavad-Gita. But why did he say it and what did it mean?

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Why did Robert Oppenheimer quote the Bhagavad-Gita after the detonation of the first atomic bomb?

The first nuclear weapons were tested in the deserts of New Mexico on July 16, 1945. The world and the physicist himself were stunned by the power of this weapon. He knew that he was going to be responsible for the brutal death of millions of innocent people.

His entire quote about the weapons was:

"We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried, most were silent."

He continued:

"I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad Gita; Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty and, to impress him, takes on his multi-armed form and says, ‘Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds."

Vishnu is a Hindu God and Prince Arjuna was a mythological hero who fought a brutal battle called Kurukshetra War. God Vishnu had several avatars and the one he chose to appear in front of Arjuna was that of Lord Krishna.

Dr. Stephen Thompson, PhD, Sanskrit grammar explained why the physicist quoted the Bhagavad-Gita.

"Arjuna is a soldier; he has a duty to fight. Krishna not Arjuna will determine who lives and who dies, and Arjuna should neither mourn nor rejoice over what fate has in store, but should be sublimely unattached to such results," he said.

Robert Oppenheimer placed himself in the boots of Arjuna and tried to make sense of his invention and be satisfied with his legacy. But even till the end of his days, he was finding it hard to accept what he had done.

He once even said:

"The physicists have known sin; and this is a knowledge which they cannot lose."

When the weapon was made, the man had no clue that it would lead to disasters like Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But just like Arjuna, the physicist did his duty, even if his morals were different.

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Oppenheimer synopsis

The official synopsis of the film reads,

"Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it."

It further states,

"The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission."

The film will be released worldwide on July 21, 2023.