Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 2, Verse 43
कामात्मानः स्वर्गपरा जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम्।
क्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति।।
क्रियाविशेषबहुलां भोगैश्वर्यगतिं प्रति।।
kāmātmānaḥ svarga-parā
janma-karma-phala-pradām
kriyā-viśeṣa-bahulāṁ
bhogaiśvarya-gatiṁ prati
also searched as "kamatmanah svarga-para janma-karma-phala-pradam"
Translation
Full of desires and with heaven as their highest goal, their words promise rebirth as the fruit of action, prescribing elaborate rites aimed at pleasure and power.
Vāṇi's rendering
Hearts full of desire, heaven their highest aim — their showy rites promise pleasure, power, and rebirth.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| कामkāma- | desire, craving |
| आत्मानः-ātmānaḥ | whose very self is made of it; sandhi joins kāma and ātmānaḥ |
| स्वर्गपराःsvarga-parā | holding heaven as the highest thing there is |
| जन्मकर्मफलप्रदाम्janma-karma-phala-pradām | handing out rebirth as the fruit of action |
| क्रियाविशेषबहुलाम्kriyā-viśeṣa-bahulāṁ | crowded with special ceremonies and elaborate procedure |
| भोगbhoga- | enjoyment, pleasure |
| ऐश्वर्य-aiśvarya- | lordship, power; sandhi with bhoga gives bhogaiśvarya |
| गतिम्-gatiṁ | the getting there, the attainment |
| प्रतिprati | aimed toward, for the sake of |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 2 Verse 43 mean?
It describes people whose innermost self has become desire. Heaven is the highest thing they can imagine, so their rites are built to buy it — pleasure, power, a better rebirth. Krishna is not condemning ritual. He is naming what happens to any practice aimed at getting rather than at freedom.
What does kamatmanah svarga-para janma-karma-phala-pradam mean?
Hearts made of craving, heaven set as the ceiling, and words that promise rebirth as the payout of action. The line points at speech that sounds sacred and functions as a sales pitch. Krishna wants Arjuna to hear the difference between a teaching and an offer.
Is Krishna criticising the Vedas in this verse?
No. He is criticising a reading of them that stops at reward. The kāṇḍa of rites is real and it works — it delivers exactly what it advertises, and no more. What Krishna offers Arjuna is not a better bargain but an end to bargaining altogether.
How do I know if my own practice is desire-driven?
Watch what happens when nothing arrives. If the sitting continues, it was never a transaction. If it quietly stops, you were paying instalments on something. There is no shame in noticing this; noticing is where the shift begins. Keep sitting, and let the invoice go unpaid.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna is still describing the speakers of the last verse — the ones enchanted by the letter of the ritual. Their fault is not that they act. It is what sits at the center: kāma, desire, wearing the mask of a self. Heaven is their ceiling, and heaven here means better pleasure, longer power, another birth with finer furniture. So the rites grow ornate, and the promises multiply. Ask what you are actually asking for when you sit down to pray. If the answer is more of the same, only smoother, you have not yet left the marketplace.