Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 3, Verse 37
श्री भगवानुवाच
काम एष क्रोध एष रजोगुणसमुद्भवः।
महाशनो महापाप्मा विद्ध्येनमिह वैरिणम्।।
काम एष क्रोध एष रजोगुणसमुद्भवः।
महाशनो महापाप्मा विद्ध्येनमिह वैरिणम्।।
śrī bhagavān uvāca
kāma eṣa krodha eṣa rajo-guṇa-samudbhavaḥ
mahāśano mahā-pāpmā viddhyenam iha vairiṇam
also searched as "kama esha krodha esha rajoguna samudbhavah"
Translation
The Lord said, "It is desire, it is wrath, born of the guna of rajas; it is a great devourer, an impeller of sin. Know this to be the enemy here."
Vāṇi's rendering
It is craving — and its other face, anger. Born of restlessness, all-devouring. Know this as the enemy.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| श्रीśrī | holy, radiant — an honorific |
| भगवान्bhagavān | the blessed one, Krishna |
| उवाचuvāca | said |
| कामःkāma | craving, wanting; the appetite that reaches for what is not here |
| एषःeṣa | this one, this very thing |
| क्रोधःkrodha | anger — craving turned back on itself |
| एषःeṣa | this one — the same thing named again |
| रजोगुणसमुद्भवःrajo-guṇa-samudbhavaḥ | arising out of rajas, the strand of restless motion |
| महाशनःmahāśano | the great eater, devouring everything given to it (mahāśanaḥ before the following soft sound) |
| महापाप्माmahā-pāpmā | greatly harmful, the source of much wrongdoing |
| विद्धिviddhi | know — an order, not a suggestion (joined with the next word as viddhyenam) |
| एनम्enam | this, him — the thing just named |
| इहiha | here, in this world, on this ground |
| वैरिणम्vairiṇam | the enemy, the one at war with you |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3 Verse 37 mean?
Arjuna has just asked what compels a person to do harm even against their own wish. Krishna answers with a single name: kāma, craving — and krodha, anger, which is only craving met with an obstacle. Both rise from rajas, restless motion. Krishna calls this the enemy, and places it here, within reach.
What does kama esha krodha esha rajoguna samudbhavah mean?
It means: this is craving, this is anger, born of the strand of restlessness. The word eṣa is repeated deliberately — Krishna is pointing twice at one thing. Wanting and rage are not separate opponents. Rage is what wanting becomes when the world says no to it.
Why does Krishna call desire the enemy?
Because it is called mahāśana, the great eater. Feeding it does not end it; feeding it enlarges it. An enemy is something you can face, name, and stand against. By calling craving the enemy rather than calling you the enemy, Krishna separates you from it — and gives you somewhere to stand.
Is all desire wrong according to the Gita?
No. Krishna speaks elsewhere of desire that does not conflict with dharma, and he himself is that desire. What he names here is the devouring kind — the wanting that eats attention, clouds judgment, and turns to anger the moment it is refused. Watch which of the two is asking, and you will know.
Themes in this verse
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Commentary
Arjuna asked who pushes him — as if some outside force drags a man into wrongdoing. Krishna refuses the outside. He names it: craving, and when craving is blocked, anger. Not two enemies. One, wearing two faces, born of rajas, the restlessness that cannot sit still. Mahāśana — the great eater. It consumes whatever it is fed and rises hungrier. Notice that Krishna calls it the enemy, not you. The one who craves is not the craving. You are being handed a target, and being told where it stands — inside, wearing your voice, asking for one more thing.