Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 5, Verse 22
ये हि संस्पर्शजा भोगा दुःखयोनय एव ते।
आद्यन्तवन्तः कौन्तेय न तेषु रमते बुधः।।
आद्यन्तवन्तः कौन्तेय न तेषु रमते बुधः।।
ye hi sansparśa-jā bhogā duḥkha-yonaya eva te
ādyantavantaḥ kaunteya na teṣu ramate budhaḥ
also searched as "ye hi sansparshaja bhoga duhkhayonaya eva te"
Translation
For those pleasures that are born of contact are wombs of pain. They have a beginning and an end, O Arjuna; the wise do not rejoice in them.
Vāṇi's rendering
Pleasures born of contact begin and end — they are wombs of sorrow. The wise take no delight there.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| येye | those which |
| हिhi | indeed, for |
| संस्पर्शजाsansparśa-jā | born of contact — of sense meeting object |
| भोगाbhogā | enjoyments, pleasures |
| दुःखयोनयःduḥkha-yonayaḥ | wombs of sorrow; the final -aḥ becomes -a before eva |
| एवeva | only, verily |
| तेte | they are |
| आद्यन्तवन्तःādyantavantaḥ | having a beginning and an end |
| कौन्तेयkaunteya | Arjuna, son of Kunti |
| नna | not |
| तेषुteṣu | in them |
| रमतेramate | takes delight, revels |
| बुधःbudhaḥ | the awake one, the wise |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5 Verse 22 mean?
It means every pleasure that depends on contact carries its ending inside it. Krishna calls such pleasures wombs of sorrow — not because enjoying is wrong, but because what begins must stop, and grief is simply the stopping felt. The wise one enjoys without leaning his weight on what is leaving.
What is the meaning of 'ye hi sansparshaja bhoga duhkhayonaya eva te'?
Pleasures born of the senses touching their objects are the very birthplace of pain. Krishna is describing mechanics, not scolding. Contact is temporary by nature; delight built on it inherits that time limit. Sorrow is not punishment for enjoyment — it is the shape enjoyment takes when it ends.
Is the Gita telling me to give up all pleasure?
No. Krishna says the wise take no delight there — not that they refuse what comes. The difference is where you place your weight. Eat the meal, love the person, hear the praise. Simply stop asking any of it to be your ground, because ground does not begin and end.
Why does Krishna call pleasures 'wombs of sorrow'?
A womb does not cause something by accident; it carries it from the start. Krishna is saying the pain was never separate from the pleasure — it was gestating within it. When the contact breaks, what was already there is simply born. Seeing this early spares you the surprise later.
Themes in this verse
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Commentary
Krishna is not calling pleasure evil. He is naming its shape. Anything that arrives through contact — praise in the ear, a taste that fades — has a beginning and a stopping place. What ends is already carrying its ending. That is why he calls them wombs: the sorrow is not an accident that spoils the pleasure, it is what the pleasure was pregnant with from the first moment. He calls Arjuna son of Kunti, a name of lineage — of what began and will end. The wise are not colder than you. They have stopped asking the temporary to stay. Enjoy what comes; do not build there.