Bhagavad Gita 16.8
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 8 of 24
असत्यम् अप्रतिष्ठं ते जगद् आहुर् अनीश्वरम् । अपरस्परसम्भूतं किम् अन्यत् कामहैतुकम् ॥
asatyam apratiṣṭhaṃ te jagad āhur anīśvaram | aparaspara-sambhūtaṃ kim anyat kāma-haitukam ||
The āsurī worldview: the world is unreal, groundless, Godless — produced only by matter-union and desire.
Word by word (3)
- asatyam apratiṣṭhaṃ te jagad āhur anīśvaram
- — they (te — the āsurī people) declare (āhuḥ) the world (jagat) to be without truth (asatyam), without foundation/support (apratiṣṭham), without a Lord/God (anīśvaram) — the nihilistic cosmological view
- aparaspara-sambhūtam
- — arisen from mutual union (aparaspara = of each other, paraspara = mutual; sambhūta = arisen) — the purely materialist account: world is only matter + matter
- kim anyat kāma-haitukam
- — what else (kim anyat) could it be except desire/lust as its cause (kāma-haitukam) — the reductionist conclusion: existence = material collision + sexual desire, nothing more
They declare: 'The universe is without truth, without any moral foundation, without God — produced merely by the union of male and female out of desire. What other cause could there be?'
A modern analogy
A navigator who says 'there are no stars, no north, no map' — only winds — will drift. The āsurī's worldview is this navigator: no transcendent reality, no dharma, no Īśvara. The result is that all actions are guided only by immediate desire. Without any north star, even capable people become dangerous.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
MISSING — SH Ch.16 V8 not indexed; Ganguli and Telang used as primary. [1]
They say, 'The universe is without truth, without a moral basis, without a God, brought about by mutual union, with lust for its cause; what else?' [4]
They say the universe is void of truth, without any support, without any God, brought about by mutual union, motivated by desire — what other cause is there? [9]
They say that the universe is void of truth, of guiding principle, produced by the union of one another from lust, and nothing else. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
One who abandons śāstra-vidhi to act from desire's impulse attains neither siddhi, nor sukha, nor the Supreme Goal.
Abandon all desires born of mental planning — without remainder — and restrain the senses completely, by the mind alone.
Sannyāsa = abandoning desire-motivated action; tyāga = abandoning fruits of ALL action — say the learned.
Sāttvic tyāga: niyata karma done ONLY because 'this must be done,' having abandoned attachment and fruit.
Elaborate rituals for pleasure and power lead to rebirth — not liberation. The cycle continues.
Acting for reward is the lowest form of action. Seek the wisdom that transcends reward-seeking.
Verse 8 of 24 · back to Chapter 16