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Chapter 16 · The Divine and Demoniac Natures · 24 verses

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Character & ethicsChapter 16 · The Divine and Demoniac Natures
16.616.8

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 16.7

Demoniac qualities and their consequences

प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च जना न विदुरासुरा: ।

न शौचं नापि चाचारो न सत्यं तेषु विद्यते ॥ ७ ॥

pravṛttiṁ ca nivṛttiṁ ca

janā na vidur āsurāḥ

na śaucaṁ nāpi cācāro

na satyaṁ teṣu vidyate

Translation

Those who are demoniac do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Neither cleanliness nor proper behavior nor truth is found in them.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

Right Conduct and Cleanliness

  1. 1Demoniac people do not know what to do or avoid. They lack cleanliness, proper behavior, and truth.
  2. 2Prabhupāda explains that they either do not know scriptural rules or are unwilling to follow them.
  3. 3Keep your body clean, and practice inner cleanliness by remembering God's holy names and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 16, The Divine and Demoniac Natures: demoniac qualities and their consequences.

What it teaches

Theme summary

Cultivate divine qualities in character.

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Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: daivī-sampat, dharma.

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 16.7 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to character & ethics?

Practice

Choose one virtue to practice consciously today.

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The story behind it

Mahābhārata episodes and stories from the purports that shed light on this verse.

All stories for chapter 16 ›
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Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 16.6Demoniac qualities and their consequencesBG 16.8Demoniac qualities and their consequencesBG 12.13Qualities of a devotee dear to Krishna

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

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Back to step 3The key ideasNext · Step 5 of 7 · 5 minLive the teachingsBring it into your day with a practice and a question, straight from Prabhupāda's purports.