Step 4 of 7 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Pick any verse to see what it means and how to use it in your life.

  1. 1Tap a chapter, then a verse
  2. 2Read what it means
  3. 3Try the practice
700 verses37 detailed
Or browse by chapter
Chapter

Chapter 3 · Karma-yoga · 43 verses

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243

Deep profile← → keys move between verses

Mind & yogaChapter 3 · Karma-yoga
3.383.40

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 3.39

Lust, anger and mastery over senses

आवृतं ज्ञानमेतेन ज्ञानिनो नित्यवैरिणा ।

कामरूपेण कौन्तेय दुष्पूरेणानलेन च ॥ ३९ ॥

āvṛtaṁ jñānam etena

jñānino nitya-vairiṇā

kāma-rūpeṇa kaunteya

duṣpūreṇānalena ca

Translation

Thus the wise living entity’s pure consciousness becomes covered by his eternal enemy in the form of lust, which is never satisfied and which burns like fire.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

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

Lust Covers Pure Consciousness

  1. 1Lust is the living entity’s eternal enemy. It covers pure consciousness and burns like a fire that is never satisfied.
  2. 2Prabhupāda explains that sense enjoyment feeds lust like fuel feeds fire, keeping the living entity bound in the material world.
  3. 3Do not expect sense enjoyment to satisfy lust; its apparent happiness strengthens this enemy.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 3, Karma-yoga: lust, anger and mastery over senses.

What it teaches

Theme summary

A disciplined mind is one's best friend.

2

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: manas, indriya, yoga.

3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 3.39 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to mind & yoga?

Practice

Sit quietly for ten minutes and gently return the mind.

4

The story behind it

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

All stories for chapter 3 ›
5

Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 3.37Lust, anger and mastery over sensesBG 3.38Lust, anger and mastery over sensesBG 6.35Practice and detachment

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

Ask the study guide

Ask about BG 3.39 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.

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.