Ignorance

Ajnas cashraddadhanas ca samsayatma vinashyati, nayam loko 'sti na paro na sukham samsayatmanah

The ignorant, the faithless, and the doubting soul perish. For the doubting soul there is neither this world, nor the next, nor happiness.

Nadatte kasyacit papam na caiva sukritam vibhuh, ajnanenavritam jnanam tena muhyanti jantavah

The all-pervading Lord accepts neither the sin nor the merit of anyone; knowledge is covered by ignorance, and thereby beings are deluded. It is ignorance alone — not divine will — that keeps beings in the cycle of joy and suffering.

Tribhir guna-mayair bhavair ebhih sarvamidam jagat, mohitam nabhijanati mam ebhyah param avyayam

Deluded by these three states of being composed of the gunas, the entire world does not know Me, who am above them and inexhaustible. The three gunas create a veil of illusion that prevents people from recognizing the eternal, unchanging nature that underlies all phenomena.

Avyaktam vyaktim apannam manyante mam abuddhayah, param bhavam ajananto mamavyayam anuttamam

The unintelligent, not knowing My supreme, imperishable, and unsurpassed nature, think of Me as having assumed a form from the unmanifest. The ignorant mistake the human form of God for the totality of the Divine, not recognizing that the manifest form is just one expression of the infinite, unmanifest Supreme.

Avajananti mam mudha manushim tanum ashritam, param bhavam ajananto mama bhuta-maheshvaram

Fools disregard Me when I descend in human form. They do not know My transcendental nature as the Supreme Lord of all beings. Those who see only the external human appearance of the Lord miss His divine majesty hidden within the mortal form.

Moghasah mogha-karmano mogha-jnana vicetasah, rakshasim asurim caiva prakritim mohinim shritah

Those who are bewildered are possessed of vain hopes, vain actions, and vain knowledge. They harbour a deluding nature that is demoniac and godless. Such persons, lacking genuine wisdom and devotion, pursue goals that lead only to frustration because they are built on illusion.

Adhyatma-jnana-nityatvam tattva-jnanartha-darshanam, etaj jnanam iti proktam ajnanam yad ato 'nyatha

Constancy in self-knowledge, and philosophical pursuit of the Absolute Truth — all this is declared to be knowledge, and whatever is contrary to this is ignorance. True knowledge is the sustained inner quest for ultimate reality.

Tamas tv ajnana-jam viddhi mohanam sarva-dehinam, pramadalasya-nidraabhis tan nibadhnati bharata

Know that tamas (ignorance) is born from ignorance and deludes all embodied beings. It binds by carelessness, laziness, and sleep, O Arjuna. Tamas is the grossest mode — it covers the light of awareness entirely with inertia and delusion.

Utkramantam sthitam vapi bhunjanam va gunānvitam, vimudha nānupashyanti pashyanti jnana-cakshusah

The foolish cannot understand how a living entity departs from the body, nor how it enjoys sense experience under the spell of the modes of nature — but one whose eyes are trained in knowledge can see all this clearly. Spiritual vision, cultivated through knowledge, allows one to perceive the soul's journey that is hidden from the materially absorbed.

Dambho darpo 'bhimānaśh cha krodhaḥ pāruṣhyam eva cha, ajñānaṁ chābhijātasya pārtha sampadam āsurīm

Hypocrisy, arrogance, conceit, anger, harshness, and ignorance—these qualities belong to those of demoniac nature, O Partha.

Pravrttim ca nivrttim ca jana na vidur asurah, na shaucam napi cacaro na satyam teshu vidyate

Those of demoniac nature do not know what is to be done and what is not to be done. Neither purity, nor proper conduct, nor truthfulness is found in them. The demoniac are characterized by a fundamental ignorance of dharma — they lack the internal compass of purity, right conduct, and truthfulness that guides the divine nature.

Adhyo 'bhijanavan asmi ko 'nyo 'sti sadrisho maya, yakshye dasyami modishya ity ajnana-vimohitah

I am the wealthiest man, surrounded by aristocratic relatives. There is none so powerful and happy as I am. I shall perform sacrifices, I shall give charity, and I shall rejoice — thus they are deluded by ignorance. Even religious acts like sacrifice and charity become tainted when performed from a place of ego and pride rather than devotion and surrender.

yata-yamam gata-rasam puti paryushitam ca yat, ucchistam api camedhyam bhojanam tamasa-priyam

Food that is stale, tasteless, putrid, decomposed, leftover, and impure is dear to those in tamas. Such food degrades consciousness and obscures spiritual clarity.

kac cid etac chrutam partha tvayaikagresa cetasa kac cid ajnana-sammohah pranastas te dhananjaya

O Arjuna, have you heard this with single-pointed mind? Has your delusion born of ignorance been dispelled, O Dhananjaya? Krishna checks directly whether his teaching has pierced through to Arjuna's core and dissolved his confusion.