Shloka 22

अक्षरब्रह्मयोग (Akṣara-Brahma-Yoga) — Knowledge of the Imperishable, Prakṛti, and Devotion

Devanagari script

ये हि संस्पर्शजा भोगा दुःखयोनय एव ते । आटद्यन्तवन्त: कौन्तेय न तेषु रमते बुध:

Transliteration

ye hi saṁsparśajā bhogā duḥkhayonaya eva te | ādyantavantaḥ kaunteya na teṣu ramate budhaḥ ||

Translation

ਇੰਦ੍ਰੀਆਂ ਅਤੇ ਵਿਸ਼ਿਆਂ ਦੇ ਸੰਪਰਕ ਤੋਂ ਜੋ ਭੋਗ ਉਪਜਦੇ ਹਨ, ਉਹ ਅਸਲ ਵਿੱਚ ਦੁੱਖ ਦੇ ਹੀ ਸਰੋਤ ਹਨ। ਹੇ ਕੌਂਤੇਯ, ਉਹ ਆਦਿ-ਅੰਤ ਵਾਲੇ, ਅਰਥਾਤ ਅਨਿੱਤ ਹਨ; ਇਸ ਲਈ ਬੁੱਧਿਮਾਨ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਰਮਦਾ ਨਹੀਂ।

Word by Word

• {'ye': 'which, those', 'hi': 'indeed, for', 'saṁsparśa-ja': 'born of contact (sense-contact)', 'bhogāḥ': 'enjoyments, pleasures, experiences of gratification', 'duḥkha-yonayaḥ': 'wombs/sources of suffering

• causes that generate pain', 'eva': 'only, truly', 'te': 'they', 'ādy-anta-vantaḥ': 'having beginning and end

• finite, impermanent', 'kaunteya': 'O son of Kuntī (address to Arjuna)', 'na': 'not', 'teṣu': 'in them', 'ramate': 'delights, takes pleasure, becomes attached', 'budhaḥ': 'the wise, discerning person'}

Speaker

अर्जुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Arjuna (Kaunteya)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Sense-born pleasures (from contact of senses and objects) are inherently limited and ultimately lead to suffering; therefore the wise do not cling to them, cultivating discernment and inner steadiness.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Kurukṣetra setting of Bhīṣma Parva, Arjuna is engaged in a moral and psychological struggle about action and duty; this verse articulates a key ethical insight used to steady the mind—rejecting transient sensory gratification in favor of wisdom-guided conduct.