Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verse 19

Chapter 16 – Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

तानहं द्विषतः क्रुरान्संसारेषु नराधमान् ।
क्षिपाम्यजस्रमशुभानासुरीष्वेव योनिषु ॥

Transliteration

tānahaṃ dviṣataḥ krurānsaṃsāreṣu narādhamān .
kṣipāmyajasramaśubhānāsurīṣveva yoniṣu ॥

Meaning

These cruel haters, the lowest of men, doers of evil, I hurl again and again into demonic wombs in the cycle of births and deaths.

Word meanings

तान् – those
अहम् – I
द्विषतः – haters
क्रूरान् – cruel
संसारेषु – in the cycle of births and deaths
नराधमान् – the lowest of men
क्षिपामि – I hurl
अजस्रम् – again and again, constantly
अशुभान् – doers of evil
आसुरीषु – demonic
एव – only
योनिषु – into wombs

Anvaya (word order)

अहं तान् द्विषतः क्रूरान् अशुभान् नराधमान् संसारेषु आसुरीषु एव योनिषु अजस्रं क्षिपामि ।

Explanation

Having described the demonic nature, Krishna now states its consequence: kshipamy ajasram, 'I hurl them again and again into demonic wombs.' At first sight this may sound harsh, but it needs to be understood correctly.

The Lord is the dispenser of the fruits of karma. A judge sentences an offender, yet the sentence is really the result of the offender's own deeds. In the same way the Lord gives each soul a birth that matches its nature and actions. In Chapter 9 He says clearly that He is the same towards all beings; none is hateful to Him and none dear in a partial sense (9.29). Both Shankara and Ramanuja explain that here the Lord acts strictly according to the law of karma.

Asurishv eva yonishu, 'into demonic wombs only': into surroundings and bodies where the same cruel and hostile tendencies prevail. This is the natural fit between character and result. One who practises hatred and cruelty throughout life receives the environment in which those tendencies thrive.

Four epithets are given: dvishatah (haters), kruran (cruel), naradhaman (the lowest of men) and ashubhan (doers of evil). They show that this destiny is not the result of an ordinary mistake but of a deliberately adopted way of life full of hatred and cruelty.

Context

The previous verse described the hatred of the demonic towards the Lord; this verse gives its result, repeated birth in demonic wombs. The next verse says they then sink to a condition lower still.

Life lesson

The character we cultivate shapes our future. God hates no one; the law of karma simply returns to each the fruit of the seeds he has sown.

Key terms

Naradhama: The lowest among human beings
Asuri yoni: Births and environments of a demonic nature
Ajasram: Again and again, ceaselessly