Bhagavad Gita BG 13.9
Chapter 13, Verse 9 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
इन्द्रियार्थेषु वैराग्यमनहंकार एव च । जन्ममृत्युजराव्याधिदुःखदोषानुदर्शनम् ॥
indriyartheshu vairagyam anahankara eva ca janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi duhkha-dosha-anudarshanam
Meaning
Dispassion toward sense objects; absence of ego; and the constant perception of the evil inherent in birth, death, old age, and sickness —
Understanding
More qualities of jnana: indriyartheshu vairagyam (vairagya toward sense-objects — not hatred but freedom from compulsive craving). Anahankara (no ego — freedom from the 'I am this' identification with the body-mind). Janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi duhkha-dosha-anudarshanam (the continuous seeing/contemplation of the pain-nature of birth, death, old age, and sickness). Anudarshanam (seeing again and again, constant contemplation) — this is not pessimism but clear-eyed insight into the nature of embodied existence. The person of jnana does not pretend that embodied life is painless. This seeing of duhkha-dosha (pain-flaw) motivates the search for what is beyond the cycle.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| इन्द्रियार्थेषु | indriyartheshu | toward sense objects, in the domain of the senses |
| वैराग्यम् | vairagyam | dispassion, non-attachment (not hatred — freedom from compulsion) |
| अनहंकारः | anahankara | absence of ego, no false identification |
| दुःखदोषानुदर्शनम् | duhkha-dosha-anudarshanam | constant seeing of pain and flaw (in birth/death/old age/sickness) |
| इन्द्रियार्थेषु | indriyārtheṣu | toward sense objects |
| वैराग्यम् | vairāgyam | detachment, dispassion |
| अनहंकार | anahaṃkāra | absence of ego |
| एव | eva ca | indeed also |
| जन्म-मृत्यु-जरा-व्याधि | janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi | birth, death, old age and disease |
| दुःख-दोष-अनुदर्शनम् | duḥkha-doṣa-anudarśanam | perceiving the evil of suffering |
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