Bhagavad Gita BG 3.36
Chapter 3, Verse 36 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
अर्जुन उवाच । अथ केन प्रयुक्तोऽयं पापं चरति पूरुषः । अनिच्छन्नपि वार्ष्णेय बलादिव नियोजितः ॥ ३६ ॥
arjuna uvāca atha kena prayukto 'yaṃ pāpaṃ carati pūruṣaḥ anicchann api vārṣṇeya balād iva niyojitaḥ
Meaning
Arjuna said: O Varshneya, then what is it that impels a person to commit sinful acts, even against their own will — as if driven by force?
Understanding
After receiving the teaching, Arjuna asks the question that haunts every person who tries to live ethically: if I know what is right, and if I want to do right, what is the force that makes me do wrong anyway? The phrase 'anicchann api' (even though not wishing to) captures this perfectly — the experience of being helpless before compulsions we consciously reject. 'Balād iva niyojitaḥ' (as if driven by force) — the metaphor of an external compulsion, yet it comes from within. This question transitions the chapter from the positive teaching of karma-yoga to the diagnosis of the root obstacle: kāma (desire).
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| केन | kena | by what / by whom / what force |
| प्रयुक्तः | prayuktaḥ | impelled / driven / set in motion |
| पापम् | pāpam | sin / evil action / wrongdoing |
| अनिच्छन् अपि | anicchann api | even though not wishing to / against one's will |
| बलात् इव | balāt iva | as if by force / as if compelled |
| अर्जुन उवाच | arjuna uvāca | Arjuna said (speaker attribution) |
| अथ | atha | then / now (question particle) |
| अयम् | ayam | this (person) |
| चरति | carati | commits / does / acts (in sin) |
| पूरुषः | pūruṣaḥ | a person / a man |
| वार्ष्णेय | vārṣṇeya | O Varshneya — Krishna (of the Vrishni clan) |
| नियोजितः | niyojitaḥ | compelled / impelled / as if forced |