Bhagavad Gītā › Chapter 2 › Verse 63
Bhagavad Gītā 2.63: Anger clouds the mind
क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोहः सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रमः ।
स्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति ॥
krodhādbhavati sammohaḥ sammohātsmṛtivibhramaḥ
smṛtibhraṃśād buddhināśo buddhināśātpraṇaśyati
Recitation: NehalDaveND (Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 4.0, adapted, original recording
Meaning
From anger comes delusion; from delusion, confusion of memory; from loss of memory, the destruction of discernment (buddhi); with the loss of discernment one is ruined. Commentators read “memory” here as remembering one’s values and what one has been taught.
For children
Krishna says: “When we get very angry, our mind gets foggy. We forget what is right, and then we do silly or unkind things.”
This verse continues 2.62. Together they trace how dwelling on things can lead, step by step, to losing one’s way.
Word by word
क्रोधाद्भवति सम्मोहः — From anger comes confusion,
- krodha: anger
- bhavati: comes, becomes
- sammoha: confusion, delusion
सम्मोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रमः — from confusion, we forget what we know
- smṛti: memory
- vibhrama: wandering, confusion
स्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो — forgetting, good sense is lost
- bhraṃśa: loss, slipping away
- buddhi: understanding, good sense
- nāśa: loss, destruction
बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति — and losing good sense, a person falls
- praṇaśyati: is ruined, falls
Kṛṣṇa speaks this verse. The Sanskrit is checked against four editions; meanings and word notes are simple learning aids written for MahaPrabha Gurukul, awaiting review by a Sanskrit teacher.