Verse 16.23
यः शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य वर्तते कामकारतः ।
न स सिद्धिमवाप्नोति न सुखं न परां गतिम् ॥
Transliteration
yaḥ śāstravidhimutsṛjya vartate kāmakārataḥ |
na sa siddhimavāpnoti na sukhaṃ na parāṃ gatim ||
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · @indic-transliteration/sanscript 1.3.3
Translation
He who, having cast aside the ordinances of the scriptures, acts under the impulse of desire, attains not perfection, nor happiness nor the Supreme Goal.
From the owner's sheet · +1 more
One who casts aside the injunctions of scripture and acts on the impulse of desire attains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the highest goal.
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08 · +1 more
Word by word
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08
Explanation
Krishna now introduces the role of scripture (śāstra). Whoever sets aside its guidance and acts only on desire gains neither perfection, nor happiness, nor the highest goal. The verse links the demonic nature with acting on mere impulse, and it implies that personal wants are not a reliable guide to what is right. It opens a question that Arjuna will raise at the start of the next chapter, about people who act with faith but without following scripture.
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08