Verse 4.40
अज्ञश्चाश्रद्दधानश्च संशयात्मा विनश्यति ।
नायं लोकोऽस्ति न परो न सुखं संशयात्मनः ॥
Transliteration
ajñaścāśraddadhānaśca saṃśayātmā vinaśyati |
nāyaṃ loko'sti na paro na sukhaṃ saṃśayātmanaḥ ||
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · @indic-transliteration/sanscript 1.3.3
Translation
The ignorant the faithless, the doubting self goes to destruction; there is neither this world nor the other, nor happiness for the doubting.
From the owner's sheet · +1 more
But the ignorant, the faithless and the doubting perish. For one who doubts, there is neither this world, nor the next, nor happiness.
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 describes the opposite condition. One who lacks knowledge, lacks faith and is filled with doubt is ruined. For the saṃśayātman, the person whose very self is doubt, there is no happiness here or beyond. The verse does not condemn honest questioning, which Krishna praised earlier in the chapter, but a corrosive doubt that prevents any commitment or action. Arjuna's paralysis on the battlefield is itself a form of such doubt. Krishna is warning that remaining in that state helps no one.
By Sanskrit System · Machine draft · claude-opus-5-5 · 2026-11-08