โศลก 3.383.13.23.33.43.53.63.73.83.93.103.113.123.133.143.153.163.173.183.193.203.213.223.233.243.253.263.273.283.293.303.313.323.333.343.353.363.373.383.393.403.413.423.43

As fire is enveloped by smoke, as a mirror by dust, and as an embryo by the amnion, so is this enveloped by that.

As fire is covered by smoke, a mirror by dust, and an embryo by the womb, so is this covered by desire.

Krishna gives three images of how desire hides understanding. Fire veiled by smoke still burns and can be seen with some effort. A mirror covered with dust needs cleaning before it reflects. An embryo enclosed in the womb is wholly hidden until birth. Many readers take these as degrees of covering, from light to heavy, matching different strengths of desire. The images also suggest that knowledge is not destroyed by desire, only obscured. What is needed is to remove the covering, not to create something new.