Sanskrit
विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगाद्यत्तदग्रेऽमृतोपमम् । परिणामे विषमिव तत्सुखं राजसं स्मृतम् ॥ ३८ ॥
viṣayendriyasaṃyogād yat tad agre'mṛtopamam pariṇāme viṣam iva tat sukhaṃ rājasaṃ smṛtam
Translation
That which from the union of the senses with their objects at first is as nectar, but in the end is like venom, that pleasure is accounted passionate.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
Rajasic happiness runs the opposite direction: nectar at first, from the contact of the senses with their objects, and poison in the end. Placing this immediately after verse 37’s mirror-image structure is a deliberate rhetorical stroke — the two verses are built as a matched pair so the contrast lands without any extra commentary needed. Rājasic happiness — from viṣaya-indriya-saṃyoga, sense meeting object — runs the opposite curve: nectar first, poison after. The precise shape of BG 5.22’s “wombs of pain.” Its guṇa is rajas.
Study deeper
Word by word
- viṣayendriyasaṃyogād yat tadविषयेन्द्रियसंयोगाद् यत् तद्
- from the contact of senses with objects (viṣaya-indriya-saṃyogāt + yat + tat)
- agre'mṛtopamam pariṇāmeअग्रेऽमृतोपमं परिणामे
- at first like nectar (agre + amṛta-upamam + pariṇāme)
- viṣam ivaविषं इव
- like poison in the end (viṣam + iva)
- tat sukhaṃ rājasaṃ smṛtamतत् सुखं राजसं स्मृतं
- that happiness is held rājasic (tat + sukham + rājasam + smṛtam)
Commentary
Site Commentary
The pairing with the previous verse goes deeper than a reversed arc. Sattvic pleasure is traced to an internal source, the clarity of self-knowledge; rajasic pleasure is traced to an external one, contact between the senses and their objects. The verse isn’t only saying rajasic pleasure fades — it’s explaining why: anything sourced from a temporary contact must end when the contact does.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- When something makes you happy, ask where that happiness is actually sourced — an internal clarity that stays, or a contact with a person, substance, or circumstance that will end. The second isn't wrong to enjoy, but expect it to fade because its source will.
Professional
- Motivation sourced from external contact, a bonus, praise, a win, fades when the contact ends; motivation sourced from clarity about the work's value persists. Build engagement around the second kind, not only the first.
Family & Social
- Affection that depends entirely on ongoing pleasant contact will dip when circumstances turn difficult; affection rooted in a steadier, clearer regard for the person tends to survive the dip instead of evaporating with it.
Ask yourself
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