Sanskrit
भोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां तयाऽपहृतचेतसाम् । व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिः समाधौ न विधीयते ॥
bhogaiśvaryaprasaktānāṃ tayāpahṛtacetasām vyavasāyātmikā buddhiḥ samādhau na vidhīyate
Translation
For them who cling to pleasure and lordship, whose minds are captivated by such teaching, is not designed this determinate Reason, on contemplation steadily bent.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
The verdict on the ritualists just described, stated in the exact vocabulary of verse 41: their minds, “carried away” by the promise of pleasure and status, never arrive at the one-pointed resolve (buddhir vyavasāyātmikā) needed for real contemplation. Wanting many outcomes at once turns out to be self-defeating on its own terms. This is the payoff of the buddhi diagnosis: the fault is not that these people fail to reach samādhi through bad luck, but that the many-branched wanting rules it out by construction. The critique closes at verse 46 with the well-and-flood image.
Study deeper
Word by word
- bhogaiśvaryaprasaktānāṃभोगैश्वर्यप्रसक्तानां
- of those attached to enjoyment and power (bhoga-aiśvarya-prasaktānām)
- tayāpahṛtacetasāmतयापहृतचेतसां
- whose minds are carried off by that [speech] (tayā + apahṛta-cetasām)
- vyavasāyātmikā buddhiḥव्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिः
- resolute understanding (vyavasāya-ātmikā + buddhiḥ)
- samādhauसमाधौ
- in samādhi
- na vidhīyateन विधीयते
- is not established (na + vidhīyate)
Commentary
Site Commentary
The language here is closer to “not fitted for” than “forbidden from” — the ritualists aren’t being condemned so much as diagnosed as reaching for a tool that was never built for the result they actually want. Wanting many outcomes and expecting one-pointed concentration to also show up is a category mismatch, not a moral failing — a notably less harsh reading than the passage’s stern tone might first suggest.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Concepts
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- If a habit or practice isn't producing the inner steadiness you want, consider that it may simply not be built for that purpose rather than that you're failing at it — match the tool to the goal before blaming your effort.
Professional
- If a process like a status meeting or a metrics dashboard isn't delivering the clarity you need, check whether it was ever designed for that outcome — some tools are well-built for a different job, and the fix is choosing the right tool, not pushing harder on the wrong one.
Family & Social
- If a routine you've built with family isn't producing the closeness you're hoping for, consider that it may be the wrong vehicle for that goal rather than a sign you're not trying hard enough — some activities are suited for other things entirely.
Ask yourself
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