Bhagavad Gita 18.38: meaning and translation
Chapter 18: Moksha Sannyasa Yoga. Krishna says
Krishna says that the happiness which comes from the meeting of the senses with their objects, like nectar at first and like poison in the end, is held to be happiness of the nature of rajas.
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Bhagavad Gita 18.38
विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगाद्यत्तदग्रेऽमृतोपमम् ।परिणामे विषमिव तत्सुखं राजसं स्मृतम् ॥
VishayendriyasanyogadyattadagremritopamamPariname vishamiva tatsukham rajasam smritam
viṣayendriyasaṃyogādyattadagre’mṛtopamam |pariṇāme viṣamiva tatsukhaṃ rājasaṃ smṛtam ||
Our explanation Krishna says that the happiness which comes from the meeting of the senses with their objects, like nectar at first and like poison in the end, is held to be happiness of the nature of rajas.
हिंदी अर्थ कृष्ण कहते हैं कि जो सुख इंद्रियों और उनके विषयों के संयोग से होता है, आरंभ में अमृत जैसा और अंत में विष जैसा, वह राजस माना गया है।
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- विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगात् viṣayendriyasaṃyogāt · from the meeting of senses and their objects (compound (masculine), ablative singular) Dictionary: viṣaya, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 997, col. 1 “an object of sense”; indriya, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 167, col. 2 “faculty of sense, sense, organ of sense”; saṃ-yoga, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1112, col. 2 “conjunction, combination, connection”
- यत् yat · which (pronoun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: yad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 844, col. 2 “who, which, what, whichever, whatever, that”
- तत् tat · that (pronoun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: tad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 434, col. 1 “m. he, f. she, n. it, that, this”
- अग्रे agre · at first (noun (neuter), locative singular) Dictionary: agra, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 6, col. 2 “in front, ahead of, in the beginning, first”
- अमृतोपमम् amṛtopamam · like nectar (compound (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: a-mṛta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 82, col. 2 “the nectar (conferring immortality, produced at the churning of the ocean), ambrosia”; 3. upa-mā, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 203, col. 3 “(mfn. ifc.) equal, similar, resembling, like”
- परिणामे pariṇāme · in the end (noun (masculine), locative singular) Dictionary: pari-ṇāma, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 594, col. 3 “result, consequence, issue, end”
- विषम् viṣam · poison (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: viṣa, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 995, col. 3 “poison, venom, bane, anything actively pernicious”
- इव iva · like (indeclinable) Dictionary: iva, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 168, col. 3 “like, in the same manner as”
- तत् tat · that (pronoun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: tad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 434, col. 1 “m. he, f. she, n. it, that, this”
- सुखम् sukham · happiness (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: sukha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1221, col. 1 “ease, easiness, comfort, prosperity, pleasure, happiness”
- राजसम् rājasam · of rajas (adjective (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: rājasa, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 875, col. 2 “belonging or relating to the quality rajas”
- स्मृतम् smṛtam · is held (past participle (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: smṛta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1272, col. 2 “declared as, passing for (nom., loc., or dat.)”
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 126.
That happiness is called passionate, which (flows) from contact between the senses and their objects, and which is at first comparable to nectar and in the long run like poison.
Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 126.
That happiness is called passionate, which (flows) from contact between the senses and their objects, and which is at first comparable to nectar and in the long run like poison.
You are reading this one
Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 159.
That which at first is as the nectar of immortality from the union of the senses with the objects of senses, but in the end is nauseous, that pleasure is accounted râjasic.
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 335.
That which arises from the contact of object with sense, at first like nectar, but at the end like poison; that happiness is declared to be Râjasic.
You are reading this one
Cite this verse
The translation: K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 126. Bhagavad Gita 18.38.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 159. Bhagavad Gita 18.38.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 335. Bhagavad Gita 18.38.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 18.38: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 25, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/18/38/
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Bhagavad Gita 18.38
विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगाद्यत्तदग्रेऽमृतोपमम् ।
परिणामे विषमिव तत्सुखं राजसं स्मृतम् ॥
“That happiness is called passionate, which (flows) from contact between the senses and their objects, and which is at first comparable to nectar and in the long run like poison.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 126, public domain)
“That which at first is as the nectar of immortality from the union of the senses with the objects of senses, but in the end is nauseous, that pleasure is accounted râjasic.”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 159, public domain)
“That which arises from the contact of object with sense, at first like nectar, but at the end like poison; that happiness is declared to be Râjasic.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 335, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/18/38/ Nothing is sent from this site. Your own app sends it, to the chat you choose. The picture quotes the translation you chose on this page, with its name and year.
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. Source and changes
Questions families ask
Who speaks Bhagavad Gita 18.38?
Krishna speaks this verse, in chapter 18 (Moksha Sannyasa Yoga).
Where does the Sanskrit text come from?
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. See the source
Is the meaning on this page a translation?
Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
Source and licence
- Sanskrit text
- The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation (Annie Besant, G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922). Public domain. The Sanskrit on these pages was read from this printing’s page images.
- Translation
- The Bhagavadgîtâ with the Sanatsugâtîya and the Anugîtâ, translated by Kâshinâth Trimbak Telang (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, ed. F. Max Müller) (Kashinath Trimbak Telang, F. Max Müller, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1882). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song, translated by Annie Besant (Annie Besant, Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1895). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita, with Sanskrit Text; Paraphrase with Word-by-word Literal Translation; English Rendering and Comments, Index, &c., by the Swami Swarupananda (Himalayan Series, No. XX) (Swami Swarupananda, The Editors and Publishers, Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, Prabuddha Bharata Press, Mayavati, Almora, Himalayas, 1909). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Common wording
- In this text, 32 words follow today's common wording, checked against sanskritdocuments.org; Sanskrit Wikisource; Gita Press, Gorakhpur; GRETIL, Göttingen and Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
- Our explanation
- Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
- Checked
- Checked against the cited edition, October 15, 2026.
- Updated
- October 25, 2026