Bhagavad Gita 3.42: meaning and translation
Chapter 3: Karma Yoga. Krishna says
The senses are called high, Krishna says; higher than the senses is the mind, higher than the mind is the understanding, and higher than the understanding is “he” (saḥ).
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Bhagavad Gita 3.42
इन्द्रियाणि पराण्याहुरिन्द्रियेभ्यः परं मनः ।मनसस्तु परा बुद्धिर्यो बुद्धेः परतस्तु सः ॥
Indriyani paranyahurindriyebhyah param manahManasastu para buddhiryo buddheh paratastu sah
indriyāṇi parāṇyāhurindriyebhyaḥ paraṃ manaḥ |manasastu parā buddhiryo buddheḥ paratastu saḥ ||
Our explanation The senses are called high, Krishna says; higher than the senses is the mind, higher than the mind is the understanding, and higher than the understanding is “he” (saḥ). A similar ladder appears in the Katha Upanishad, as Telang notes. The schools read “he” in different ways (see the views).
हिंदी अर्थ कृष्ण कहते हैं कि इंद्रियों को श्रेष्ठ (पर) कहा जाता है; इंद्रियों से परे मन है, मन से परे बुद्धि है, और बुद्धि से परे “वह” (सः) है। जैसा तेलंग बताते हैं, ऐसी ही सीढ़ी कठ उपनिषद में भी आती है। अलग-अलग परंपराएँ “वह” का अर्थ अलग-अलग लेती हैं।
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- इन्द्रियाणि indriyāṇi · the senses (noun (neuter), accusative plural) Dictionary: indriya, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 167, col. 2 “faculty of sense, sense, organ of sense”
- पराणि parāṇi · high (adjective (neuter), accusative plural) Dictionary: 1. para, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 586, col. 1 “highest, supreme, chief”
- आहुः āhuḥ · they say (perfect, 3rd person plural) Dictionary: 1. ah, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 124, col. 1 “to say, speak”
- इन्द्रियेभ्यः indriyebhyaḥ · than the senses (noun (neuter), ablative plural) Dictionary: indriya, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 167, col. 2 “faculty of sense, sense, organ of sense”
- परम् param · higher (adjective (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: 1. para, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 586, col. 1 “highest, supreme, chief”
- मनः manaḥ · the mind (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: manas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 783, col. 3 “mind (in its widest sense as applied to all the mental powers)”
- मनसः manasaḥ · than the mind (noun (neuter), ablative singular) Dictionary: manas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 783, col. 3 “mind (in its widest sense as applied to all the mental powers)”
- तु tu · and (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. tu, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 449, col. 3 “but”
- परा parā · higher (adjective (feminine), nominative singular) Dictionary: 1. para, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 586, col. 1 “highest, supreme, chief”
- बुद्धिः buddhiḥ · the understanding (noun (feminine), nominative singular) Dictionary: buddhi, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 733, col. 3 “intelligence, reason, intellect, mind, discernment, judgment”
- यः yaḥ · who (pronoun (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: yad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 844, col. 2 “who, which, what, whichever, whatever, that”
- बुद्धेः buddheḥ · than the understanding (noun (feminine), ablative singular) Dictionary: buddhi, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 733, col. 3 “intelligence, reason, intellect, mind, discernment, judgment”
- परतः parataḥ · beyond, higher (indeclinable) Dictionary: paratas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 586, col. 3 “beyond, above (in rank)”
- तु tu · and (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. tu, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 449, col. 3 “but”
- सः saḥ · he (pronoun (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: tad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 434, col. 1 “m. he, f. she, n. it, that, this”
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 57.
It has been said1, Great are the senses, greater than the senses is the mind, greater than the mind is the understanding. What is greater than the understanding is that2.
Footnotes (the translator’s own) Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 57.
It has been said1, Great are the senses, greater than the senses is the mind, greater than the mind is the understanding. What is greater than the understanding is that2.
Footnotes (the translator’s own) You are reading this one
Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 48.
It is said that the senses are great; greater than the senses is Manas; greater than Manas is Buddhi; but what is greater than Buddhi, is He.1
Footnotes (the translator’s own) - The Supreme. ↩
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 82.
The senses are said to be superior (to the body); the mind is superior to the senses; the intellect is superior to the mind; and that is He (the Atman) who is superior to the intellect.
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. 57. Bhagavad Gita 3.42.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 48. Bhagavad Gita 3.42.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 82. Bhagavad Gita 3.42.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 3.42: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 27, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/3/42/
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Classical readings, by school
Each reading is named by its school. None is presented as the only meaning.
What Advaita, Vishishtadvaita and Dvaita teach, in short
Shankara Advaita
Shankara takes “he” (saḥ) to be the Self, the witness of the understanding, who stands behind all that can be seen. The senses are subtler than the body, the mind subtler than the senses, the understanding subtler than the mind, and the Self is beyond the understanding.
Source: The Bhagavad-Gita, with the commentary of Sri Sankaracharya, translated by A. Mahadeva Sastri (2nd ed., Mysore: G. T. A. Printing Works, 1901), commentary on 3.42, pp. 102–103. Summarised in our own words; none of its text is reproduced.
Ramanuja Vishishtadvaita
Ramanuja takes “he” (saḥ) to be desire itself. The senses, the mind and the understanding each block knowledge of the self, but desire, rooted deep in the heart, is stronger than all of them. He notes that other commentators read “he” as the Self or Brahman, and says this does not fit the passage, which is about desire.
Source: Sri Bhagavad-Gita with Sri Ramanujacharya's Visishtadvaita commentary, translated by A. Govindacharya (Madras, 1898), commentary on 3.42, pp. 126–127. Summarised in our own words; none of its text is reproduced.
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Bhagavad Gita 3.42
इन्द्रियाणि पराण्याहुरिन्द्रियेभ्यः परं मनः ।
मनसस्तु परा बुद्धिर्यो बुद्धेः परतस्तु सः ॥
“It has been said, Great are the senses, greater than the senses is the mind, greater than the mind is the understanding. What is greater than the understanding is that.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 57, public domain)
“It is said that the senses are great; greater than the senses is Manas; greater than Manas is Buddhi; but what is greater than Buddhi, is He.”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 48, public domain)
“The senses are said to be superior (to the body); the mind is superior to the senses; the intellect is superior to the mind; and that is He (the Atman) who is superior to the intellect.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 82, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/3/42/ 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 3.42?
Krishna speaks this verse, in chapter 3 (Karma 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.
- Commentary
- The Bhagavad-Gita, with the commentary of Sri Sankaracharya, translated by A. Mahadeva Sastri (2nd ed., Mysore: G. T. A. Printing Works, 1901) (Public-domain scan, University of California Libraries). Summarised in our own words; none of its text is reproduced.
- Commentary
- Sri Bhagavad-Gita with Sri Ramanujacharya's Visishtadvaita commentary, translated by A. Govindacharya (Madras, 1898) (Scan uploaded to archive.org (folkscanomy collection)). Summarised in our own words; none of its text is reproduced.
- 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 27, 2026.