Chapter 16Verse 8 of 24

Bhagavad Gita 16.8

असत्यमप्रतिष्ठं ते जगदाहुरनीश्वरम् । अपरस्परसम्भूतं किमन्यत्कामहैतुकम् ॥

asatyam apratiṣṭhaṁ te jagad āhur anīśvaram aparaspara-sambhūtaṁ kim anyat kāma-haitukam

Translation

They say: The world is unreal, without foundation, without a lord, brought about by mutual union; what else than lust caused it?

The asuri cosmology, stated plainly. The world has no truth, no foundation, no governing principle. It came together by accident, by random pairing. What else but kama could have caused it? Notice what this view delivers to its holder. If there is no ground and no lord, then there is no rule. If random union made the world, then random union may take from it. Lust as cause becomes lust as license. This is not careful skepticism. It is metaphysical permission for any behavior. Krishna names it because it shows up in every era under fresh vocabulary. The seeker is asked to notice the move: not the question itself, which can be sincere, but the move from question to license.

Reflection

What hidden cosmology runs underneath your daily choices, and would it survive honest examination?

Read this verse in its chapter: Chapter Sixteen

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