Bhagavad Gita 3.38धूमेनाव्रियते वह्निर्यथाऽऽदर्शो मलेन च।यथोल्बेनावृतो गर्भस्तथा तेनेदमावृतम् ॥

dhūmenāvriyate vahnir yathādarśho malena cha

yatholbenāvṛito garbhas tathā tenedam āvṛitam

Sanskrit recitation

Desire as the inner enemy · 3.36–3.43 · Teaching

Translation

As fire is enveloped by smoke, as a mirror is covered by dust, and as an embryo is surrounded by the amniotic sac, so is this enveloped by that.

जैसे धुएँसे अग्नि और मैलसे दर्पण ढक जाता है तथा जैसे जेरसे गर्भ ढका रहता है, ऐसे ही उस कामके द्वारा यह ज्ञान ( विवेक) ढका हुआ है।

This means the universe. This also means knowledge. That means desire.

After Swami Sivananda

Desire as the inner enemy· 3.36–3.43→

Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.

Word-by-word→