बुद्धिर्ज्ञानमसंमोहः क्षमा सत्यं दमः शमः। सुखं दुःखं भवोऽभावो भयं चाभयमेव च।।10.4।।
buddhir jnanam asammohah kshama satyam damah sham. sukham dukham bhavah abhavah bhayam ca abhayam eva ca
Translation
Intellect, knowledge, freedom from delusion, forgiveness, truth, self‑restraint, tranquility; pleasure, pain, birth, non‑existence, fear and also fearlessness.
Word Meanings
buddhiḥ — intellect, discernment; jñānam — knowledge, wisdom; asammohaḥ — freedom from delusion; kṣamā — forgiveness, forbearance; satyam — truth, reality; damaḥ — self‑control, restraint; śamaḥ — tranquility, calmness; sukham — pleasure, happiness; duḥkham — sorrow, pain; bhavaḥ — birth, existence; abhāvaḥ — non‑existence, death; bhayam — fear; ca — and; abhayaṁ eva ca — also fearlessness
Understanding the Verse
In Chapter 10 of the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna enumerates the countless divine manifestations (vibhūti) that pervade the universe. Verse 4 lists a set of fundamental qualities that are both the prerogative of the Supreme and the aspirational attributes for the seeker. The verse begins with "buddhiḥ" (intellect) and "jñānam" (knowledge), highlighting the importance of discriminative wisdom as the first step toward spiritual realization. These are not mere intellectual capacities; they represent the ability to discern the eternal from the transient, the real from the unreal, and thus form the foundation for all higher understanding.
The term "asammohaḥ" (freedom from delusion) follows, indicating that true wisdom must be free from the fog of ignorance (moha). In the Gita’s broader context, delusion is the root cause of suffering and the barrier that keeps the soul bound to samsara. By cultivating asammoha, one aligns the mind with the clarity of the divine consciousness.
"Kṣamā" (forgiveness) and "damaḥ" (self‑control) underscore the ethical discipline necessary for spiritual growth. Forgiveness dissolves the karmic chain that binds us to past grievances, while self‑control restrains the senses and mind, allowing the practitioner to remain steady amidst the changing circumstances of life.
The verse then mentions "śamaḥ" (tranquility) and "satyam" (truth). Tranquility is the inner calm that arises when the mind is no longer agitated by external events. Truth, in the Gita’s sense, is not only factual accuracy but the recognition of the ultimate reality — the unchanging, indivisible Brahman that underlies all existence.
The second half of the verse lists the dualities of human experience: "sukham" (pleasure) and "duḥkham" (pain), "bhavaḥ" (birth) and "abhāvaḥ" (non‑existence or death). By naming these opposites, Krishna reminds Arjuna that the Divine pervades both joy and sorrow, creation and dissolution. The inclusion of "bhayam" (fear) followed by "ca abhayaṁ eva ca" (and also fearlessness) completes the spectrum, portraying the divine as the source of both the feeling of dread and the ultimate liberation from it.
Thus, this verse serves a dual purpose: it declares that the Supreme embodies all these qualities, and it invites the devotee to internalize them as marks of divine consciousness. By cultivating intellect, knowledge, freedom from delusion, forgiveness, truth, self‑restraint, and tranquility, one moves closer to the divine nature. Simultaneously, recognizing that pleasure, pain, birth, death, fear, and fearlessness are all under the Supreme’s purview helps the seeker maintain equanimity in the face of life’s fluctuations. The verse therefore acts as a concise roadmap for spiritual aspirants, guiding them to emulate the divine attributes and realize their own inherent divinity.
