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The Enemy Called Desire

Why do we do what we do not want to do? Arjuna's question and the Lord's answer in Gita 3.36–43: desire and anger as the enemy that covers knowledge, and the order in which it is met.

In brief

  • Arjuna asks what drives a person to do wrong against his will, and the Lord names desire and anger born of passion (3.36–37).
  • Desire covers knowledge as smoke covers fire, is never filled, and sits in the senses, mind and intellect (3.38–40).
  • It is met in order, the senses first and knowledge of the Self last (3.41–43).

Everyone knows the moment: we decide, and then we do the opposite. Arjuna asks the Lord what drives a person to act wrongly even against his will, as if by force, and the answer comes in eight verses (Gita 3.36–43). The push is desire and its twin anger, which cover what we know as smoke covers a fire, and which can be met in order.

The words carry the teaching. Desire is the wanting that rules, anger is that wanting blocked, and both are born of passion. They sit in the senses, the mind and the intellect, and the Lord shows how to meet them, beginning with the senses.

This is the third stop on the path Anger and Desire, after From Thought to Ruin. The hubs on attraction and aversion and on endless wanting, which come before and after it on the path, are planned.

The topic has three readings. A simple reading is for anyone who keeps repeating a habit they know is wrong. A detailed reading takes the eight verses one by one. A deeper reading weighs three streams of commentary, answers seven objections and takes up the questions the verses raise.

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Simple New to this topic. Plain words, one idea at a time. Why Do I Keep Doing What I Know Is Wrong? The Gita's Answer Arjuna asks why a person does wrong even against his will, as if pushed by force, and the Lord names desire and anger born of passion (3.36–37). 6 min · Read → In Depth Know the basics. Verse by verse, with reasons. The Enemy Called Desire: Gita 3.36–43 Verse by Verse Gita 3.36–43 asks why a person does wrong against his will and answers that desire and anger, born of passion, are the enemy (3.36–37). 11 min · Read → Deeper Want the text itself: Sanskrit terms, commentary, close reading. Who Drives Us Against Our Will? Commentators, Objections and Answers on Gita 3.36–43 The force that drives a person against his will is a state of his own nature, desire born of passion, and not an outside power (3.36–37, 5.14, 3.27). 14 min · Read → Quick summary Short on time. The whole topic in a few minutes. The Enemy Called Desire: Quick Summary Arjuna asks why a person sins even against his wish, and the Lord names desire and anger born of passion as the cause (3.36-37). 8 min · Read →

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