yad agre cānubandhe ca
sukhaḿ mohanam ātmanaḥ
nidrālasya-pramādotthaḿ
tat tāmasam udāhṛtam
Translation of Bhagavad Gita 18.39
And that happiness which is blind to self-realization, which is delusion from beginning to end and which arises from sleep, laziness and illusion is said to be of the nature of ignorance.
Commentary by Sri A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada of Gaudiya Sampradaya:
One who takes pleasure in laziness and in sleep is certainly in the mode of darkness, ignorance, and one who has no idea how to act and how not to act is also in the mode of ignorance. For the person in the mode of ignorance, everything is illusion. There is no happiness either in the beginning or at the end. For the person in the mode of passion there might be some kind of ephemeral happiness in the beginning and at the end distress, but for the person in the mode of ignorance there is only distress both in the beginning and at the end.
Commentary by Sri Vishvanatha Chakravarthi Thakur of Gaudiya Sampradaya:
No commentary by Sri Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur.
Commentary by Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya:
18.39 That joy is udahrtam, said to be; tamasam, born of tamas; yat, which; both agre, in the beginning; ca, and; anubandhe, in the sequel, after the end (of enjoyment); is mohanam, delusive; atmanah, to oneself; and nidra-alasya-pramada-uttham, arises from sleep, laziness and inadvertence. Therefore, now is begun a verse in order to conclude this section [The section showing that all things in the whole of creation are under the influence of the three gunas.].
Commentary by Sri Sridhara Swami of Rudra Sampradaya:
The sukham or happiness which in the beginning from the first moment is deluded and also at the end is deluded arising from slothfulness, lassitude, and foolishness and neglecting what needs to be done and accomplished, Lord Krishna asserts is situated in tama guna the mode of ignorance.
Commentary by Sri Madhvacharya of Brahma Sampradaya:
Sri Madhvacharya did not comment on this sloka.
Commentary by Sri Keshava Kashmiri of Kumara Sampradaya:
That sukham or happiness which stupefies the jiva or embodied being by making perception of reality obscure. Which seems to be like nectar in the beginning as well as in the end and which is supported by slothfulness, indolence, folly and delusion is declared by Lord Krishna as situated in tama guna the mode of ignorance.
Commentary by Sri Adi Shankaracharya of Advaita Sampradaya:
18.39 That joy is udahrtam, said to be; tamasam, born of tamas; yat, which; both agre, in the beginning; ca, and; anubandhe, in the sequel, after the end (of enjoyment); is mohanam, delusive; atmanah, to oneself; and nidra-alasya-pramada-uttham, arises from sleep, laziness and inadvertence. Therefore, now is begun a verse in order to conclude this section [The section showing that all things in the whole of creation are under the influence of the three gunas.].
Commentary by Sri Abhinavagupta of Kaula Tantra Sampradaya:
18.36-39 Sukham etc. upto udahrtam. At its time : at the time of its practice (use). Like poison (1st) : Because it is extremely difficult to give up the attachment for sense-objects cultivated during hundreds of [previous] life-periods. That has been said in the revealed literature as : ‘[The path of sprituality] is the edge of a razor, painful and difficult to cross over etc.’ The serenity of intellect (or mind) results from serenity in the Self, as there exists nothing else to be aspired for. The [Rajasic] happiness springs from the mutual contact between the sense-objects and senses, just as in the case of the eye due to its contact with colur. That happiness which is due to sleep, indolence and heedlessness, explained earlier, is of the Tamas (Strand).
Sanskrit Shloka Without Transliteration Marks:
yad agre canubandhe ca
sukham mohanam atmanah
nidralasya-pramadottham
tat tamasam udahrtam
Sanskrit to English Word for Word Meanings:
yat — that which; agre — in the beginning; ca — also; anubandhe — at the end; ca — also; sukham — happiness; mohanam — illusory; ātmanaḥ — of the self; nidrā — sleep; ālasya — laziness; pramāda — and illusion; uttham — produced of; tat — that; tāmasam — in the mode of ignorance; udāhṛtam — is said to be.
