Bhagavad-gītā 4.37
Read once with your eyes. Read again aloud.
यथैधांसि समिद्धोऽग्निर्भस्मसात्कुरुतेऽर्जुन। ज्ञानाग्निः सर्वकर्माणि भस्मसात्कुरुते तथा।।4.37।।
yathaidhānsi samiddho ’gnir bhasma-sāt kurute ’rjuna jñānāgniḥ sarva-karmāṇi bhasma-sāt kurute tathā
As blazing fire reduces wood into ashes, so, O Arjuna, does the fire of knowledge reduce all Karma to ashes.
English rendering by Swami Swarupananda. Public domain first edition, 1909.
Build the sentence from its parts
Read across once, then cover the meanings and recover them from the Sanskrit forms.
| Sanskrit form | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| yathā | as |
| edhānsi | firewood |
| samiddhaḥ | blazing |
| agniḥ | fire |
| bhasma-sāt | to ashes |
| kurute | turns |
| arjuna | Arjun |
| jñāna-agniḥ | the fire of knowledge |
| sarva-karmāṇi | all reactions from material activities |
| bhasma-sāt | to ashes |
| kurute | it turns |
| tathā | similarly |
Read the Sanskrit as a connected thought built from yathā (as), arjuna (Arjun), and tathā (similarly). Ask what changes between the first and last term, and how that movement contributes to knowledge that purifies action. State the connection in your own words, then check it against Bhagavad-gita 4.37.
Original school explanation. Written independently from the Sanskrit word map. It is not a quotation, translation, or summary of a named modern commentary. Chapter lens: Follow the links among teaching lineage, divine appearance, action, knowledge, sacrifice and the teacher–student relationship.
Five careful reading routes
The cards below are reading references, not claims about what an acharya says in this verse. Modern wording stays inside authorized editions. Classical commentary will appear only after an independent translation has passed scholarly and rights review.
Meaning map
Follow the thought
- 1
As blazing fire reduces wood into ashes, so, O Arjuna, does the fire of knowledge reduce all Karma to ashes
- 2
yathā: as
- 3
arjuna: Arjun
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Use the line starts: yathaidhānsi samiddho / jñānāgniḥ sarva-karmāṇi.
Cover
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A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Bhagavad-gita As It IsFor Bhagavad-gita 4.37, consult the authorized BBT edition. No purport, translation, or author-attributed summary is reproduced here.
Find the authorized editionBhaktivinoda Thakura
Rasika-ranjanaA verified independent rendering for Bhagavad-gita 4.37 has not yet passed scholarly and rights review. Modern translations are not copied here.
Independent rendering pending reviewBaladeva Vidyabhushana
Gita-bhushana-bhashyaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 4.37 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewVishvanatha Cakravarti Thakura
Sarartha-varshini-tikaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 4.37 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewOther Gaudiya acharyas
Authorized Gaudiya editionsFor Bhagavad-gita 4.37, later teachers remain a further-reading route. Their wording and distinctive teaching structures require permission or a separate rights review.
Use an authorized edition