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Complete learning edition. The Sanskrit source remains separate from attributed word meanings, translation, explanation and commentary witnesses. Diagrams and memory aids are study tools, not replacements for the source text.

BG 16.21

त्रिविधं नरकस्येदं द्वारं नाशनमात्मनः।कामः क्रोधस्तथा लोभस्तस्मादेतत्त्रयं त्यजेत्।।16.21।।

tri-vidhaṁ narakasyedaṁ dvāraṁ nāśhanam ātmanaḥ kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṁ tyajet

Verse translation

The gates of hell are three: lust, wrath, and avarice; they destroy the Self, so avoid them.

English rendering by Shri Purohit Swami. Each source voice remains named.

A sepia engraved study panorama for BG 16.21, centred on two dispositions
Chapter 16 memory scene
Word by word

Build the sentence from its parts

Read across once, then cover the meanings and recover them from the Sanskrit forms.

14word links
Sanskrit formMeaning here
tri-vidhamthree types of
narakasyato the hell
idamthis
dvāramgates
nāśhanamdestruction
ātmanaḥself
kāmaḥlust
krodhaḥanger
tathāand
lobhaḥgreed
tasmāttherefore
etatthese
trayamthree
tyajetshould abandon
Explanation and elucidation

Lust, anger and greed,: these highway robbers will cause a man to fall into the dark abyss of hell, misery or grief. These are the three fountainheads of misery.

Attributed explanatory witness: Swami Sivananda. Chapter lens: Compare divine and destructive dispositions, their actions and consequences without converting the lists into weapons for judging others.

Commentary perspectives

Three named reading witnesses

Sources stay separate

Śaṅkara edition witness

Swami Gambirananda

This door to hell, which destroys the soul, is of three kinds:passion, anger, and greed. Therefore, one should forsake these three.

Rāmānuja edition witness

Swami Adidevananda

Desire, wrath, and greed:these are the three gateways to Naraka, ruinous to the self. Therefore, one should abandon these three.

Sivananda commentary witness

Swami Sivananda

Lust, anger and greed,: these highway robbers will cause a man to fall into the dark abyss of hell, misery or grief. These are the three fountainheads of misery.

These are concise, attributed reading witnesses from identified editions. They are presented for comparison and are not merged into one anonymous interpretation.

Diagram

Meaning map

Flow chart

Follow the thought

  1. 1

    The gates of hell are three

  2. 2

    they destroy the Self

  3. 3

    tri-vidham: three types of

A sepia engraved visual memory cue for BG 16.21
Easy way to remember

Look, link, cover, teach

1

Look

Picture two dispositions.

2

Link

Use the line starts: tri-vidhaṁ narakasyedaṁ / kāmaḥ krodhas.

3

Cover

Hide the verse and rebuild one line at a time.

4

Teach

Explain the flow to another person without looking.

Notice

Circle repeated sounds, names, or grammatical endings before consulting a meaning.

Attempt

Read one line aloud, cover it, and reconstruct as much as you can from memory.

Verify

Compare with a checked edition and record the source before adding any translation.

Complete source-study lessonAutosaves locally

Build meaning without hiding the work

Compare divine and destructive dispositions, their actions and consequences without converting the lists into weapons for judging others.

Observation before explanation

Mark forms you want to investigate

These are visual tokens, not a reviewed sandhi split. Select repeated forms, endings, compounds, particles or speaker markers; verify segmentation with the Sanskrit tools or a checked edition.

Chapter inquiry

Three questions for this verse

  1. 1

    Which quality, belief or action is named?

  2. 2

    What consequence or trajectory is given?

  3. 3

    How should the list be used for self-examination?

Transfer task

Turn one quality into a private self-audit with a concrete next action.

Learner rendering

Attempt before comparison

Correction and teach-back

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Assessment: read aloud, explain the verse’s role in its chapter, identify one source boundary, answer one question and schedule a return.

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  1. 01Encounter
  2. 02Recall
  3. 03Apply
  4. 04Discuss
  5. 05Teach
  6. 06Return