Verse 3.36

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 3.36:

अथ केन प्रयुक्तोऽयं पापं चरति पूरुषः ।
अनिच्छन्न् अपि वार्ष्णेय बलाद् इव नियोजितः ॥ ३६ ॥

atha kena prayukto'yaṃ pāpaṃ carati pūruṣaḥ |
anicchann api vārṣṇeya balād iva niyojitaḥ || 36 ||

arjuna uvāca–Arjuna said; atha–then; kena–by whom; prayuktaḥ–is engaged; ayam–this; pāpam–sin; carati–he performs; pūruṣaḥ–person; anicchann–unwillingly; api–even; vārṣṇeya–O Śrī Kṛṣṇa, descendant of Vṛṣṇi; balāt–by force; iva–as if; niyojitaḥ–engaged.

Arjuna said: O Kṛṣṇa, O descendant of Vṛṣṇi, what is it that seems to forcibly impel a person to engage in sinful deeds, even though he is unwilling to do so?

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

(By Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura; the innermost intention of the commentary named ‘the shower of essential meanings’)

Earlier (in Gītā 3.34) it was said, “rāga-dveṣau vyavasthitau–even a man of discrimination can develop attachment to sensual activities, such as the desire to enjoy another’s wife, which are forbidden in scripture.” In this connection, Arjuna asks this question beginning with the word atha. “What is it that impels a man to engage in sinful activities, against his will, as if by force, even though he is well aware of the regulations and injunctions of the scriptures? In other words, who impels a person to desire to engage in sinful activities?”

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Prakāśikā-vṛtti

(By Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; the explanation that illuminates the commentary named Sārārtha-varṣiṇī)

In this verse, Arjuna has addressed Śrī Bhagavān ‘O Vārṣṇeya’. Kṛṣṇa appeared in the Vṛṣṇi dynasty of Arjuna’s maternal grandfather and grandmother. Śūrasena was also born in the same Vṛṣṇi dynasty. His son was Vasudeva (Kṛṣṇa’s father) and his daughter, Pṛthā, was Arjuna’s mother. The hidden indication in Arjuna’s prayer to Kṛṣṇa is, “Since I belong to the same dynasty as You, You should not neglect me. At present I have fallen into a pit of doubts. You have just said that the soul (ātmā) is completely distinct from inert qualities, or mundane relationships (Gītā 2.13–31). Who, then, impels the jīvas to engage in sinful acts, if such action is not their constitutional nature?”