अज्ञश्चाश्रद्दधानश्च संशयात्मा विनश्यति । नायं लोकोऽस्ति न परो न सुखं संशयात्मनः ॥
ajñaś cāśraddadhānaś ca saṃśayātmā vinaśyati | nāyaṃ loko 'sti na paro na sukhaṃ saṃśayātmanaḥ ||
The ignorant, faithless, doubting self is destroyed — no happiness in this world, the next, or anywhere.
Word by word (3)
- ajñaḥ ca aśraddadhānaḥ ca saṃśaya-ātmā vinaśyati
- — the ignorant, the faithless, the doubting self — all perish · Ajña = the ignorant (a+jña = without knowledge). Ca = and. Aśraddadhāna = one who does not have śraddhā (a+śrad+dhāna = not placing the heart). Saṃśaya-ātmā = the self/person characterized by doubt (saṃśaya = doubt, from sam+śī = wavering; ātmā = self — this is the self whose core character is doubt). Vinaśyati = perishes, is destroyed (vi+naś). The three contrasted with V39's three: ignorance vs. jñāna, faithlessness vs. śraddhā, doubting-self vs. tat-para.
- na ayaṃ lokaḥ asti na paraḥ na sukham saṃśayātmanaḥ
- — for the doubting self — neither this world nor the next, nor happiness · Na ayaṃ lokaḥ = not this world. Na paraḥ = not the other (world beyond). Na sukham = no happiness. Saṃśayātmanaḥ = of the doubting-self (genitive). The triplet of negations: no foothold in this world (present, practical), no foothold in the next world (future, spiritual), and no happiness even in the present moment. Doubt destroys from all three directions.
- saṃśayātmā
- — saṃśayātmā = one whose very self is doubt (saṃśaya = doubt, from sam + śi = to hang/be poised — poised between two possibilities, unable to move; saṃśaya is doubt not as questioning but as paralysis; ātmā = self/being); saṃśayātmā = the doubting self — not merely someone who has doubts but one whose fundamental orientation IS doubt; the compound says the doubt has colonised the ātmā itself; the contrast with śraddhāvān (V39) is total: the one whose self is faith gains jñāna; the one whose self is doubt is destroyed
The ignorant, the faithless, and the doubting self — perish. For the doubting self: not this world, not the next world, not happiness.
A modern analogy
Chronic doubt paralyzes: you cannot commit to a direction, so you take no direction. You cannot trust your analysis, so you make no decision. You cannot trust your practice, so you do not practice. V40: the doubting self (saṃśayātmā) finds no ground anywhere — not in action, not in aspiration, not in the present moment.
Take with you
- Three types who perish: ajña (ignorant), aśraddadhāna (faithless), saṃśayātmā (doubting self). Each one a different failure mode.
- Saṃśayātmā is the most precise: not a person who has doubts (everyone does) but one whose fundamental identity is doubt.
- The triplet of no-ground: no this world, no next world, no happiness — doubt prevents foothold in any dimension.
- V40 contrasts directly with V39: śraddhā → jñāna → śānti. Aśraddhā → doubt → no ground anywhere.
V40 is the direct contrast to V39 — where V39 gave the three conditions for jñāna, V40 gives the three conditions for destruction: ajña (ignorance), aśraddadhāna (faithlessness), saṃśayātmā (doubt-identity). Shankaracharya: the saṃśayātmā is the most precisely described — it is not someone who occasionally doubts (a natural state) but one whose fundamental identity is structured by doubt. The three-fold negation (na ayaṃ, na paraḥ, na sukham) mirrors V39's three-fold affirmation (jñānaṃ labdhvā parāṃ śāntim acireṇa). The structural parallelism makes the teaching vivid: the three conditions of V39 lead to the three gifts of V39; the three conditions of V40 lead to the three absences of V40. The choice between them is the fundamental freedom that the Gita insists humans possess.
Public-domain translations (5) compare all →
But the ignorant man, who has no faith and is full of doubt, goes to destruction. Not this world, not the next, nor happiness, is for the doubting soul. [1]
The ignorant, the faithless, the doubting self goes to destruction. Not this world, nor the world beyond, nor happiness, is for the doubting. [4]
The man who is full of doubts, who has no faith, and is without knowledge, perisheth. Not this world, nor the world beyond, nor happiness, belongs to the doubter. [6]
But he who is faithless, ignorant, given to doubt, Perishes; not this world, not the next, Nor joy for one that doubles. [7]
The man who is ignorant, who is faithless, and whose self is full of doubt perishes. For the doubting self there is neither this world, nor the next, nor happiness. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
The faithful, devoted, sense-controlled person attains jñāna — and quickly reaches supreme peace.
Cut with jñāna's sword this doubt born of ignorance in your heart. Stand in yoga — arise, O Arjuna!
'I slew that enemy; I'll slay others. I am Lord, Enjoyer, Perfect, Powerful, Happy' — the ego-apotheosis of the āsurī.
Tāmasic sukha: deluding of the self both at start and in consequence — arises from sleep, laziness, and carelessness.
You grieve for those who should not be grieved for — and call it wisdom.
Steady wisdom begins here: when all desires fall away and the Self finds fullness in itself alone.