What the scriptures say about despair

What do the scriptures say about despair?

The texts call it viṣāda (विषाद). The sinking of the whole person when the will gives out is called viṣāda, and the Gita's first chapter is named for it (Arjuna-viṣāda-yoga). They set self-knowledge, faith and enthusiasm against it.

84 verses
27 stories
Weighs on the mind

Read the verses Find it on the map

Arjuna

अर्जुन उवाच कृपया परयाऽऽविष्टो विषीदन्निदमब्रवीत् । दृष्ट्वेमं स्वजनं कृष्ण युयुत्सुं समुपस्थितम् ॥

arjuna uvāca kṛpayā parayā’’viṣṭo viṣīdannidamabravīt | dṛṣṭvemaṃ svajanaṃ kṛṣṇa yuyutsuṃ samupasthitam ||

Arjuna said: Krishna, when I see my own people standing here, eager to fight, I am overcome with pity and sorrow.

Bhagavad Gita 1.28

Despair in the texts' own words

Someone in the verse is in it, or the text names it outright. Many readers find their own day here.

Yet I am sure to bob up soon and am waiting for the next turn.
Complete Works, Vol. 5, Epistles, First Series, CIII, p. 160
Shows things are all gloomy with me just now. our reading
I have been living in mental hell. It is partially lifted now, and I hope for better days, better states.
Complete Works, Vol. 8, Epistles, Fourth Series, CLVII, p. 494
Living in mental hell. our reading
Arjuna
अर्जुन उवाच कृपया परयाऽऽविष्टो विषीदन्निदमब्रवीत् । दृष्ट्वेमं स्वजनं कृष्ण युयुत्सुं समुपस्थितम् ॥
arjuna uvāca kṛpayā parayā’’viṣṭo viṣīdannidamabravīt | dṛṣṭvemaṃ svajanaṃ kṛṣṇa yuyutsuṃ samupasthitam ||
Arjuna said: Krishna, when I see my own people standing here, eager to fight, I am overcome with pity and sorrow.
Bhagavad Gita 1.28
Speaks while sinking at the sight of his own people on the other side. our reading
Arjuna
सीदन्ति मम गात्राणि मुखं च परिशुष्यति । वेपथुश्च शरीरे मे रोमहर्षश्च जायते ॥
sīdanti mama gātrāṇi mukhaṃ ca pariśuṣyati | vepathuśca śarīre me romaharṣaśca jāyate ||
My limbs give way, my mouth is parched, my body trembles and my hair stands on end.
Bhagavad Gita 1.29-30
Shows the body gives way first: limbs, mouth, skin, grip. our reading
Sanjaya
सञ्जय उवाच एवमुक्त्वाऽर्जुनः संख्ये रथोपस्थ उपाविशत् । विसृज्य सशरं चापं शोकसंविग्नमानसः ॥
sañjaya uvāca evamuktvā’rjunaḥ saṃkhye rathopastha upāviśat | visṛjya saśaraṃ cāpaṃ śokasaṃvignamānasaḥ ||
Sanjaya said: Having spoken this on the battlefield, Arjuna sank down on the seat of the chariot, letting fall his bow and arrows, his mind overwhelmed by grief.
Bhagavad Gita 1.47
Shows him putting down what he does best and sitting. our reading
Sampati
तेज न सहि सक सो फिरि आवा। मैं अभिमानी रबि निअरावा॥ जरे पंख अति तेज अपारा। परेउँ भूमि करि घोर चिकारा ॥
tej na sahi sak so phiri āvā| maiṃ abhimānī rabi niarāvā|| jare paṃkh ati tej apārā| pareuṁ bhūmi kari ghor cikārā ||
He (Jatayu) could not bear the sun's heat and turned back; I, being proud, flew on towards the sun. My wings burned in its boundless blaze, and I fell to the earth with a terrible cry.
Ramcharitmanas · Kishkindha Kand
Shows the fall and the terrible cry. our reading
Sita
कहेहु तात अस मोर प्रनामा। सब प्रकार प्रभु पूरनकामा॥ दीन दयाल बिरिदु संभारी। हरहु नाथ सम संकट भारी ॥
kahehu tāt as mor pranāmā| sab prakār prabhu pūranakāmā|| dīn dayāl biridu saṃbhārī| harahu nāth sam saṃkaṭ bhārī ||
Give him my greeting, friend, and say: Lord, you lack nothing, but kindness to the helpless is your promise. Remember it, and take away my heavy trouble.
Ramcharitmanas, Sundar Kand 25 (chaupai 2)
Shows her calling her trouble heavy and herself helpless. our reading
King Brihadratha
सोऽहमित्येतद्विधेऽस्मिन्संसारे किं कामोपभोगैर्यैरेवाश्रितस्यासकृदिहावर्तनं दृश्यत इत्युद्धर्तुमर्हसीत्यन्धोदपानस्थो भेक इवाहमस्मिन्संसारे भगवंस्त्वं नो गतिस्त्वं नो गतिः ॥
so’hamityetadvidhe’sminsaṃsāre kiṃ kāmopabhogairyairevāśritasyāsakṛdihāvartanaṃ dṛśyata ityuddhartumarhasītyandhodapānastho bheka ivāhamasminsaṃsāre bhagavaṃstvaṃ no gatistvaṃ no gatiḥ ||
In such a world, what use is the enjoyment of desires, when one who feeds on them is seen to return here again and again? Please lift me out. In this world I am like a frog in a dark well. Sir, you are my way, you are my way.
Maitri Upanishad 1.7

What feeds it, step by step

Sequences the texts state outright, in their own order.

Arjuna's collapse

Bhagavad Gita 1.28-30; 1.47; 2.6-8

Seeing his own people, Arjuna is overcome and his limbs fail. He drops the bow and sits down in grief. He cannot tell which course is better. Confused about what is right, he asks to be taught.

Arjuna
अर्जुन उवाच कृपया परयाऽऽविष्टो विषीदन्निदमब्रवीत् । दृष्ट्वेमं स्वजनं कृष्ण युयुत्सुं समुपस्थितम् ॥
arjuna uvāca kṛpayā parayā’’viṣṭo viṣīdannidamabravīt | dṛṣṭvemaṃ svajanaṃ kṛṣṇa yuyutsuṃ samupasthitam ||
Arjuna said: Krishna, when I see my own people standing here, eager to fight, I am overcome with pity and sorrow.
Bhagavad Gita 1.28
Arjuna
सीदन्ति मम गात्राणि मुखं च परिशुष्यति । वेपथुश्च शरीरे मे रोमहर्षश्च जायते ॥
sīdanti mama gātrāṇi mukhaṃ ca pariśuṣyati | vepathuśca śarīre me romaharṣaśca jāyate ||
My limbs give way, my mouth is parched, my body trembles and my hair stands on end.
Bhagavad Gita 1.29-30
Sanjaya
सञ्जय उवाच एवमुक्त्वाऽर्जुनः संख्ये रथोपस्थ उपाविशत् । विसृज्य सशरं चापं शोकसंविग्नमानसः ॥
sañjaya uvāca evamuktvā’rjunaḥ saṃkhye rathopastha upāviśat | visṛjya saśaraṃ cāpaṃ śokasaṃvignamānasaḥ ||
Sanjaya said: Having spoken this on the battlefield, Arjuna sank down on the seat of the chariot, letting fall his bow and arrows, his mind overwhelmed by grief.
Bhagavad Gita 1.47

No strength greater than the will to go on

Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha 1.121 (Gita Press); Sundara 12.10; Kishkindha 49

Despair
Enthusiasm
success

Lakshmana tells a grieving Rama that enthusiasm is strong, there is no strength greater than it, and nothing is out of reach for one who has it. Hanuman thinks in Lanka that not losing heart is the root of fortune. Sugriva says that one who gives in to despair sinks like an overloaded boat.

Lakshman
उत्साहो बलवानार्य नास्त्युत्साहात् परं बलम्। सोत्साहस्य हि लोकेषु न किंचिदपि दुर्लभम्॥
utsāho balavānārya nāstyutsāhāt paraṃ balam| sotsāhasya hi lokeṣu na kiṃcidapi durlabham||
Noble brother, enthusiasm is powerful; there is no strength greater than enthusiasm. For the person who has it, nothing in the world is out of reach.
Valmiki Ramayana · Kishkindha Kanda
Hanuman
अनिर्वेदः श्रियो मूलमनिर्वेदः परं सुखम्। भूयस्तत्र विचेष्यामि न यत्र विचयः कृतः॥
anirvedaḥ śriyo mūlamanirvedaḥ paraṃ sukham| bhūyastatra viceṣyāmi na yatra vicayaḥ kṛtaḥ||
Not losing heart is the root of success; not losing heart is the highest happiness. I will search again, in the places I have not yet searched.
Valmiki Ramayana · Sundara Kanda
Angada
अवश्यं कुर्वतां तस्य दृश्यते कर्मणः फलम्। परं निर्वेदमागम्य नहि नोन्मीलनं क्षमम्॥
avaśyaṃ kurvatāṃ tasya dṛśyate karmaṇaḥ phalam| paraṃ nirvedamāgamya nahi nonmīlanaṃ kṣamam||
Those who keep working surely see the fruit of their work. But once you sink into deep despair, you cannot rise again.
Valmiki Ramayana · Kishkindha Kanda

What heals it

What the texts set against it, and the verses that give footing.

Enthusiasmutsāha
Enthusiasm answers despair because Lakshmana and Hanuman set the will to go on against despair inside scenes of real loss. stated in the text
Valmiki, Kishkindha 1.121 GP; Sundara 12.10
Self upliftmentatma uddhara
Lift the self by the self so it does not sink into despair. stated in the text
Gita 6.5
Faithśraddhā
Faith assures that good deeds and effort are never lost or wasted. stated in the text
Gita 6.40; 2.40
Good companysatsanga
Even at the lowest, do not let go of good company; find a friend who knows your kind of trouble. stated in the text
Yoga Vasishtha 2.16.8; Valmiki 3.72
Self-knowledgeātma-jñāna
Krishna's own answer to the collapse; mortality-flagged, week 3 only. stated in the text
Gita 2.11-30

Krishna
नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते । स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् ॥
nehābhikramanāśo’sti pratyavāyo na vidyate | svalpamapyasya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt ||
On this path no effort is lost and no harm results. Even a little of this practice protects one from great fear.
Bhagavad Gita 2.40
Krishna
उद्धरेदात्मनाऽऽत्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् । आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मनः ॥
uddharedātmanā’’tmānaṃ nātmānamavasādayet | ātmaiva hyātmano bandhurātmaiva ripurātmanaḥ ||
Raise yourself by your own self; do not let yourself sink. For the self alone is the friend of the self, and the self alone is the enemy of the self.
Bhagavad Gita 6.5
Lakshman
उत्साहो बलवानार्य नास्त्युत्साहात् परं बलम्। सोत्साहस्य हि लोकेषु न किंचिदपि दुर्लभम्॥
utsāho balavānārya nāstyutsāhāt paraṃ balam| sotsāhasya hi lokeṣu na kiṃcidapi durlabham||
Noble brother, enthusiasm is powerful; there is no strength greater than enthusiasm. For the person who has it, nothing in the world is out of reach.
Valmiki Ramayana · Kishkindha Kanda
Shows answers collapsing with the one power still in his hands. our reading
Hanuman
अनिर्वेदः श्रियो मूलमनिर्वेदः परं सुखम्। भूयस्तत्र विचेष्यामि न यत्र विचयः कृतः॥
anirvedaḥ śriyo mūlamanirvedaḥ paraṃ sukham| bhūyastatra viceṣyāmi na yatra vicayaḥ kṛtaḥ||
Not losing heart is the root of success; not losing heart is the highest happiness. I will search again, in the places I have not yet searched.
Valmiki Ramayana · Sundara Kanda
He answers his own collapse with a principle and a next step. our reading
Vasishtha
अपि कष्टतरां प्राप्तैर्दशां विवशतां गतैः । मनागपि न संत्याज्या मानवैः साधुसंगतिः ॥
api kaṣṭatarāṃ prāptairdaśāṃ vivaśatāṃ gataiḥ | manāgapi na saṃtyājyā mānavaiḥ sādhusaṃgatiḥ ||
Even when people fall into the hardest straits and feel helpless, they should not let go of good company, not even a little.
Yoga Vasishtha
At the lowest point one thing is asked stay near good people. our reading
Bhartrihari
अम्भोजिनीवनविहारविलासमेव हंसस्य हन्ति नितरां कुपितो विधाता । न त्वस्य दुग्धजलभेदविधौ प्रसिद्धां वैदग्ध्यकीर्तिमपहर्तुमसौ समर्थः ॥
ambhojinīvanavihāravilāsameva haṃsasya hanti nitarāṃ kupito vidhātā | na tvasya dugdhajalabhedavidhau prasiddhāṃ vaidagdhyakīrtimapahartumasau samarthaḥ ||
An angry Creator may destroy the swan's delight of roaming its lotus pond, but he cannot take away its famous skill of separating milk from water.
Bhartrihari · Niti Shatakam
Shows something remains after the loss. our reading
Bhartrihari
सम्पत्सु महतां चित्तं भवत्युत्पलकोमलम् । आपत्सु च महाशैलशिलासङ्घातकर्कशम् ॥
sampatsu mahatāṃ cittaṃ bhavatyutpalakomalam | āpatsu ca mahāśailaśilāsaṅghātakarkaśam ||
In prosperity the heart of the great becomes soft as a lotus; in adversity, hard as a mass of mountain rock.
Bhartrihari · Niti Shatakam
Bhartrihari
पातितोऽपि कराघातैरुत्पतत्येव कन्दुकः । प्रायेण साधुवृत्तनामस्थायिन्यो विपत्तयः ॥
pātito’pi karāghātairutpatatyeva kandukaḥ | prāyeṇa sādhuvṛttanāmasthāyinyo vipattayaḥ ||
A ball struck down by the hand flies right back up. As a rule, the misfortunes of those who live rightly do not last.
Bhartrihari · Niti Shatakam
Shows the fall as the start of the rebound. our reading

Practices that grow enthusiasm, faith and self-knowledge

Verses that give something to do, today or in the hard moment.

Dattatreya
सखे मनः किं बहुजल्पितेन सखे मनः सर्वमिदं वितर्क्यम् । यत्सारभूतं कथितं मया ते त्वमेव तत्त्वं गगनोपमोऽसि ॥
sakhe manaḥ kiṃ bahujalpitena sakhe manaḥ sarvamidaṃ vitarkyam | yatsārabhūtaṃ kathitaṃ mayā te tvameva tattvaṃ gaganopamo’si ||
Friend mind, what is the use of so much chatter? Friend mind, all this is mere speculation. I have told you the heart of it: you are reality itself, vast as the sky.
Avadhuta Gita 1.68
Names you as tattva, sky-like. our reading
Krishna
तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया । उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ॥
tadviddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā | upadekṣyanti te jñānaṃ jñāninastattvadarśinaḥ ||
Learn it by bowing down, by questioning, and by service. Those who are wise and have seen the truth will teach you that knowledge.
Bhagavad Gita 4.34
Shows humility before a teacher who has seen the truth. our reading
Krishna
उद्धरेदात्मनाऽऽत्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् । आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मनः ॥
uddharedātmanā’’tmānaṃ nātmānamavasādayet | ātmaiva hyātmano bandhurātmaiva ripurātmanaḥ ||
Raise yourself by your own self; do not let yourself sink. For the self alone is the friend of the self, and the self alone is the enemy of the self.
Bhagavad Gita 6.5
A call to rise. our reading
Bhartrihari
आलस्यं हि मनुष्याणां शरीरस्थो महारिपुः । नास्त्युद्यमसमो बन्धुः कुर्वाणो नावसीदति ॥
ālasyaṃ hi manuṣyāṇāṃ śarīrastho mahāripuḥ | nāstyudyamasamo bandhuḥ kurvāṇo nāvasīdati ||
Laziness is the great enemy that lives in a person's own body. There is no friend like effort; one who works does not sink.
Bhartrihari · Niti Shatakam
Shows effort as a friend. our reading
Bhishma
प्राणकान्तारपाथेयं संसारोच्छेदभेषजम् / दुःखशोकपरित्राणं हरिरित्यक्षरद्वयम्॥]
prāṇakāntārapātheyaṃ saṃsārocchedabheṣajam / duḥkhaśokaparitrāṇaṃ harirityakṣaradvayam||]
Provisions for the wilderness of life, medicine that cuts the bonds of the world, rescue from sorrow and grief: the two syllables 'Ha-ri'.
Mahabharata, Shanti 46.127
Trust is cultivated in two syllables. our reading
Bhishma
विपन्ने च समारम्भे सन्तापं मा स्म वै कृथाः / घटेतैवं सदाऽऽत्मानं राज्ञामेष परो नयः
vipanne ca samārambhe santāpaṃ mā sma vai kṛthāḥ / ghaṭetaivaṃ sadā’’tmānaṃ rājñāmeṣa paro nayaḥ
If an undertaking fails, do not torment yourself over it. Keep applying yourself again and again; this is the highest rule for those who lead.
Mahabharata · Shanti Parva · Bhishma, Rajadharma
Shows renewed exertion is called the supreme rule. our reading
Markandeya
सर्वेषामेव भूतानां पिता माता च माधवः / गच्छध्वमेनं शरणं शरण्यं कौरवर्षभाः
sarveṣāmeva bhūtānāṃ pitā mātā ca mādhavaḥ / gacchadhvamenaṃ śaraṇaṃ śaraṇyaṃ kauravarṣabhāḥ
Madhava is the father and the mother of all beings. Go to him for refuge, best of the Kurus; he is the refuge.
Mahabharata, Vana 192.56
Shows he is parent to all. our reading
Sampati
पापिउ जाकर नाम सुमिरहीं। अति अपार भवसागर तरहीं॥ तासु दूत तुम्ह तजि कदराई राम हृदयँ धरि करहु उपाई ॥
pāpiu jākar nām sumirahīṃ| ati apār bhavasāgar tarahīṃ|| tāsu dūt tumha taji kadarāī rām hṛdayaṁ dhari karahu upāī ||
Even sinners who remember his name cross the boundless ocean of the world. You are his messengers: give up your timidity, keep Ram in your heart and find a way.
Ramcharitmanas, Kishkindha Kand 4.30 (chaupai 2)
Shows getting up and devising the means. our reading

People who lived it

Someone in the scriptures went through this, and the story shows what turned.

From the Mahabharata
Nala and Damayanti
King Nala, possessed by the spirit Kali, gambles away his kingdom to his brother and abandons Damayanti in the forest. Years of separation and disguise follow, until Nala masters the dice and the two are reunited.
Compulsions can take everything. Loyalty and patience can still bring you home.
From the Mahabharata
Manki's song: desire, I know your root
Manki spends all he has on a pair of oxen; both are killed in an accident. In his despair he sees through desire: it is born of his own imagining, and he resolves to forgive insults and stop feeding it. Bhishma adds Janaka's verse on owning nothing.
Desire grows from what we imagine. Stop feeding it, and it fades.
From the Mahabharata
Krishna on the war within
As Yudhishthira still grieves, Krishna tells him his real battle has begun: one fought alone, with his own mind, where 'mine' is death and 'not mine' is freedom.
The hardest battle is with your own mind, and no one else can fight it for you.
From the Mahabharata
Vidula rouses her defeated son
Kunti sends Yudhishthira the old story of Queen Vidula, who finds her son lying defeated after losing his kingdom. She shames, then reasons, then encourages him until he rises and fights for it again.
Past failure doesn't define you. Results are uncertain, but those who never try never succeed.

Is this where you are?

Write a line about today. Your words find their place on the map, with a verse for each.

Nearby on the map

See despair on the whole map

Questions people ask

What is the Sanskrit word for despair?

Viṣāda (विषाद). Collapse, despair, the will giving way.

Which Bhagavad Gita verse speaks about despair?

Bhagavad Gita 1.28: Arjuna said: Krishna, when I see my own people standing here, eager to fight, I am overcome with pity and sorrow.

How do the scriptures say to overcome despair?

They set self-knowledge, faith and enthusiasm against it. Enthusiasm answers despair because Lakshmana and Hanuman set the will to go on against despair inside scenes of real loss. (Valmiki, Kishkindha 1.121 GP; Sundara 12.10) Lift the self by the self so it does not sink into despair. (Gita 6.5)

Verses, translations and stories come from the Wisdom library, read with the traditional commentaries. A line marked stated in the text is a link the verse or a named commentator makes; our reading is Wisdom's own reading of the verse.