A declaration · reflective in mood · a little context helps
“False vision turns strength into destruction.”
Holding this view, deluded people with ruined discernment and fierce actions arise only to destroy the world.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallythis · view · holding · those whose inner being is lost · those of little discernment · arise · fierce in action · for destruction · of the world · harmful ones
People who deny their true nature and cling to a false view become small-minded and destructive. Their energy turns toward harming the world instead of serving it.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga" (The Divine and Demoniac Natures).
Verse 9 sits in Chapter 16 of the Bhagavad Gita — Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga, "The Divine and Demoniac Natures". The chapter has 24 verses in total.
A person who keeps feeding cynicism, contempt, and denial of responsibility may start with words, then wreck a family, a team, or a community without noticing the damage.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts attention from judging bad behavior alone to seeing the false belief that generates it.
What this verse means
People who deny their true nature and cling to a false view become small-minded and destructive. Their energy turns toward harming the world instead of serving it.
Context & commentary
Krishna is still answering Arjuna on the battlefield at Kurukshetra, where the moral stakes are absolute. After describing the asuric mindset, he shows its outcome: once people lose sight of their true nature, their intelligence shrinks and their force becomes destructive.
Why this verse still matters
A person who keeps feeding cynicism, contempt, and denial of responsibility may start with words, then wreck a family, a team, or a community without noticing the damage.
“A false view does not stay private; it eventually shapes harmful action.”