From anger comes delusion; from delusion loss of memory; from loss of memory the destruction of discrimination; from the destruction of discrimination he perishes.
In simple words
Krishna continues the chain: "Anger clouds your judgment. Clouded judgment makes you forget the lessons you've learned. When those lessons are gone, you lose the ability to tell right from wrong. And once that is gone — you are completely lost."
Word-by-word meanings
क्रोधात्from angerभवतिcomesसंमोहःdelusionसंमोहात्from delusionस्मृतिविभ्रमःloss of memoryस्मृतिभ्रंशात्from loss of memoryबुद्धिनाशःthe destruction of discriminatioबुद्धिनाशात्from the,destruction of discriminationप्रणश्यति(he) perishes
Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.
Swami Sivananda
2.63 क्रोधात् from anger? भवति comes? संमोहः delusion? संमोहात् from delusion? स्मृतिविभ्रमः loss of memory? स्मृतिभ्रंशात् from loss of memory? बुद्धिनाशः the destruction of discriminatio? बुद्धिनाशात् from the,destruction of discrimination? प्रणश्यति (he) perishes.Commentary From anger arises delusion. When a man becomes angry he loses his power of discrimination between right and wrong. He will speak and do anything he likes. He will be swept away by the impulse of passion and emotion and will act irrationally.
Swami Chinmayananda
This interpretation draws on a specific tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.
# BG 2.63 Commentary
In the five beautiful verses that follow this one, Sri Krishna explains, according to Hindu psychology, the cause of humanity's fall from the state of divinity. His sole purpose is to help the mighty-armed Arjun understand the importance of mastering the senses from all directions. According to Hindu scriptures, the person who maintains sovereignty over the senses is called sthita-prajña—one of steady wisdom.
This passage also presents an outline of the spiritual character of all seekers who, after prolonged practice, shatter themselves upon the rocks of failure and despair. The fall of a true seeker of Vedanta is impossible. There are countless examples of unsuccessful seekers, and the sole cause of their failure is becoming prey to sensory objects. It has also been observed that once they fall, they cannot recover. For them, fall means complete destruction. This is a beautiful description of the ladder of descent. The reason this ladder of self-destruction is described so elaborately is so that seekers like us may understand how we can regain our complete divine nature.
Just as a great tree grows from a tiny seed, so too the seed of our destruction is false thinking and illusory imagination. Thought possesses creative power—it can build us or destroy us. Construction and destruction depend upon the proper or improper use of that power. When a person continuously contemplates a sensory object, believing it to be beautiful and a source of happiness, attachment to that object arises. As this attachment grows stronger, it takes the form of intense desire or craving, without fulfilling which a person cannot rest in peace. If an obstacle appears in the path of fulfilling this desire, the reaction toward that obstacle is called anger.
The result of anger is that a person begins to see in things or qualities what is not actually there—this is called delusion. Delusion means lack of discrimination. Delusion is the cause of the destruction of memory. In the grip of anger, a person can forget all relationships and behave as he wishes. Sri Shankaracharya writes that in the grip of anger, a person forgets the debt owed to his revered teacher and parents and even disrespects them.
Thus, beginning with false thoughts and progressing through attachment, desire, anger, delusion, and the destruction of memory—when a person has fallen this far, the next step is the destruction of intellect. The intellect possesses the capacity for discrimination by which we can judge between good and evil, dharma and adharma. Even while performing forbidden actions, the intellect attempts to turn us away from them. If this intellect itself is destroyed, then the humanity of that person is destroyed. After the destruction of intellect, a person behaves worse than an animal, and thereafter can neither understand nor attain the highest and noblest purpose of human life. Here, the destruction of humanity means that having lost recognition of one's pure nature, that person becomes unfit to attain moksha—the supreme goal of human existence.
The contemplation of sensory objects is described here as the cause of all misfortunes. Now the means to attain liberation shall be explained.