Chapter II · Śloka 62
ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंसः सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते |
सङ्गात्सञ्जायते कामः कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते ||
सङ्गात्सञ्जायते कामः कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते ||
dhyāyato viṣayān puṃsaḥ saṅgas teṣūpajāyate |
saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ kāmāt krodho'bhijāyate ||
saṅgāt sañjāyate kāmaḥ kāmāt krodho'bhijāyate ||
When a person dwells on sense objects, attachment to them arises. From attachment springs desire, and from desire arises anger.
The first half of the famous 'cascade of downfall': attention → attachment → desire → anger. What begins as innocent contemplation of an object escalates through predictable psychological steps — a precise map of how the mind loses its freedom.