Glossary · Philosophy
Samsara
संसार
What does Samsara mean?
Samsara is the wandering of the soul through countless lives, propelled by action and attachment. Chapter 15 of the Gita compares it to an upside-down banyan tree whose roots are above and branches below — to be cut down with the axe of detachment.
Liberation from samsara is moksha. The Gita teaches that those who reach the divine do not return to rebirth, while those driven by desire continue to revolve in the cycle.