Bhagavad-Gita As It Is
Page 96
mukta-saṅgo ’nahaṁ-vādī
dhṛty-utsāha-samanvitaḥ
siddhy-asiddhyor nirvikāraḥ
kartā sāttvika ucyate
mukta-saṅgaḥ – liberated from all material association; anaham-vādī – without false ego; dhṛti – with determination; utsāha – and great enthusiasm; samanvitaḥ – qualified; siddhi – in perfection; asiddhyoḥ – and failure; nirvikāraḥ – without change; kartā – worker; sāttvikaḥ – in the mode of goodness; ucyate – is said to be.
TRANSLATION
One who performs his duty without association with the modes of material nature, without false ego, with great determination and enthusiasm, and without wavering in success or failure is said to be a worker in the mode of goodness.
PURPORT
A person in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is always transcendental to the material modes of nature. He has no expectations for the result of the work entrusted to him, because he is above false ego and pride. Still, he is always enthusiastic till the completion of such work. He does not worry about the distress undertaken; he is always enthusiastic. He does not care for success or failure; he is equal in both distress and happiness. Such a worker is situated in the mode of goodness.
TEXT 27
रागी कर्मफलप्रेप्सुर्लुब्धो हिंसात्मकोऽशुचिः ।
हर्षशोकान्वितः कर्ता राजसः परिकीर्तितः ।। 27 ।।
rāgī karma-phala-prepsur
lubdho hiṁsātmako ’śuciḥ
harṣa-śokānvitaḥ kartā
rājasaḥ parikīrtitaḥ
rāgī – very much attached; karma-phala – the fruit of the work; prepsuḥ – desiring; lubdhaḥ – greedy; hiṁsā-ātmakaḥ – always envious; aśuciḥ – unclean; harṣa-śoka-anvitaḥ – subject to joy and sorrow; kartā – such a worker; rājasaḥ – in the mode of passion; parikīrtitaḥ – is declared.
TRANSLATION
The worker who is attached to work and the fruits of work, desiring to enjoy those fruits, and who is greedy, always envious, impure, and moved by joy and sorrow, is said to be in the mode of passion.
PURPORT
A person is too much attached to a certain kind of work or to the result because he has too much attachment for materialism or hearth and home, wife and children. Such a person has no desire for higher elevation in life. He is simply concerned with making this world as materially comfortable as possible. He is generally very greedy, and he thinks that anything attained by him is permanent and never to be lost. Such a person is envious of others and prepared to do anything wrong for sense gratification. Therefore such a person is unclean, and he does not care whether his earning is pure or impure. He is very happy if his work is successful and very much distressed when his work is not successful. Such is the worker in the mode of passion.
TEXT 28
अयुक्तः प्राकृतः स्तब्धः शठो नैष्कृतिकोऽलसः ।
विषादी दीर्घसूत्री च कर्ता तामस उच्यते ।। 28 ।।
ayuktaḥ prākṛtaḥ stabdhaḥ
śaṭho naiṣkṛtiko ’lasaḥ
viṣādī dīrgha-sūtrī ca
kartā tāmasa ucyate
ayuktaḥ – not referring to the scriptural injunctions; prākṛtaḥ – materialistic; stabdhaḥ – obstinate; śaṭhaḥ – deceitful; naiṣkṛtikaḥ – expert in insulting others; alasaḥ – lazy; viṣādī – morose; dīrgha-sūtrī – procrastinating; ca – also; kartā – worker; tāmasaḥ – in the mode of ignorance; ucyate – is said to be.
TRANSLATION
The worker who is always engaged in work against the injunctions of the scripture, who is materialistic, obstinate, cheating and expert in insulting others, and who is lazy, always morose and procrastinating is said to be a worker in the mode of ignorance.
PURPORT
In the scriptural injunctions we find what sort of work should be performed and what sort of work should not be performed. Those who do not care for those injunctions engage in work not to be done, and such persons are generally materialistic. They work according to the modes of nature, not according to the injunctions of the scripture. Such workers are not very gentle, and generally they are always cunning and expert in insulting others. They are very lazy; even though they have some duty, they do not do it properly, and they put it aside to be done later on. Therefore they appear to be morose. They procrastinate; anything which can be done in an hour they drag on for years. Such workers are situated in the mode of ignorance.
TEXT 29
बुद्धेर्भेदं धृतेश्चैव गुणतस्त्रिविधं श्रृणु ।
प्रोच्यमानमशेषेण पृथक्त्वेन धनञ्जय ।। 29 ।।
buddher bhedaṁ dhṛteś caiva
guṇatas tri-vidhaṁ śṛṇu
procyamānam aśeṣeṇa
pṛthaktvena dhanañ-jaya
buddheḥ – of intelligence; bhedam – the differences; dhṛteḥ – of steadiness; ca – also; eva – certainly; guṇataḥ – by the modes of material nature; tri-vidham – of three kinds; śṛṇu – just hear; procyamānam – as described by Me; aśeṣeṇa – in detail; pṛthaktvena – differently; dhanam-jaya – O winner of wealth.
TRANSLATION
O winner of wealth, now please listen as I tell you in detail of the different kinds of understanding and determination, according to the three modes of material nature.
PURPORT
Now after explaining knowledge, the object of knowledge, and the knower, in three different divisions according to the modes of material nature, the Lord is explaining the intelligence and determination of the worker in the same way.
TEXT 30
प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च कार्याकार्ये भयाभये ।
बन्धं मोक्षं च या वेत्ति बुद्धिः सा पार्थ सात्त्विकी ।। 30 ।।
pravṛttiṁ ca nivṛttiṁ ca
kāryākārye bhayābhaye
bandhaṁ mokṣaṁ ca yā vetti
buddhiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī
pravṛttim – doing; ca – also; nivṛttim – not doing; ca – and; kārya – what ought to be done; akārye – and what ought not to be done; bhaya – fear; abhaye – and fearlessness; bandham – bondage; mokṣam – liberation; ca – and; yā – that which; vetti – knows; buddhiḥ – understanding; sā – that; pārtha – O son of Pṛthā; sāttvikī – in the mode of goodness.
TRANSLATION
O son of Pṛthā, that understanding by which one knows what ought to be done and what ought not to be done, what is to be feared and what is not to be feared, what is binding and what is liberating, is in the mode of goodness.
PURPORT
Performing actions in terms of the directions of the scriptures is called pravṛtti, or executing actions that deserve to be performed. And actions which are not so directed are not to be performed. One who does not know the scriptural directions becomes entangled in the actions and reactions of work. Understanding which discriminates by intelligence is situated in the mode of goodness.
TEXT 31
यया धर्ममधर्मं च कार्यं चाकार्यमेव च ।
अयथावत्प्रजानाति बुद्धिः सा पार्थ राजसी ।। 31 ।।
yayā dharmam adharmaṁ ca
kāryaṁ cākāryam eva ca
ayathāvat prajānāti
buddhiḥ sā pārtha rājasī
yayā – by which; dharmam – the principles of rel
igion; adharmam – irreligion; ca – and; kāryam – what ought to be done; ca – also; akāryam – what ought not to be done; eva – certainly; ca – also; ayathā-vat – imperfectly; prajānāti – knows; buddhiḥ – intelligence; sā – that; pārtha – O son of Pṛthā; rājasī – in the mode of passion.
TRANSLATION
O son of Pṛthā, that understanding which cannot distinguish between religion and irreligion, between action that should be done and action that should not be done, is in the mode of passion.
TEXT 32
अधर्मं धर्ममिति या मन्यते तमसावृता ।
सर्वार्थान्विपरीतांश्च बुद्धिः सा पार्थ तामसी ।। 32 ।।
adharmaṁ dharmam iti yā
manyate tamasāvṛtā
sarvārthān viparītāṁś ca
buddhiḥ sā pārtha tāmasī
adharmam – irreligion; dharmam – religion; iti – thus; yā – which; manyate – thinks; tamasā – by illusion; āvṛtā – covered; sarva-arthān – all things; viparītān – in the wrong direction; ca – also; buddhiḥ – intelligence; sā – that; pārtha – O son of Pṛthā; tāmasī – in the mode of ignorance.
TRANSLATION
That understanding which considers irreligion to be religion and religion to be irreligion, under the spell of illusion and darkness, and strives always in the wrong direction, O Pārtha, is in the mode of ignorance.
PURPORT
Intelligence in the mode of ignorance is always working the opposite of the way it should. It accepts religions which are not actually religions and rejects actual religion. Men in ignorance understand a great soul to be a common man and accept a common man as a great soul. They think truth to be untruth and accept untruth as truth. In all activities they simply take the wrong path; therefore their intelligence is in the mode of ignorance.
TEXT 33
धृत्या यया धारयते मनःप्राणेन्द्रियक्रियाः ।
योगेनाव्यभिचारिण्या धृतिः सा पार्थ सात्त्विकी ।। 33 ।।
dhṛtyā yayā dhārayate
manaḥ-prāṇendriya-kriyāḥ
yogenāvyabhicāriṇyā
dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī
dhṛtyā – determination; yayā – by which; dhārayate – one sustains; manaḥ – of the mind; prāṇa – life; indriya – and senses; kriyāḥ – the activities; yogena – by yoga practice; avyabhicāriṇyā – without any break; dhṛtiḥ – determination; sā – that; pārtha – O son of Pṛthā; sāttvikī – in the mode of goodness.
TRANSLATION
O son of Pṛthā, that determination which is unbreakable, which is sustained with steadfastness by yoga practice, and which thus controls the activities of the mind, life and senses is determination in the mode of goodness.
PURPORT
Yoga is a means to understand the Supreme Soul. One who is steadily fixed in the Supreme Soul with determination, concentrating one’s mind, life and sensory activities on the Supreme, engages in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That sort of determination is in the mode of goodness. The word avyabhicāriṇyā is very significant, for it indicates that persons who are engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness are never deviated by any other activity.
TEXT 34
यया तु धर्मकामार्थान्धृत्या धारयतेऽर्जुन ।
प्रसङ्गेन फलाकाङ्क्षि धृतिः सा पार्थ राजसी ।। 34 ।।
yayā tu dharma-kāmārthān
dhṛtyā dhārayate ’rjuna
prasaṅgena phalākāṅkṣī
dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha rājasī
yayā – by which; tu – but; dharma – religiosity; kāma – sense gratification; arthān – and economic development; dhṛtyā – by determination; dhārayate – one sustains; arjuna – O Arjuna; prasaṅgena – because of attachment; phala-ākāṅkṣī – desiring fruitive results; dhṛtiḥ – determination; sā – that; pārtha – O son of Pṛthā; rājasī – in the mode of passion.
TRANSLATION
But that determination by which one holds fast to fruitive results in religion, economic development and sense gratification is of the nature of passion, O Arjuna.
PURPORT
Any person who is always desirous of fruitive results in religious or economic activities, whose only desire is sense gratification, and whose mind, life and senses are thus engaged is in the mode of passion.
TEXT 35
यया स्वप्नं भयं शोकं विषादं मदमेव च ।
न विमुञ्चति दुर्मेधा धृतिः सा पार्थ तामसी ।। 35 ।।
yayā svapnaṁ bhayaṁ śokaṁ
viṣādaṁ madam eva ca
na vimuñcati durmedhā
dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha tāmasī
yayā – by which; svapnam – dreaming; bhayam – fearfulness; śokam – lamentation; viṣādam – moroseness; madam – illusion; eva – certainly; ca – also; na – never; vimuñcati – one gives up; durmedhā – unintelligent; dhṛtiḥ – determination; sā – that; pārtha – O son of Pṛthā; tāmasī – in the mode of ignorance.
TRANSLATION
And that determination which cannot go beyond dreaming, fearfulness, lamentation, moroseness and illusion – such unintelligent determination, O son of Pṛthā, is in the mode of darkness.
PURPORT
It should not be concluded that a person in the mode of goodness does not dream. Here “dream” means too much sleep. Dreaming is always present; either in the mode of goodness, passion or ignorance, dreaming is a natural occurrence. But those who cannot avoid oversleeping, who cannot avoid the pride of enjoying material objects, who are always dreaming of lording it over the material world, and whose life, mind and senses are thus engaged, are considered to have determination in the mode of ignorance.
TEXT 36
सुखं त्विदानीं त्रिविधं श्रृणु मे भरतर्षभ ।
अभ्यासाद्रमते यत्र दुःखान्तं च निगच्छति ।। 36 ।।
sukhaṁ tv idānīṁ tri-vidhaṁ
śṛṇu me bharatarṣabha
abhyāsād ramate yatra
duḥkhāntaṁ ca nigacchati
sukham – happiness; tu – but; idānīm – now; tri-vidham – of three kinds; śṛṇu – hear; me – from Me; bharata-ṛṣabha – O best amongst the Bhāratas; abhyāsāt – by practice; ramate – one enjoys; yatra – where; duḥkha – of distress; antam – the end; ca – also; nigacchati – gains.
TRANSLATION
O best of the Bhāratas, now please hear from Me about the three kinds of happiness by which the conditioned soul enjoys, and by which he sometimes comes to the end of all distress.
PURPORT
A conditioned soul tries to enjoy material happiness again and again. Thus he chews the chewed. But sometimes, in the course of such enjoyment, he becomes relieved from material entanglement by association with a great soul. In other words, a conditioned soul is always engaged in some type of sense gratification, but when he understands by good association that it is only a repetition of the same thing, and he is awakened to his real Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he is sometimes relieved from such repetitive so-called happiness.
TEXT 37
यत्तदग्रे विषमिव परिणामेऽमृतोपमम् ।
तत्सुखं सात्त्विकं प्रोक्तमात्मबुद्धिप्रसादजम् ।। 37 ।।
yat tad agre viṣam
iva
pariṇāme ’mṛtopamam
tat sukhaṁ sāttvikaṁ proktam
ātma-buddhi-prasāda-jam
yat – which; tat – that; agre – in the beginning; viṣam iva – like poison; pariṇāme – at the end; amṛta – nectar; upamam – compared to; tat – that; sukham – happiness; sāttvikam – in the mode of goodness; proktam – is said; ātma – in the self; buddhi – of intelligence; prasāda-jam – born of the satisfaction.
TRANSLATION
That which in the beginning may be just like poison but at the end is just like nectar and which awakens one to self-realization is said to be happiness in the mode of goodness.
PURPORT
In the pursuit of self-realization, one has to follow many rules and regulations to control the mind and the senses and to concentrate the mind on the self. All these procedures are very difficult, bitter like poison, but if one is successful in following the regulations and comes to the transcendental position, he begins to drink real nectar, and he enjoys life.
TEXT 38
विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगाघत्तदग्रेऽमृतोपमम् ।
परिणामे विषमिव तत्सुखं राजसं स्मृतम् ।। 38 ।।
viṣayendriya-saṁyogād
yat tad agre ’mṛtopamam
pariṇāme viṣam iva
tat sukhaṁ rājasaṁ smṛtam
viṣaya – of the objects of the senses; indriya – and the senses; saṁyogāt – from the combination; yat – which; tat – that; agre – in the beginning; amṛta-upamam – just like nectar; pariṇāme – at the end; viṣam iva – like poison; tat – that; sukham – happiness; rājasam – in the mode of passion; smṛtam – is considered.
TRANSLATION
That happiness which is derived from contact of the senses with their objects and which appears like nectar at first but poison at the end is said to be of the nature of passion.
PURPORT
A young man and a young woman meet, and the senses drive the young man to see her, to touch her and to have sexual intercourse. In the beginning this may be very pleasing to the senses, but at the end, or after some time, it becomes just like poison. They are separated or there is divorce, there is lamentation, there is sorrow, etc. Such happiness is always in the mode of passion. Happiness derived from a combination of the senses and the sense objects is always a cause of distress and should be avoided by all means.