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A simple, modern translation and explanation of the Bhagavad Gita with shloka (verse) meaning

~ Gita Journey is a straightforward, modern, contemporary, basic explanation and commentary of the Bhagawat Gita, with Sanskrit to English word meanings. Each shloka (verse) is explained in detail. An introduction to the Bhagavad Gita along with study resources can also be found here. A summary of each chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is also included. It does not matter whether you are a student, a retiree, a professional, a mom, a dad or a housewife – no prior knowledge is needed.

A simple, modern translation and explanation of the Bhagavad Gita with shloka (verse) meaning

Category Archives: rajas

Bhagavad Gita Verse 1, Chapter 17

21 Sunday Apr 2013

Posted by skr_2011 in 17.1, aaho, anvitaahaa, chapter 17 verse 1, kaa, krishna, nishthaa, rajas, sattvam, shaastravidhim, shraddhayaa, tamaha, teshaam, utrisrijya, yajante

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Arjuna uvaacha:
ye shaastravidhimutrisrijya yajante shraddhayaanvitaahaa |
teshaam nishthaa tu kaa krishna sattvamoho rajastamaha || 1 ||

 
Arjuna said:
Those who, setting aside laws of scripture, perform worship endowed with faith, O Krishna, what is their position? Is it of sattva, rajas or tamas?

 
ye : those who
shaastravidhim : laws of scripture
utrisrijya : setting aside
yajante : perform worship
shraddhayaa : faith
anvitaahaa : endowed with
teshaam : their
nishthaa : position
tu : then
kaa : what
krishna : O Krishna
sattvam : sattva
aaho : or
rajas : rajas
tamaha : tamas
 
In order to prevent the prompting of actions by selfish desire, we should use the scriptures as a guide to decide what to do or what not to do. This was the concluding message of the previous chapter. Hearing this, the word “shaastra” or scripture stuck in Arjuna’s mind. Perhaps he foresaw that over the course of time, most people will not have access to scriptures. They will not be able to receive the guidance of a real guru who truly cares about their spiritual growth versus extracting money from them. He wanted to know, like all of us do, how to use our judgement without access to scriptural laws.
 
Let us now investigate what category of people Arjuna is speaking about. There are those who may have access to the scriptures, may even understand the scriptures, but have no inclination of following them. Such people were covered in the last chapter under the category of devilish qualities. Conversely, there are people who understand the scriptures and also conduct their life according to scriptures. These people were covered under the category of divine qualities. This chapter covers those people who do not have access to the scriptures, but yet try to lead their lives through faith, sincerity and honesty.
 
So then, Arjuna asks this extremely practical question on behalf of common people who have faith in some higher principle. Some may be devotees of Shri Krishna, some of Lord Shiva, some of Lord Ganesha. Some may not have faith in a deity but may have faith in a spiritual text such as the Gita. Some may have not have faith in any of these but may have faith in a friend, spouse or relative who has faith in a deity or a spiritual text. Some may have faith in their nation or in a higher cause such as improving the state of the nation’s education system.
 
Regardless of what their faith is, such people would like to set themselves on a path that gains them happiness in the material world, and also enables them to pursue the supreme goal of self realization or liberation. In the absence of scripture as the authority, faith determines the course of action for such people. How can they determine whether their faith is saattvic, rajasic or tamasic? How can they ensure that their faith is leading them in the right direction?

Bhagavad Gita Verse 10, Chapter 14

15 Friday Feb 2013

Posted by skr_2011 in 14.10, abhibhooya, bhaarata, bhavati, chapter 14 verse 10, rajas, sattvam, tamas, tathaa

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rajastamaschaabhibhooya sattvam bhavati bhaarata |
rajaha sattvam tamaschaiva tamaha sattvam rajastathaa || 10 ||

 
Sattva rises, O Bhaarata, when it overpowers rajas and tamas, so does rajas overpower sattva and tamas, and also tamas overpowers sattva and rajas.
 
rajas : rajas
tamas : tamas
cha : and
abhibhooya : overpowers
sattvam : sattva
bhavati : rises
bhaarata : O Bhaarata
rajaha : rajas
sattvam : sattva
tamas : tamas
cha : and
eva : similarly
tamaha : tamas
sattvam : sattva
rajas : rajas
tathaa : similarly
 
Now that we have a basic understanding of the properties of the three gunaas, we need to go one level deeper. We know that our mind is always under the influence of the three gunaas, since it is made up of those very three gunaas. How do these three gunaas impact the mind? Do they work in parallel or do they work in sequence? Is there any one gunaa that is more powerful than the other?
 
Shri Krishna says that our mind can only be under the impact of one gunaa at a time. This happens when one gunaa assumes dominance, and consequently, asserts its authority over the others. When sattva is dominant, it dominates over rajas and tamas. Similarly, rajas dominates over the other two and tamas over the other two. All three gunaas are at war with each other in our mind. When one gunaa achieves victory, it temporarily defeats the others.
 
Having known this, we now would like to know which gunaa within us dominates more than others. This is not an easy question to answer, because we have to analyze ourselves and not anyone else. We need to look within. We need to understand what thoughts, feelings and emotions should we watch out for so that we can tie them back to a specific gunaa. If we conduct this analysis for a while, we will know which gunaa predominates. Shri Krishna expands on the topic of the marks or signs of each gunaa in the next shloka.

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