Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 17: Śraddhātraya Vibhāga Yoga
Twenty-eight verses. Arjuna’s question about those who worship with faith without knowing scripture, the three kinds of faith, of food, of sacrifice, of austerity and of giving, and ‘Om Tat Sat’, which hallows all action, are here.
Tap any verse card to open its page with the word-by-word meaning. Pages are ready for every verse of this chapter.
ye śāstravidhimutsṛjya yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ|
teṣāṃ niṣṭhā tu kā kṛṣṇa sattvamāho rajastamaḥ || 1 ||Meaning of verse 17.1 →2śrībhagavānuvāca
trividhā bhavati śraddhā dehināṃ sā svabhāvajā|
sāttvikī rājasī caiva tāmasī ceti tāṃ śṛṇu || 2 ||Meaning of verse 17.2 →3sattvānurūpā sarvasya śraddhā bhavati bhārata|
śraddhāmayo’yaṃ puruṣo yo yacchraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ || 3 ||Meaning of verse 17.3 →4yajante sāttvikā devānyakṣarakṣāṃsi rājasāḥ|
pretānbhūtagaṇāṃścānye yajante tāmasā janāḥ || 4 ||Meaning of verse 17.4 →5aśāstravihitaṃ ghoraṃ tapyante ye tapo janāḥ|
dambhāhaṅkārasaṃyuktāḥ kāmarāgabalānvitāḥ || 5 ||Meaning of verse 17.5 →6karṣayantaḥ śarīrasthaṃ bhūtagrāmamacetasaḥ|
māṃ caivāntaḥśarīrasthaṃ tānviddhyāsuraniścayān || 6 ||Meaning of verse 17.6 →7āhārastvapi sarvasya trividho bhavati priyaḥ|
yajñastapastathā dānaṃ teṣāṃ bhedamimaṃ śṛṇu || 7 ||Meaning of verse 17.7 →8āyuḥsattvabalārogyasukhaprītivivardhanāḥ|
rasyāḥ snigdhāḥ sthirā hṛdyā āhārāḥ sāttvikapriyāḥ || 8 ||Meaning of verse 17.8 →9kaṭvamlalavaṇātyuṣṇatīkṣṇarūkṣavidāhinaḥ|
āhārā rājasasyeṣṭā duḥkhaśokāmayapradāḥ || 9 ||Meaning of verse 17.9 →10yātayāmaṃ gatarasaṃ pūti paryuṣitaṃ ca yat|
ucchiṣṭamapi cāmedhyaṃ bhojanaṃ tāmasapriyam || 10 ||Meaning of verse 17.10 →11aphalākāṅkṣibhiryajño vidhidṛṣṭo ya ijyate|
yaṣṭavyameveti manaḥ samādhāya sa sāttvikaḥ || 11 ||Meaning of verse 17.11 →12abhisandhāya tu phalaṃ dambhārthamapi caiva yat|
ijyate bharataśreṣṭha taṃ yajñaṃ viddhi rājasam || 12 ||Meaning of verse 17.12 →13vidhihīnamasṛṣṭānnaṃ mantrahīnamadakṣiṇam|
śraddhāvirahitaṃ yajñaṃ tāmasaṃ paricakṣate || 13 ||Meaning of verse 17.13 →14devadvijaguruprājñapūjanaṃ śaucamārjavam|
brahmacaryamahiṃsā ca śārīraṃ tapa ucyate || 14 ||Meaning of verse 17.14 →15anudvegakaraṃ vākyaṃ satyaṃ priyahitaṃ ca yat|
svādhyāyābhyasanaṃ caiva vāṅmayaṃ tapa ucyate || 15 ||Meaning of verse 17.15 →16manaḥprasādaḥ saumyatvaṃ maunamātmavinigrahaḥ|
bhāvasaṃśuddhirityetattapo mānasamucyate || 16 ||Meaning of verse 17.16 →17śraddhayā parayā taptaṃ tapastattrividhaṃ naraiḥ|
aphalākāṅkṣibhiryuktaiḥ sāttvikaṃ paricakṣate || 17 ||Meaning of verse 17.17 →18satkāramānapūjārthaṃ tapo dambhena caiva yat|
kriyate tadiha proktaṃ rājasaṃ calamadhruvam || 18 ||Meaning of verse 17.18 →19mūḍhagrāheṇātmano yatpīḍayā kriyate tapaḥ|
parasyotsādanārthaṃ vā tattāmasamudāhṛtam || 19 ||Meaning of verse 17.19 →20dātavyamiti yaddānaṃ dīyate’nupakāriṇe|
deśe kāle ca pātre ca taddānaṃ sāttvikaṃ smṛtam || 20 ||Meaning of verse 17.20 →21yattu pratyupakārārthaṃ phalamuddiśya vā punaḥ|
dīyate ca parikliṣṭaṃ taddānaṃ rājasaṃ smṛtam || 21 ||Meaning of verse 17.21 →22adeśakāle yaddānamapātrebhyaśca dīyate|
asatkṛtamavajñātaṃ tattāmasamudāhṛtam || 22 ||Meaning of verse 17.22 →23oṃ tatsaditi nirdeśo brahmaṇastrividhaḥ smṛtaḥ|
brāhmaṇāstena vedāśca yajñāśca vihitāḥ purā || 23 ||Meaning of verse 17.23 →24tasmādomityudāhṛtya yajñadānatapaḥkriyāḥ|
pravartante vidhānoktāḥ satataṃ brahmavādinām || 24 ||Meaning of verse 17.24 →25tadityanabhisandhāya phalaṃ yajñatapaḥkriyāḥ|
dānakriyāśca vividhāḥ kriyante mokṣakāṅkṣibhiḥ || 25 ||Meaning of verse 17.25 →26sadbhāve sādhubhāve ca sadityetatprayujyate|
praśaste karmaṇi tathā sacchabdaḥ pārtha yujyate || 26 ||Meaning of verse 17.26 →27yajñe tapasi dāne ca sthitiḥ saditi cocyate|
karma caiva tadarthīyaṃ sadityevābhidhīyate || 27 ||Meaning of verse 17.27 →28aśraddhayā hutaṃ dattaṃ tapastaptaṃ kṛtaṃ ca yat|
asadityucyate pārtha na ca tatpretya no iha || 28 ||Meaning of verse 17.28 →
oṃ tatsaditi śrīmadbhagavadgītāsūpaniṣatsu brahmavidyāyāṃ yogaśāstre śrīkṛṣṇārjunasaṃvāde śraddhātrayavibhāgayogo nāma saptadaśo’dhyāyaḥ ||
About Śraddhātraya Vibhāga Yoga
The previous chapter ended with ‘scripture is the authority’. From that Arjuna’s question arises: what is the standing of those who, not knowing the injunctions of scripture, worship with faith by watching their elders? Krishna’s answer is ‘shraddhamayo ’yam purushah’: a person is formed of faith, and as one’s faith is, so is one.
Faith cannot be seen, but its fruits can. So the chapter sets up four mirrors: the food we like, the sacrifice we perform, our austerity and our giving. Each has three kinds, sattvic, rajasic and tamasic. At the end the three names of Brahman, ‘Om Tat Sat’, make even imperfect actions complete, while action without faith becomes ‘asat’.
How the chapter moves
- Verses 1 to 6: Arjuna’s question, the three kinds of faith, and a warning against terrible austerities not taught by scripture.
- Verses 7 to 10: The three kinds of food.
- Verses 11 to 13: The three kinds of sacrifice.
- Verses 14 to 19: Austerity of body, speech and mind, and the three kinds of austerity.
- Verses 20 to 22: The three kinds of giving.
- Verses 23 to 28: Om Tat Sat, and action without faith as asat.
Faith and Om Tat Sat: the acharyas’ views
Shankara identifies those in Arjuna’s question not as rejecters of scripture but as those who follow their elders without knowing it, and says ‘Om Tat Sat’ completes even deficient action. Ramanuja calls faith an eagerness born of the confidence that ‘this will give what I desire’, and sees sattvic action as worship of the Lord. Madhva cites the Rigveda Khila to show that ‘Om Tat Sat’ are names of the supreme Brahman. Sridhara Swami gives examples of foods, and says that small services such as sweeping the courtyard and drawing rangoli are also ‘Sat’.
These pages do not decide between the readings. Wherever the acharyas part, each position is recorded in its own terms.
About these pages
The text is that of the Gita Press edition. In 17.23, following the Gita Press text, the verse begins with ‘Om’. Verses 17.5 and 17.6 form a single sentence, and their meaning is given that way.
The ‘For life today’ box of the food verses carries general information about salt and blood pressure, very hot drinks, the safety of leftovers, and cautions about fasting. Those with diabetes, those who are pregnant or those with other illnesses should seek a doctor’s advice about fasting and changes in diet.
Sources: several.
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