Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga
The three modes of nature: sattva, rajas, tamas. Everything that arises is some weave of these three. The yogi's task is to see them at work.
All 27 verses of this chapter on one page. Read straight through, or press play and follow each verse as it is recited.
श्री भगवानुवाच परं भूयः प्रवक्ष्यामि ज्ञानानां ज्ञानमुत्तमम् । यज्ज्ञात्वा मुनयः सर्वे परां सिद्धिमितो गताः ॥
The Blessed Lord said: I will speak again of the highest knowledge, the best of all knowledge. Knowing this, all sages have reached the supreme perfection from here.
इदं ज्ञानमुपाश्रित्य मम साधर्म्यमागताः । सर्गेऽपि नोपजायन्ते प्रलये न व्यथन्ति च ॥
Having taken refuge in this knowledge, they attain my likeness. They are not born at creation, and they are not troubled at dissolution.
मम योनिर्महद्ब्रह्म तस्मिन् गर्भं दधाम्यहम् । संभवः सर्वभूतानां ततो भवति भारत ॥
O Bharata, my primal nature is the womb; I place the seed in it. From that, all beings are born.
सर्वयोनिषु कौन्तेय मूर्तयः सम्भवन्ति याः । तासां ब्रह्म महद्योनिरहं बीजप्रदः पिता ॥
O son of Kunti, in all forms of birth, the material nature is the womb, and I am the seed-giving father.
सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसंभवाः । निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥
Arjuna, the three qualities of nature—sattva, rajas, and tamas—bind the imperishable inner being to the body.
तत्र सत्त्वं निर्मलत्वात्प्रकाशकमनामयम् । सुखसङ्गेन बध्नाति ज्ञानसङ्गेन चानघ ॥
Among those qualities, sattva—because it is pure and luminous and free from affliction—binds the embodied being through attachment to happiness and to knowledge, O sinless one.
रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम् । तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसङ्गेन देहिनम् ॥
Know rajas as passion-born, born of craving and attachment. It binds the embodied being through attachment to action, O son of Kunti.
तमस्त्वज्ञानजं विद्धि मोहनं सर्वदेहिनाम् । प्रमादालस्यनिद्राभिस्तन्निबध्नाति भारत ॥
Arjuna, know tamas to be born of ignorance and deluding all embodied beings. It binds them through heedlessness, laziness, and sleep.
सत्त्वं सुखे सञ्जयति रजः कर्मणि भारत । ज्ञानमावृत्य तु तमः प्रमादे सञ्जयत्युत ॥
Sattva binds through pleasure, rajas through action, and tamas, covering knowledge, binds through negligence.
रजस्तमश्चाभिभूय सत्त्वं भवति भारत । रजः सत्त्वं तमश्चैव तमः सत्त्वं रजस्तथा ॥
Arjuna, when rajas and tamas are subdued, sattva rises. When sattva and tamas are subdued, rajas rises. When sattva and rajas are subdued, tamas rises.
सर्वद्वारेषु देहेऽस्मिन्प्रकाश उपजायते । ज्ञानं यदा तदा विद्याद्विवृद्धं सत्त्वमित्युत ॥
When light, clarity, and understanding arise in all the gates of this body, know that sattva has grown strong.
लोभः प्रवृत्तिरारम्भः कर्मणामशमः स्पृहा । रजस्येतानि जायन्ते विवृद्धे भरतर्षभ ॥
O best of the Bharatas, when rajas grows, greed, activity, the beginning of actions, restlessness, and desire arise.
अप्रकाशोऽप्रवृत्तिश्च प्रमादो मोह एव च । तमस्येतानि जायन्ते विवृद्धे कुरुनन्दन ॥
O descendant of Kuru, when tamas grows strong, darkness, inertia, negligence, and delusion arise.
यदा सत्त्वे प्रवृद्धे तु प्रलयं याति देहभृत् । तदोत्तमविदां लोकानमलान्प्रतिपद्यते ॥
When sattva is predominant at death, the embodied being reaches the pure worlds of the wise.
रजसि प्रलयं गत्वा कर्मसङ्गिषु जायते । तथा प्रलीनस्तमसि मूढयोनिषु जायते ॥
A being who dies in rajas is born among those attached to action. A being who dies in tamas is born among deluded forms.
कर्मणः सुकृतस्याहुः सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम् । रजसस्तु फलं दुःखमज्ञानं तमसः फलम् ॥
The result of wholesome action is pure and clear; the result of rajasic action is suffering; the result of tamasic action is ignorance and delusion.
सत्त्वात्सञ्जायते ज्ञानं रजसो लोभ एव च । प्रमादमोहौ तमसो भवतोऽज्ञानमेव च ॥
From sattva comes knowledge; from rajas, greed; from tamas, negligence, delusion, and ignorance.
ऊर्ध्वं गच्छन्ति सत्त्वस्था मध्ये तिष्ठन्ति राजसाः । जघन्यगुणवृत्तिस्था अधो गच्छन्ति तामसाः ॥
Those established in sattva go upward; those in rajas remain in the middle; those in the lowest movement of tamas go downward.
नान्यं गुणेभ्यः कर्तारं यदा द्रष्टानुपश्यति । गुणेभ्यश्च परं वेत्ति मद्भावं सोऽधिगच्छति ॥
When the seer understands that no doer exists apart from the three qualities, and knows the divine nature beyond them, that seer reaches my being.
गुणानेतानतीत्य त्रीन्देही देहसमुद्भवान् । जन्ममृत्युजरादुःखैर्विमुक्तोऽमृतमश्नुते ॥
The embodied one who rises beyond these three qualities, which arise from the body, is freed from birth, death, old age, and sorrow, and attains immortality.
अर्जुन उवाच कैर्लिंगैस्त्रीन्गुणानेतानतीतो भवति प्रभो । किमाचारः कथं चैतांस्त्रीन्गुणानतिवर्तते ॥
Arjuna said: O Lord, by what signs is a person known who has gone beyond these three qualities? How does such a person behave, and how does one cross beyond the three qualities?
श्री भगवानुवाच प्रकाशं च प्रवृत्तिं च मोहमेव च पाण्डव । न द्वेष्टि सम्प्रवृत्तानि न निवृत्तानि काङ्क्षति ॥
Krishna said: O Arjuna, the one who has gone beyond the three gunas does not hate light, activity, or confusion when they appear, and does not long for them when they disappear.
उदासीनवदासीनो गुणैर्यो न विचाल्यते । गुणा वर्तन्त इत्येव योऽवतिष्ठति नेङ्गते ॥
One who remains like an indifferent witness, unmoved by the three qualities, stands firm and does not stir, knowing only that the qualities are acting among themselves.
समदुःखसुखः स्वस्थः समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः । तुल्यप्रियाप्रियो धीरस्तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः ॥
The steady one remains equal in pleasure and pain, in a clod of earth, a stone, and gold; equal toward the liked and the disliked, toward praise and blame.
मानापमानयोस्तुल्यस्तुल्यो मित्रारिपक्षयोः । सर्वारम्भपरित्यागी गुणातीतः स उच्यते ॥
The steady one is equal in honor and dishonor, equal toward friend and foe, and has abandoned all undertakings. Such a person is called beyond the three gunas.
मां च योऽव्यभिचारेण भक्तियोगेन सेवते । स गुणान्समतीत्यैतान् ब्रह्मभूयाय कल्पते ॥
Whoever serves Me with unwavering devotion transcends these qualities and becomes fit for union with the supreme reality.
ब्रह्मणो हि प्रतिष्ठाऽहममृतस्याव्ययस्य च । शाश्वतस्य च धर्मस्य सुखस्यैकान्तिकस्य च ॥
For I am the foundation of Brahman, of immortality, of the imperishable, of eternal dharma, and of unending bliss.