Chapter 14 · Verse 9

Yoga through Understanding the Three Modes of Material Nature

सत्त्वं सुखे सञ्जयति रजः कर्मणि भारत।ज्ञानमावृत्य तु तमः प्रमादे सञ्जयत्युत

sattvaṁ sukhe sañjayati rajaḥ karmaṇi bhārata jñānam āvṛitya tu tamaḥ pramāde sañjayaty uta

Word Meanings

sattvam — mode of goodness; sukhe — to happiness; sañjayati — binds; rajaḥ — mode of passion; karmaṇi — toward actions; bhārata — Arjun, the son of Bharat; jñānam — wisdom; āvṛitya — clouds; tu — but; tamaḥ — mode of ignorance; pramāde — to delusion; sañjayati — binds; uta — indeed

Language:

Translation

Goodness binds one to happiness, passion to action, O Arjuna; but ignorance, veiling wisdom, binds one to heedlessness.

Commentary

सत्त्वम् purity? सुखे to happiness? सञ्जयति attaches? रजः active force? कर्मणि to action? भारत O Bharata? ज्ञानम् knowledge? आवृत्य shrouding? तु verily? तमः inertia? प्रमादे to heedlessness? सञ्जयति attaches? उत but.Commentary Just as a dark cloud enshrouds the sun? so also Tamas envelops knowledge or the light of the Self. Tamas creates an attachment for heedlessness? that is? ignorance or forgetfulness of duty or the nonperformance of necessary (obligatory) duties.