Bhagvad Gita - Chapter: 14 Guna Traya Vibhaga Yogah

अप्रकाशोऽप्रवृत्तिश्च प्रमादो मोह एव च |
तमस्येतानि जायन्ते विवृद्धे कुरुनन्दन ||13||

Darkness, inactivity, heedlessness, and delusion—these arise when tamas is predominant, O descendant of the Kurus.

Aprakasha: Absence of light or knowledge.
Mohah: Delusion or confusion.
Kuru Nandana: Descendant of the Kuru dynasty, referring to Arjuna.

Tamas is further elaborated as a state of darkness, leading to confusion and stagnation. Krishna contrasts this with the clarity of sattva and dynamism of rajas, urging vigilance against tamas’s deluding influence.

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Guna Traya Vibhaga Yogah - If the embodied one meets death when sattva is predominant, then he attains to the spotless worlds of the knowers of the Highest.

यदा सत्त्वे प्रवृद्धे तु प्रलयं याति देहभृत् |
तदोत्तमविदां लोकानमलान्प्रतिपद्यते ||14||

If the embodied one meets death when sattva is predominant, then he attains to the spotless worlds of the knowers of the Highest.

Sattve: In the state of purity.
Amalan: Spotless or pure.
Pratipadyate: Attains or reaches.

Krishna describes the consequences of death under the influence of sattva, offering Arjuna a vision of the pure and enlightened realms that await those who cultivate sattva’s qualities during their lifetime.

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रजसि प्रलयं गत्वा कर्मसङ्गिषु जायते |
तथा प्रलीनस्तमसि मूढयोनिषु जायते ||15||

Meeting death in rajas, he is born among those attached to action; dying in tamas, he is born in the wombs of the deluded.

Rajas: State of activity and passion.
Tamas: State of ignorance and inertia.
Mudhayonisu: Born in deluded wombs.

Krishna outlines the contrasting outcomes of death in rajas and tamas. The former ties souls to action-driven births, while the latter leads to ignorance-filled existences, emphasizing the importance of transcending these gunas.

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कर्मण: सुकृतस्याहु: सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम् |
रजसस्तु फलं दु:खमज्ञानं तमस: फलम् ||16||

The result of virtuous action is said to be pure and sattvic; that of rajas is pain, and ignorance is the result of tamas.

Sukritasya: Of virtuous deeds.
Nirmalam: Pure or stainless.
Phalam: The result or fruit of actions.

The fruits of actions are tied to the prevailing guna—sattva yields purity, rajas results in pain, and tamas fosters ignorance. Krishna encourages Arjuna to strive for sattvic actions to achieve clarity and liberation.

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सत्त्वात्सञ्जायते ज्ञानं रजसो लोभ एव च |
प्रमादमोहौ तमसो भवतोऽज्ञानमेव च ||17||

From sattva arises knowledge; from rajas arises greed; from tamas arise heedlessness, delusion, and ignorance.

Sanajayate: Arises or is born.
Greed: Excessive desire for wealth or possessions.
Ajnanam: Ignorance or lack of knowledge.

The gunas influence human inclinations—sattva brings knowledge, rajas fuels desire, and tamas clouds the mind. Krishna illustrates how these qualities define one’s thoughts, behavior, and spiritual orientation.

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Guna Traya Vibhaga Yogah - Those established in sattva go upwards; the rajas-dominated remain in the middle; and the tamas-dominated, steeped in qualities of ignorance, go downwards.

ऊर्ध्वं गच्छन्ति सत्त्वस्था मध्ये तिष्ठन्ति राजसा: |
जघन्यगुणवृत्तिस्था अधो गच्छन्ति तामसा: ||18||

Those established in sattva go upwards; the rajas-dominated remain in the middle; and the tamas-dominated, steeped in qualities of ignorance, go downwards.

Urdhvam: Upwards or ascending.
Rajasa: The state dominated by rajas guna.
Tamasah: The state dominated by tamas guna.

Sattva leads the soul upwards toward higher realms, rajas keeps it bound to material pursuits, and tamas drags it downward into ignorance. Krishna emphasizes striving for transcendence over these fluctuating states.

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नान्यं गुणेभ्य: कर्तारं यदा द्रष्टानुपश्यति |
गुणेभ्यश्च परं वेत्ति मद्भावं सोऽधिगच्छति ||19||

When the seer perceives no doer other than the gunas and knows the Supreme beyond the gunas, he attains My nature.

Drashta: The seer or observer.
Gunebhyah: Beyond the three qualities.
Madhavam: Related to the divine nature.

Krishna encourages Arjuna to recognize the gunas as the doers, freeing oneself from their influence. Understanding this distinction is a step toward attaining the supreme state of liberation.

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