The Yoga of the Threefold Faith (Gita 17)

Arjuna said:

1. What then, O Krishna, is the state of those who abandon the rule of Sastra and still remain in faith? Is it Sattva, Rajas or Tamas?

The Lord said:

2. Triple is the faith of men, inherent in their nature, Sattva (pure), Rajas (passionate) or Tamas (dark). Hear about them.

3. Every man's faith is in accordance with his innate character; man is made of faith; whatever may be the object of his faith, still it is he.

4. Sattvic (pure) people worship gods; the Rajas, yakshas and rakshasas; and the others, the Tamas, worship ghosts and spirits.

5. Those men who, linked to pretension and arrogance, possessed by the violence of lust and passion, practice cruel austerities not commanded by Sastra;

6. They, while they torture the various elements that make up their bodies, also torture Me, the I dwelling in them; know them for being of impious purposes.

7. As I explained to you before, the food that each one appreciates is of three types; so are sacrifice, austerity and charity. Hear how they differ.

8. Those foods that add years to life, that give vitality, strength, health, happiness and appetite; which are tasty, rich, substantial and pleasant, are loved by the Sattvic.

9. Those foods that are bitter, sour, salty, pungent, spicy, dry, burning and that cause pain, bitterness and illness, are highly appreciated by the rajas.

10. Food that has become cold, tasteless, putrid, rancid, discarded and unfit for sacrifice, is prized by the Tamas.

11. That sacrifice is Sattvic when it is offered voluntarily as a duty, without desire for its fruits and in accordance with the rule.

12. But when the sacrifice is offered with fruit in mind and for display, you must know, O Bharatashreshtha, that it is Rajas.

13. The sacrifice that is contrary to the rule, that produces no food, that lacks the sacred text (mantras), faith and offerings, is said to be Tamas.

14. Pay homage to the gods, the Brahmins, the gurus and the wise men; Purity, righteousness, Brahmacharya and Nonviolence (Ahimsa) constitute the austerity (tapas) of the body.

15. Those words that do no harm, that are truly loving and gentle, and spiritual study (of the Vedas), constitute austerity of speech.

Etc.

Thus concludes the seventeenth chapter, entitled Shraddha Traya Vibhaga Yoga.

Chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gita (Gandhi): The Yoga of the Threefold Faith

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Chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gita (versified)

Supreme Person, Liberation through Renunciation, Unity in diversity

• 1- Arjuna’s Despondency
• 2- Sankhya (Jnana) Yoga
• 3- The Yoga of Action
• 4- The Yoga of Knowledge
  • Jnana and Vedanta
• 5- The Yoga of Renunciation of action
• 6- The Yoga of Meditation
• 7- The Yoga of Knowledge of Brahman
• 8- The Yoga of Parabrahman
• 9- The Yoga of Royal Knowledge
• 10- The Yoga of Divine Glories
• 11- The Yoga of the Universal Form
• 12- The Yoga of Devotion
• 13- The Yoga of the Field
  • Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga
• 14- The Yoga of the Three Gunas
  • Gunas
• 15- The Yoga of the Supreme Person
• 16- The Yoga of Divine Inheritance
  • Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga
• 18- The Yoga of Liberation