Faith, of which thou hast asked, is of three sorts. It is born of the individual nature (svabhava): i e., the samskara or tendency made up of the self-reproductive latent impres- sions of the acts — good and bad, Dharma and Adharma — which were done in the past births and which manifested themselves at the time of death. Sattvio: faith in the worship of the Gods (Devas) which is an effect of Sattva. Rajasic: faith in the worship- of the Yakshas and the Rakshasas, which is an effect of Rajas. Tamasic • faith in the worship of the Pretas and the Pisachas, which is an effect of Tamas. Do thou understand the threefold faith which is going to be described * And who are therefore to be classed among demons (asuras), as • shewn in the preceding discourse--— A.
1-4] THE THREEFOLD FAITH, 429 As to this threefold Faith, 3 The faith of each is in accordance with his nature, O Bharata. The man is made up of his faith; as a man's faith is, so is he.
Each: every living being. Nature (Sattva): the antah- karawa with its specific tendencies or samskara. Man: Jiva, samsarin. So: in accordance with that faith.
So the Sattvic faith or the like has to be inferred from its characteristic effects, namely, the worship of the Gods or the like. The Lord says.* 4. Sattvic men worship the Gods; Rajasic the Yakshas * and the Rakshasas; the others — Tamasic men, — the Pretas and the hosts of Bhutas.
Sods of Bhutas; as also the seven Matfikas. Men of Rajasic and Tamasic Faiths.
Thus, by a general principle laid down in the scripture,. Sattvic and other devotions have been determined through their respective effects. Now only one in a thousand is Sattvic and devoted to the worship of the Gods, while the Rajasic and Tamasic creatures form the majority. How?
* Gods: such as the Vasus. Yakshas: such as Kubera. Raksha- sas t such as Nairrita, Pretas: those who, while they had been oh earth as brahmanas, etc, neglected their proper duties, and who, after death, attained Vayu-dehas (aerial bodies). We may understand that all these beings, when worshipped, answer the prayers of the devotees by granting their respective desires. — A.
430 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVII.
"\ n 5. Those men who practise terrific austerities not enjoined by the scripture, given to hypocrisy and egotism, endued with the strength of lust and passion; 6. Weakening all the elements in the body — fools they are — and Me who dwell in the body within; know thou these to be of demoniac resolves.
Terrific: causing pain to himself and to other living beings. Endued, etc •• This portion of the text may also be interpreted to mean ' possessed of lust, passion and strength.' Elements: organs. Me: Narayana, the Witness of their thoughts and deeds. To weaken Me is to neglect My teach- ing. Know thorn that they are demoniac (asuric) in their resolves, so that you may avoid them. This is a word of advice to Arjuna.
Threefold Food, Worship, Austerity and Gift.
Now will be shown what sort of food — which is divided into three classes, trf*., that which is savoury and oleaginous, and so on— is dear to the Sattvic, Rajasic and Tamasic men repectively, so that a man may know that he is one of Sattva or of Rajas or of Tarnas as indicated by his own partiality for one or another particular class of food—such as the savoury and the oleaginous— and then give up the Rajasic and Tamasic food and resort to Sattvic one. Similarly, the 5—9] THE THREEFOLD FAITH. 431 object of the threefold division here made of sacrifice and the like according to the Sattva and other gu«as is to show how a man may find out and give up the Rajasic and Tamasic ones and resort exclusively to the Sattvic ones. The Lord says: 7. The food also which is dear to each is threefold, as also worship, austerity and gift. Do thou hear of this* their distinction.
Bach: Every living being that eats. 2to: that which is going to be described. Their: of food (ahara), etc The three kinds of Food.
mu fwvu few %m eratrcrt mm^m: w t\i 8. The foods which increase life, energy, strength, health, joy and cheerfulness, which are savoury and oleaginous, substantial and agreeable, are dear to the Sattvic.
Oleaginous: oily, fatty. Substantial: which can last long in the body.
9. The foods that are bitter, sour, saline, •excessively hot, pungent, dry and burning, are liked by the Rajasic, causing pain, grief and disease.
432 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVIL Excessively: should be construed with all thus, excessively bitter, excessively hot, etc.
10. The food which is stale, tasteless, putrid and rotten, refuse and impure, is dear to the Tama sic.
Stale: Half-cooked. ' Yatayama ' (lit cooked three hours ago) meaning ' powerless ' is thus explained, to avoid tautology; for the next word ' gatarasa ' (tasteless) means the same, i.e., 'powerless.' Motion* the cooked food over which one-night has passed. Mefuse: left after a meal. Impure: unfit for offering.
The three kinds of Worship.
Now the three sorts of worship will be described: n. That worship is Sattvic which is offered by men desiring no fruit, as enjoined in the Law with a fixed resolve in the mind that they should merely worship.
That they should merely worship: that their duty lies in the mere performance of the worship itself, that no personal end has to be achieved by that means.
9—15] THE THREEFOLD FAITH, 433 12. That which is offered, O best of the Bharatas, with a view to reward and for osten- tation, know it to be a Rajasic worship.
13. They declare that worship to be Tamasic which is contrary to the ordinances, in which no food is distributed, which is devoid of mantras and gifts5and which is devoid of faith.
Distributed: to brahma«as. Devoid of mantras: with hymns defective in utterance and accent. Gifts: prescribed fees (to priests).
Physical Austerity.
Now the three kinds of austerity will be described: 14. Worshipping the Gods, the twice-born, teachers and wise men,— purity, straightforward- ness, continence, and abstinence from injury are termed the bodily austerity.
The bodily austerity: that which is accomplished by th body, ue,% in which the body is the chief of all factors of action, — the doer, etc.,— of which the Lord will speak, in xviii- 15.
Austerity in Speech.?
434 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVII.
15. The speech which causes no excitement and is true, as also pleasant and beneficial, and also the pradtice of sacred recitation, are said to form the austerity of speech.
Excitement: pain to. living beings. Pleasant and "bene- ficial: having respectively to do with the seen and the unseen. * Speech * is specified by the attributes of ' causing no excite- ment " and so on • An invariable combination of all these attributes is here meant. That speech addressed to others which, though causing no pain, is devoid of one, two or three of the other attributes — i.e., is not true, not pleasant and not beneficial — cannot form the austerity of speech; so, that speech which, though true, is wanting in one, two, or three of the other attributes cannot form the austerity of speech: so, an agreeable speech which is wanting in one, two, or three of the other attributes cannot form the austerity of speech. So, the speech which, though beneficial, is wanting in one, two, or three of the other attributes cannot form the austerity of speech. — What forms the austerity then?— The Speech that is true, that causes no excitement, that is agreeable and good, forms the austerity of speech;^ as for example, ** Be tranquil, my son, study (the Vedas) and practise yoga, and this will do thee good." Practice of sacred recitation: according to ordinances.
Mental Austerity.
Mental Austerity.
16. Serenity of mind, good-heartedness, silence, self-control, purity of nature, —this is called the mental austerity.
* i. e-, the austerity practised specially in regard to speech, *%*., ia which speech plays the leading part,— A« 15—18] THE THREEFOLD FAITH. 435 Good-heartedness t the state of mind which may be inferred from its effects, such as the brightness of the face, etc. Silence: even silence in speech is necessarily preceded by a control of thought, and thus the effect is here put for the cause, viz, the control of thought. Self -control: a general control of the mind. This is to be distinguished from silence (mauna) which means the control of thought so far as it concerns speech. Purity of nature: Honesty of purpose in dealings with other people* The three kinds of Austerity according to Guaas. The Lord proceeds to show that the foregoing austerity, — bodily, vocal and mental, — as practised by men, is divided into the classes according to Sattva and other guwas.
ty. This threefold austerity, practised by devout* men with utmost faith, desiring no fruit, they call Sattvic.
Threefold: having respectively to do with the three seats — body, speech, and mind. With faith: believing in the existence of things (taught in the scriptures.)
18. That austerity which is practised with the object of gaining good reception, honour and worship, and with hypocrisy f, is said to be of this % world, to be Rajasic, unstable and uncertain.
* Balanced in mind: unaffected in success and failure. — A. t With no sincere belief, for mere show,— A. \ Yielding fruit only in this world.— A.
436 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVIL Good reception: in such words as * Here is a good brah* mana of great austerities.' Eonour: the act of rising to greet,, of making a reverential salutation, etc. Worship; the washing of feet, adoring and feeding. Unstable: as productive of a transient effect.
19. The austerity which is practised out of a foolish notion, with self-torture, or for the purpose of ruining another, is declared to be Tamasic.
The three kinds of Gift.
Now the threefold nature of gift will be described.
20. That gift which is given — knowing it to be a duty to give—to one who does no service, in place and in time and to a worthy person, that gift is held Sattvic.
Owen to om, etc.: to one who cannot return the good, or to one from whom, though able to return the good, no such return is expected. Pfoce: Kurukshetra &c. Time * Satwkrantt (passage of the sun from one Zodiacal sign to another), etc. Worthy: as learned in the six sciences (angas) etc 18—23] THE THREEFOLD FAITH. 437 21. And that gift which is given with a view to a return of the good, or looking for the fruit, or reluctantly, that gift is held to be Rajasic.
With a mew etc.: hoping that he (the donee) will in time return the service, or that the gift will secure for himsel f some (now) unseen reward.
22. The gift that is given at a wrong place or time, to unworthy persons, without respect or with insult, that is declared to be Tamasic.
At a wrong place and time: at a place which is not sacred and which is associated with mlechhas (Non-aryans) with unholy things and the like, and at a time which is not auspicious— *.e., which is not marked with any such speciality as the sun's passage from one zodiacal sign to another. Unworthy persons: such as fools or rogues. Without respect: without agreeable speech, without the washing of feet, or without worship, though the gift be made in proper time and place.
How to perfect the defective acts.
The following instructions are given with a vie^y to per- fecting sacrifices, gifts, austerities, etc 23. "Om,tat, Sat": this has been taught to be the triple designation of Brahman*. By that * When a sacrificial rite or the like is found defective it will be per- e cted on the utterance of one of the three designations. — A.
438 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVIL were created of old* the brahmawas and the Vedas and the sacrifices.
TaugH: in the Vedanta by the knowers of Brahman* By that etc: by the triple designation, etc. This is said in praise of (the triple) designation.
24. Therefore, with the utterance of ' Om9> are the acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity, as enjoined in the scriptures, always begun by the students of Brahmanf.
Acts of sacrifice: acts in the form of sacrifice, etc 25. With 'Tat,' without aiming at the fruits, are the acts of sacrifice and austerity and the various acts of gift performed by the seekers of moksha.
With ' Tat \- with the utterance of ' Tat % which is a designation. of Brahman. The fruits: of sacrifice, etc. Acts °f 9*ft: gifts of land, gold, etc The use of ' Om * and of * Tat * has been explained. Now the use of ' Sat* is given as follows: * At the beginning of creation by the Frajapati. — A. t ' Brahman ' here means ' Veda.'-— A- 23—28] THE THREEFOLD FAITH. 439 26. The word ' Sat ' is used in the sense of reality and of goodness; and so also, O Partha, the word ' Sat f is used in the sense of an auspicious act.
In expressing the reality of an object which is unreal — as for example, the birth of a son who is unreal— and in expressing that a man is one of good conduct who is not so, this designation of Brahman, viz., the word { Sat,' is employed. It is also used with reference to the act of marriage and the like*.
27. Devotion to sacrifice, austerity and gift is also spoken of as 'Sat '; and even action in connec- tion with these is called * Sat.'
Sacrifice; the act of sacrifice. Sjpohen of: by the learned. These: sacrifice, gift and austerity. Or, * tadartbi- yam karma * may be interpreted, to mean action for the sake of the Lord whose triple designation is the subject of treat- ment here. These acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity, — even such of them as are not of the Sattvic class and are imper- fect,— turn out to be Sattvic and perfect ones, on applying to them with faith the triple designation of Brahman.
* It may be further explained thus: A son when born is said to come into existence. From the stand-point, however, of the Absolute, he never exists- Thus the word ' Sat ' meaning 'real* properly appli- cable to Brahman who alone is real, is applied also to a son who is unreal or is only relatively real. Similarly, the word ' Sat,' properly applicable to Brahman who is absolutely Good and absolutely Auspicious, is applied to a man whose conduct is not good or is only relatively good, or to an act which is not auspicious or which is only relatively auspicious. This is only to illustrate how the imperfectly performed acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity the designation of Brahman may be applied — as enjoined here— with a view to mate them perfect.
440 THEBHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVII.
Works without faith are fruitless. Because all these acts become perfect when done in full faith, therefore, 28. Whatever is sacrificed, given, or done, and whatever austerity is practised, without faith, it is called * asat,' O Partha; it is naught here or hereafter.
Given: to the brahma^as. Deed: such as adoration and obeisance. Asat: as they are quite outside the path by which I (the Isvara) may be reached. It is naught: though costing much trouble, it is of no use here as it is despised by the wise; nor can it produce any effect hereafter.
The teaching of the discourse summed up.
[The teaching of this discourse may be thus summed up: — There are devotees, who, though ignorant of the scriptures, are yet endued with faith, and who, accordnig to the nature of their faith, may be classed as Sattvic, Rajasic, or Tamasic. These should cultivate pure Sattva by avoiding Rajasic and Tamasic kinds of food, worship, gift and austerity, and resorting exclusively to Sattvic ones. "When their acts of worship, gift, and austerity are found defective, they may be perfected by uttering the three designations of Brahman, ' Om,' * Tat,' and ' Sat* With their reason (buddhi) thus purified, they should engage in the study of scriptures and in the subsequent stages of investigation into the nature of Brahman. Thereby they attain a direct perception of Truth and are finally liberared. — A.]
583$hSGqm: 11 EIGHTEENTH DISCOURSE. CONCLUSION.
• Samnyasa ' and ' Tyaga ' distinguished.
In the present discourse the Lord proceeds to teach, by way of summing up, the doctrine of the whole of the Gita- Sastra,«as also the whole of the Vedic Doctrine. Verily, the whole of the doctrine taught in the preceding discourses is to be found in this discourse. Arjuna, however, asks to know only the distinction in meaning between ' samnyasa, and * tyaga \ Arjuna said: i. 'Of samnyasa' O Mighty-armed, I desire to know the truth, O Hrishikesa, as also of * tyaga ', severally, O Slayer of Kesin.
Samnyasa; the connotation of the term * samnyasa,' Tyaga: the connotation of the term * tyaga \ Severally: as distinguished from each other.- Kesin was an Asura whom the Lord, the son of Vasudeva, slew, and the Lord is there' fore addressed as * Kesi-nishudana,' the Slayer of Kesin* The words * samnyasa' and ' tyaga ' have been used here and there in the preceding discourses, their connotations, however, not being clearly distinguished. Wherefore, with a view to determining them, the Lord addresses Arjuna, who desired to know of them, as follows: 442 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVIIL _^. rs.
The Blessed Lord said: 2. Sages understand ' sa?ranyasa ' to be the renouncement of interested works; the abandon- ment of the fruits of all works, the learned declare, is ' tyaga ' A few sages understand by ' samnyasa * the abandonment of kamyctr-karmani, of works (such as the Asvamedha, Horse- sacrifice) accompanied with a desire for fruits. The learned declare that ( tyaga ' means abandonment of the fruits of all the works that are performed, — nitya and naimittiha, ordi- nary and extra-ordinary duties, — i.e., of the fruits that may accrue to the performer.
The abandonment of interested works and the abandon- ment of fruits (of works) being intended to be expressed (by the two words) the meaning of the words ' samnyasa ' and ' tyaga * is in any way one and the same so far as the general idea is concerned, namely, abandonment. They are not quite eo distinct in meaning as the words ' jar * and c cloth '*.
(Objection): — The nitya and mimMika works ordinary and exta-ordinary duties, are said to produce no fruits. How is it that the abandoning of their fruits is here spQken of? It is like speaking of the abandoning of a barren woman's son.
* To explain the two words as meaning two altogether distinct things would be in contravention to the accepted usage, As explained here, the two words convey the same general idea with some distinction* — A.„ {Answer): — No such objection may be raised here, since, in the opinion of the Lord, ordinary and occasional duties produce their own fruits, as He will show in xviii. 12, where,, indeed, while teaching that samnyasins alone (those alone who have renounced all desire for the fruits of works) have no connection whatever with those fruits, the Lord teaches also that those who are not sawnyasins will have to reap the fruits of the ordinary works which they are bound to perform.
Should the ignorant perform works or not?
3, That action should be abandoned as an evil, some philosophers declare; while others (declare) that acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity should not be given up.
Some philosophers, following the doctrine of the San-< khyas, etc., declare that all action should be given up as an evil, even by those who are fit for Karma- Yoga. As an evil: this may be interpreted to mean either that all Karma should be given up as involving evil since it is the cause of bondage; or that it should be given up like passion and other such evil tendencies- With regard to the same class of persons (pis., those who are fit for Karma- Yoga), others say that the acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity ought not to be abandoned.
It is the Karma- Yogins that form the subject of discussion here; and it is with reference to them that these divergent views are held, but not with reference to the jnana" nisttfhas (wisdom-devotees), the sawnyasins who have risen (above all worldly concerns). Those persons who have been raised above the path of Karma in iii. 3 are not spoken of in this connection.
444 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVIII.
(Objection): — Just as the persons who are qualified lor works form the subject of discussion here — in the section where the whole doctrine of the sastra is summed up,— though their path has already been specified in iii. 3. so also the Sankhyas, the devotees of wisdom, may also form the subject of discussion here.
(Answer): — No, because of the inconceivability of their abandoning of duty from delusion or on account of pain. (To explain): The Sankhyas (men of knowledge) perceive in the Self no pain whatever arising from bodily trouble, since desire, pain, etc, are said to be the attributes of Kshetra or matter. Wherefore they do not abandon action for fear of bodily trouble and pain. Neither do they perceive action in the Self. If they could ever perceive action in the Self, then it would be possible to imagine their abandoning of obligatory works from delusion. In fact, they abandon works because they see that action pertains to guwas and think ' I do nothing at all ' (v. 8). How those men who know the truth renounce works has been described in v. 13. etc. Therefore it is only the other class of persons who are ignorant of the true nature of the Self and are qualified for works, and in whose case the supposition of the abandoning of duty from delusion or for fear of bodily trouble is possible, — it is only these that are censured as Tamasic and Rajasic relinquishers (tyagins) in order to praise the abandoning of the fruits of action resorted to by the followers of works who do not know the Self. And the samnyasin proper has been distinguished by the Lord, when defining the man who has transcended gurcas — as one " renouncing all undertakings...who is silent, content with any thing* homeless, steady-minded " (xii.
16—18). And the Lord will hereafter describe (his devotion) as " that supreme consummation of knowledge " (xviii 50) Thus, it is not the sawnyasins, who are the devotees of wisdom, that are referred to here. It is only the abandoning of the fruits of works that, by reason of its being Sattvic, is spoken of as sawnyasa in contradistinction to the Tamasic and Rajasic (abandoning of works); but not saranyasa proper, that pre-eminent renunciation of aU works.
(Objection): — Since xviii. 11 states the reason why renunciation of all action is an impossibility, it is only the samnyasa proper that is spoken of in this connection.
{Answer): — No, because the passage referred to as a statement of the reason is only intended to praise (something else enjoined). Just as the passage " on abandonment of peace closely follows" (xii, 12) is only a praise of the abandonment of the fruits of works, since it is addressed to Arjuna who is ignorant of the Self and who could not therefore follow the several paths previously spoken of, so also, the passage here referred to goes to praise the abandonment of the fruits of action. It is not possible for any one to point out an exception to the proposition. ** Renouncing all actions by thought, and self-controlled, the embodied one rests happily in the nine-gated city, neither at all acting nor causing to act." (v. 13). Wherefore these alternative views regarding samnyasa and tyaga concern those persons only for whom works are intended. On the other hand, the Sankhyas, those who see the Supreme Reality, have only to follow the path of knowledge, accompanied with the renunciation of all works; and they have nothiog else to do, and do not therefore form thfe subject of the alternative views set forth here. And so we established this proposition while commenting on ii.
21 and at the commencement of the third discourse. The Lord's decree is that the ignorant should perform works.
Now, as to these divergent views, 446 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. [DlS. XVIII.
4. Learn from Me the truth about this aban- donment, 0 best of the Bharatas; abandonment, verily, O best of men, has been declared to be of three kinds.
Do thou learn from My words the truth as to the alternatives of abandonment and renunciation referred to» Abandonment (tyaga): the Lord has used this single word here, implying that the meaning of * tyaga' and 'samnyasa' is one and the same. Of three hinds: Tamasic, etc Declared: in the sastras. Because it is hard to know the fact that the threefold (Tamasic, etc.) abandonment denoted by the words * tyaga ' and * sawnyasa ' is possible in the case of him alone who does not know the Self and for whom works are inten- ded,— not in the case of him who sees the Supreme Reality, — therefore no one, other than Myself, is able to teach the real truth about the subject. Wherefore, learn from Me what My — the Lord's— decree is as to the real -teaching of the sastra.
What is the decree then? — The Lord says: 5. Practice of worship, gift, and austerity should not be given up; it is quite necessary; wor- ship, gift and austerity are the purifiers of the wise.
The three sorts of action should be performed, for, they cause purity in the wise, z\e., in those who have no desire for fruits.
The obligatory works should be performed without attachment.
6. But even those actions should be perform- ed, setting aside attachment and the fruits; this, O son of Pritha, is My firm and highest belief.
Those actions, &c: the acts of worship, gift and austerity which have been said to be purifiers, should be performed, setting aside attachment for them and abandoning their fruits.
A proposition was started in the words, ' Learn from Me the truth about this * (xviii. 4) > and as a reason for it, it has been stated that worship, etc, are the purifiers: so that the words " even those actions should be performed this is My firm and highest belief " form a mere conclusion of the proposition started in xviii. 4. " Even those actions should be performed.'' cannot be a fresh proposition: for, it is better to construe the passage as related to the immediate subject of the present section. The word "even*' implies that these actions should be performed by a seeker of liberation, though they form the cause of bondage in the case of one who has an attachment for the actions and a desire for their fruits. The words ' even those ' cannot certainly refer to actions other (than the acts of worship, etc.)