Bhagavad Gita Chapter 17, Verse 2

English Translation

The Blessed Lord said That faith of the embodied beings, born of their own nature, is threefold-born of sattva, rajas and tamas. Hear about it.

Detailed Commentary

Commentary – [Arjuna had questioned to know about Nishtha (steadfastness), but the Lord answers by taking Shraddha (faith) into account, because Nishtha is determined by Shraddha.] "Trividhā bhavati shraddhā dehināṁ sā svabhāvajā" – The Shraddha (faith) of embodied beings is of three kinds. Which Shraddha is this – born of association (sangaja), born of scriptures (shastraja), or born of nature (svabhāvaja)? It is said to be *svabhāvaja*, meaning inherent faith, self-evident, born of one's own nature. It is neither born of association nor of scriptures. These individuals are naturally flowing in this current and worshipping deities. "Sāttvikī rājasī caiva tāmasī ceti tāṁ śṛṇu" – That inherent Shraddha is of three types: Sāttvic (of goodness), Rājasic (of passion), and Tāmasic (of ignorance). Hear about these three distinctly. The implication of introducing the terms *Sattva*, *Rajas*, and *Tamas* in the previous verse was that, in Arjuna's view, *Sattva* leads to *Daivi Sampatti* (divine qualities), and *Rajas*-*Tamas* lead to *Asuri Sampatti* (demonic qualities). The Lord also considers both *Rajasic* and *Tamasic* as *Asuri Sampatti* from the perspective of bondage. However, while *Rajasic* and *Tamasic* are considered one from the perspective of bondage, there is a difference in their specific forms of bondage. *Rajasic* individuals perform actions prescribed by scriptures with desire for results; therefore, they go to higher realms like Svarga (heaven) to enjoy their fruits, and upon the exhaustion of their merits (*Punya*), they return to the mortal world (*Mrityuloka*). *Tamasic* individuals, however, do not perform actions prescribed by scriptures; hence, due to desire and delusion (*mooḍhatā*), they descend to lower states (*adham gati*). In this way, the bondage of both *Rajasic* and *Tamasic* persists. From the perspective of differentiation in bondage, the Lord makes two distinctions – *Rajasic* and *Tamasic* – within the Shraddha of those possessing *Asuri Sampatti*, and asks to hear about all three types of Shraddha – *Sāttvic*, *Rājasic*, and *Tāmasic* – separately. Connection – Why are there three types of inherent Shraddha (svabhāvaja shraddhā) as described in the previous verse – the Lord explains this in the following verse.