Bhagwad Gita - Post 232

Verse 33

The unwavering firmness by which, through Yoga, the functions of the mind, the life-force and the senses are restrained—that firmness, O Arjuna, is Sattwic!

Although mind has many functions such as desire and aversion, it is buddhi intellect and dhriti determination which lead to righteousness and happiness whereas their absence leads to unrighteousness and despair. 

Of the various functions of the mind, buddhi and dhriti are the chief ones that determine the others and so the influence of the three gunas or modes of material nature have been specifically explained in this light by Lord Krishna.

The threefold influence of the three gunas or modes of material nature beginning with sattva guna mode of goodness on dhrita or determination is illustrated by unwavering concentration upon the goal to be achieved by the aid of yoga or the individual consciousness attaining communion with the ultimate consciousness by meditation and yoga by which the senses are brought under complete control and directed to focus fully upon the goal. Such dhrita possessed by a jiva or embodied being is situated in sattva guna.

Verse 34

But that firmness, O Arjuna, by which, on account of attachment and desire for reward, one holds fast to Dharma, enjoyment of pleasures and earning of wealth—that firmness, O Arjuna, is Rajasic!

Amongst the four purushartha, Dharma denotes the righteous way of living while pursuing anything whatsoever in life, in the personal, domestic or societal front. Devoid of dharma, human life is bound to degenerate woefully, and miss the goal of fulfillment.

In order to live in the world, we need many materials and facilities. To avail of these, requisite resources are called for. Artha refers to wealth and other resources, which are necessary to fulfill our material needs.

While proceeding to acquire wealth by means of regular efforts, it is important that one conforms to the dictates of dharma, righteousness. All the restraints and disciplines that righteousness enjoins have to be adhered to with care and caution. Only then, with the wealth thus acquired, one is free to fulfill his personal and familial desires (kama).

In desiring and also in gaining the desired object, one has to be fair and moderate. No hurt or harm should be caused to another in the haste or hurry of pursuing one’s needs. “Live and let live” should be the constant watchword. The blending of individual life with the welfare of the society as well as Nature is an indispensable demand of dharma.

Even when dharma, artha and kāma are gained in ample measure, human life will not prove fully meaningful or attain its destined fulfillment. Fulfillment can only be had when the inner personality becomes clean, free and light.

That will be possible only through the art and process of discrimination. 

Sufficient introspection and evaluation have to be done about what constitutes life and how it can be led to its fullness. Moksha literally means freedom. But it is not in respect of the body or its life-breath. It is with respect to the mind and intelligence. The inner freedom is what the fourth puruṣārtha, moksha, represents.

Whether it is a life of propriety and piety, affluence and luxury, with creditable familial and social extensions or otherwise, one thing is certain – everything and all are ultimately to be left. All these will get distanced, despite one’s wish or will. Even the body on which rest all relationships, by and for which we acquire everything, will have to be shed one day.

To perceive this truth and give due place for it as early as possible in one’s life is the call of the fourth puruṣhartha, mokṣa. The considerations and evaluation moksha instills form the very essence of all pursuits, their relevance and purpose.

But the mind given to rajasik tendencies will generally avoid this kind of a perception or evaluation, due to attachment and greed for immediate results. This delusion leads it to miss or fail to evaluate the last puruṣārtha. By that, the whole life becomes aimless, defective and disappointing. 

Verse 35

That by which a stupid man does not abandon sleep, fear, grief, despair and also conceit—that firmness, O Arjuna, is Tamasic!

Determination is seen in the unintelligent and ignorant too. But it is the obstinacy that arises from fear, despair, and pride. 

For instance, some people are victims of a fear-complex, and it is interesting to see how they hold on to it with great tenacity, as if it is an inseparable part of their personality. 

There are others who make their life a living hell because they cling to some past disappointment and refuse to let go of it, despite observing its ruinous impact upon them. 

Some insist upon quarreling with all who hurt their ego and its imagined conception of themselves. 

The firmness described in this verse, of beings with Tamsaic nature is by far the most dangerous / most devastating quality.

These are the human beings who have lacked self- confidence from the very beginning, leading a life of fear and inferiority complex. 

When, due to their past karma as well as due to lack of purushartha in present life, they have to undergo sufferings in the present birth, their basic lack of confidence coupled with sufferings in present birth leads to fear, despair and grief. 

They fall in love with their self-imposed fear and despair to such an extent that they never “let go” the past, never pardon those who caused them suffering, most unwilling to accept that those who caused sufferings were but instruments to cause them suffering, to clear their karma which they had accumulated in past / present birth which had to be cleared in the current birth.

These beings cannot be convinced with any amount of discourse, any extent of Love, any extent of empathy.

Sri Krishna states that determination based upon such stubborn clinging to unproductive thoughts is in the mode of ignorance.

Love. 

Bhagwad Gita - Post 231

Verse 29

Hear thou the threefold division of the intellect and firmness according to the Gunas, as I declare them fully and distinctly, O Arjuna!

Three qualities of the intellect are mentioned here—three types of intellect, understanding. 

“Hey Arjuna, listen to the characteristics of understanding, the characteristics of determination, which I shall now touch upon briefly.”

Verse 30

That which knows the path of work and renunciation, what ought to be done and what ought not to be done, fear and fearlessness, bondage and liberation—that intellect is Sattwic, O Arjuna!

Sattvic understanding, or intellection, is that which knows what is to be done and what is not to be done under a given condition, what is proper and what is not proper. Place, time and circumstance condition the undertaking of any work to determine which work may be suitable at a particular moment and which work may not be suitable at that moment. 

That which may be fitting in this particular spot may not be suitable at another place, and that which is fitting under conditions prevailing now may not be fitting under conditions prevailing in a different manner altogether or in some other place. 

The goodness and the badness of an undertaking is not merely an ethical or a moral question. It is a philosophical and metaphysical issue based finally on the very purpose of existence itself. 

We have to decide for ourselves what criteria we will hold in judging what is proper and improper. This is a crucial question before us, and the judgment in this regard should be based, finally, on the ultimate purpose of life. That is why one has to be very intelligent in choosing any course of action. 

Such a person is sattvic who knows what is proper and what is improper, what is good and what is bad, what is to be done and what is not to be done, what is a cause of bondage and what is going to be liberating. 

Only such a person can be really intelligent, and that understanding can be regarded as sattvic in its nature: sa buddhih partha sattviki.

Verse 31

That by which one incorrectly understands Dharma and Adharma, and also what ought to be done and what ought not to be done—that intellect, O Arjuna, is Rajasic!

Here Lord Krishna explains that the buddhi or intellect of those who have erroneous conceptions of theism and atheism and do not comprehend what is righteousness and what is unrighteousness and what they entail and have no understanding of what should be done and what should not be done according to time, place and circumstance assuming wrongly what they think they know is incorrect are situated in raja guna the mode of passion.

The rājasic intellect becomes mixed due to personal attachments. At times it sees clearly, but when self-interest comes into play, it becomes tainted and confused. 

The rājasic intellect, colored by attachments and aversions, likes and dislikes is unable to discern the proper course of action. It becomes confused between the important and the trivial, the permanent and the transient, the valuable and the insignificant.

Verse 32

That which, enveloped in darkness, views Adharma as Dharma and all things perverted—that intellect, O Arjuna, is called Tamasic!

The worst kind of understanding is tamasic buddhi, which totally misconstrues all things in a topsy-turvy manner.

Totally wrong things are regarded as very good things on account of a clouding of the intellect. 

Every kind of objective in life is viewed from a selfish point of view. There is no ability to link the undertaking to the final purpose of life, because that consciousness of the final purpose is completely obliterated from a tamasic buddhi. 

The ‘determination’ that will be taken up for discussion in the coming verses has a connection with understanding. Intellect and will go together. The capacity of our deciding factor—decision, determination, volition—depends much, or perhaps wholly, on understanding. 

To the extent of our understanding, to that extent also we have the power of will. If the understanding is weak, the will also is weak. 

Love.

Bhagwad Gita - Post 230

Verse 26

He who is free from attachment, non-egoistic, endowed with firmness and enthusiasm and unaffected by success or failure, is called Sattwic.

Sattvic action is defined once again. It is an action performed by those people who are free from attachment, who do not have any kind of a trace of egoism on their part, and are full of enthusiasm for the work. It is not fatigue but enthusiasm, zest, and an indefatigability that is felt before undertaking any work. 

Utsāha, which is enthusiasm, spiritedness, and a love for what is good, should be the motive behind performing action, whether one succeeds or not. This is because, as mentioned earlier, the fruit of an action is not in anyone’s hand. The fruit is the product of the cooperative activity of five factors. 

Therefore, if we do something to the best of our ability but have not succeeded, it is because we have not taken into consideration the other four aspects. Finally, one cannot succeed in life unless one is practically omniscient in nature. 

An ordinary person cannot know what consequence will follow from what action, because we cannot know all aspects of the matter at the same time. Sattvic karma is free from the longing to achieve its fruit, free from egoism, filled with enthusiasm, work undertaken spontaneously by oneself for the welfare of all people.

Verse 27

Passionate, desiring to obtain the rewards of actions, cruel, greedy, impure, moved by joy and sorrow, such an agent is said to be Rajasic.

Here is the description of a person who is full of desires, passions and attachments, desiring for rewards for his actions. 

He is swayed by passion (raaga) and eagerly seeks the fruit of his work. He is ever greedy (Lubdhah), never satisfied with what he gains. His thirst is insatiable because his desires multiply from moment to moment.

When a man, full of desires and passions, he never hesitates to injure another, if such injury were to win his end. He is blind to the amount of sorrow he might bring to others; he is concerned only with the realisation of his ulterior motives. When such a man becomes maliciously resolved to gain his own ends, he becomes impure (Ashuchih), meaning "immoral."

It is but natural that such a person  acts in his blinding desires, comes to live, all through his embodied existence, a sad life of agitations, moved by joys and sorrows, "full of delight and grief," (Harsha-Shoka-Anvitah). This completes the picture of a man who is a 'passionate' (Rajasic) "doer."

Verse 28

Unsteady, dejected, unbending, cheating, malicious, vulgar, lazy and procrastinating—such an agent is called Tamasic.

Sree Krishna now gives a description of tāmasic workers. Their mind is blotted with negative obsessions and thus they are ayuktaḥ (undisciplined). The scriptures give injunctions regarding what is proper and improper behavior.

But workers in the mode of ignorance are  obstinate in their views, for they have closed their ears and mind to reason. Thus, they are often śhaṭhaḥ (cunning) and naiṣhkṛitikaḥ (dishonest or vile) in their ways. 

They are prakṛitaḥ (vulgar) because they do not believe in controlling their animal instinct. Though they may have duties to perform, they see effort as laborious and painful, and so they are alasaḥ (slothful) and dirgha-sutri (procrastinating). 

Their ignoble and base thoughts impact them more than anyone else, making them viṣhadi (unhappy and morose).

The Srimad Bhagavatam also describes types of performers of actions:

sattvikaḥ karako sangi ragandho rajasaḥ smṛitaḥ

tamasaḥ smriti-vibhrashto nirguṇo mad-apashrayah 

“The worker who is detached is sattvic in nature; the one who is excessively attached to action and its results is rajasic; one who is devoid of discrimination is tamasic. But the worker who is surrendered to me is transcendental to the three modes.”

Love.