Verse-12
Chapter 17 — Shraddhatreya Vibhag Yoga
Verse 12
🕉 Original Sanskrit Shloka
abhisandhāya tu phalaṁ dambhārthamapi caiva yat
ijyate bharataśreṣṭha taṁ yajñaṁ viddhi rājasam
🕉 English Translation
Magar aisa yagya jisme phal iccha ho,
Dikhave ko hee hai kiya jata jo.
Yagya aise hee ko tu Arjun ! Samajh,
Karte hai bas isko rajas purush
📜 Translation
English
But O Arjun! The sacrifice which is performed with a desire only for fruits or for ostentation, know that to be rajasic nature!
What is the motive behind the action? This fact is of great significance. The true state, nature, effect depends on its motive. The apparent action of the sacrifice is the same. This sacrifice is distinguished from the satvic one, by the inner state of the performer. To make this distinction clear, the Blessed Lord has used the word 'tu'.
There is no effort made in the direction of understanding the essence, true nature and the real importance of the sacrifice. Through the medium of oblations in sacrifice to offer ego, clinging, desire for fruits, selfishness, deceitfulness, malice and such like propensities and to invoke the gods and even the Supreme Lord of the gods is the essence of the sacrifice. By appeasement, propitiation and the pleasure of the deities and through that process the endearment of nature and even the essence of the nature i.e. the pleasure of the Supreme Lord can be attained through sacrifice. But here the nature of the sacrifice and its goal also has become something else. At the commencement itself, the desire for fruits takes hold of the mind. This worldly desire of mine should get fulfilled; through sacrifice I should be able to gain material objects-wealth, prosperity, honour and fame. Not just this, the apparent action is good, but the inner state is full of hypocrisy! Through sacrifice I will be able to get name and fame in the society. Through the means of sacrifice I will be able to collect a lot of funds. Think what the meaning of sacrifice performed with such motives is? The preacher of the Gita for this reason, is defining such sacrifice of a rajasic nature.