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Bhagavad Gita · 17.5 · Yoga through Discerning the Three Divisions of Faith·5 of 28

अशास्त्रविहितं घोरं तप्यन्ते ये तपो जनाःदम्भाहङ्कारसंयुक्ताः कामरागबलान्विताः

aśhāstra-vihitaṁ ghoraṁ tapyante ye tapo

janāḥ dambhāhankāra-sanyuktāḥ kāma-rāga-balānvitāḥ

Sanskrit recitation

Faith has a flavor · 17.1–17.6 · Teaching

Translation

Those men who practice terrific austerities not prescribed by the scriptures, given to hypocrisy and egoism, driven by the force of lust and attachment.

Meaning

There are some who think that the mortification of the body is the proper means to attain the goal of life. They do this in order to attract the people and get money for the gratification of their senses. They stand on one leg with raised hands. This is not real Tapas. This is Tamasic Tapas. Bodily torture will not bring emancipation. These men are not acainted with even the first elements of the scriptures. They mock at the religious practices of the wise, elderly persons and jeer at learned men. They are puffed up with the vanity of their own greatness. They are proud of their wealth. They perform unauthorised austerities. These persons do severe austerities contrary to the scriptures on the strength of desire and attachment.They take even the lives of children to propitiate their deity. Instead of killing their egoism, they kill many innocent animals in the name of sacrifice but in reality they kill them to satisfy their own palate. Most horrible indeed They speak ill of the scriptures and wander about in the forest of delusion and infatuation. They follow the dictates of passion. They inflict pain on themselves and on others. They practise austerities which cause pain to themselves and to other living beings. Pitiable indeed is their lot

After Swami Sivananda

Faith has a flavor· 17.1–17.6

Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.

Word-by-word
ye
who
bala
force
kāma
desire
rāga
attachment
dambha
hypocrisy
ghoram
stern
tapaḥ
austerities
janāḥ
people
tapyante
perform
ahankāra
egotism
anvitāḥ
impelled by
sanyuktāḥ
possessed of
aśhāstra-vihitam
not enjoined by the scriptures

Related verses

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