Bhagavad Gita · 17.7 · Yoga through Discerning the Three Divisions of Faith·7 of 28
आहारस्त्वपि सर्वस्य त्रिविधो भवति प्रियः।यज्ञस्तपस्तथा दानं तेषां भेदमिमं श्रृणु ॥
āhāras tv api sarvasya tri-vidho bhavati priyaḥ
yajñas tapas tathā dānaṁ teṣhāṁ bhedam imaṁ śhṛiṇu
Sanskrit recitation
Food, effort, and giving · 17.7–17.22 · Teaching
Translation
The food that is dear to each is threefold, as well as sacrifice, austerity, and almsgiving. Hear the distinction of these.
Meaning
Each Every being that eats.Imam This That which is going to be described.Tesham Their Of food, etc.According to the Gunas, a mans taste for a particular food is determined. There are three kinds of food that a man can eat.All foods have different properties. Different foods exercise different effects on different compartments of the brain or the mind. A confection of sparrow, meat, fish, eggs, onion and garlic excites passion. Fruits, barley, etc., render the mind calm and serene. The nature of food greatly influences the being of a man. Man feels a desire for particular foods according to his Guna or temperament.The body is the instrument by which man accomplishes all his purposes in the world. It is the horse that takes him to his destination or goal (Moksha). Therefore it should be kept clean, strong and healthy. The body is a mould prepared by the mind for its activities. There is an intimate connection between the body and the mind. The nature and condition of the body has a vital effect upon the mind and activities. Therefore the materials or foods that build the body and the mind should be pure, wholesome, nutritious, substantial and bland.Everything in this world is threefold. The food is either Sattvic, Rajasic or Tamasic according to its,character and effect upon the body and the mind
After Swami Sivananda
Food, effort, and giving· 17.7–17.22→
Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.
17.7The food that is dear to each is threefold, as well as sacrifice, austerity, and almsgiving. Hear the distinction of these.
- 17.8The foods that increase life, purity, strength, health, joy, and cheerfulness (good appetite), which are savory, oily, substantial, and agreeable, are dear to the Sattvic (pure) people.
- 17.9The foods that are bitter, sour, salty, overly hot, pungent, dry, and burning are liked by the Rajasic and are productive of pain, grief, and disease.
- 17.10That which is stale, tasteless, putrid, rotten, rejected, and impure is the food liked by the Tamasic.
- 17.11That sacrifice which is offered by men without desire for reward, as enjoined by the ordinance (scripture), with a firm faith that doing so is their duty, is Sattvic or pure.
- 17.12The sacrifice that is offered, O Arjuna, seeking a reward and for show, know that to be a Rajasic Yajna.
- 17.13They declare that sacrifice to be Tamasic which is contrary to the ordinances of the scriptures, in which no food is distributed, and which is devoid of mantras, gifts, and faith.
- 17.14Worship of the gods, the twice-born, the teachers, and the wise; purity, straightforwardness, celibacy, and non-injury are all called the austerities of the body.
- 17.15Speech that causes no excitement, is truthful, pleasant, and beneficial; the practice of studying the Vedas is called austerity of speech.
- 17.16Serenity of mind, good-heartedness, self-control, and purity of nature—this is called mental austerity.
- 17.17This threefold austerity, practiced by steadfast men, with the utmost faith, desiring no reward, is called Sattvic.
- 17.18The austerity that is practiced with the aim of gaining good reception, honor, and worship, and with hypocrisy, is said to be Rajasic, unstable, and transient.
- 17.19That austerity which is practised out of a foolish notion, with self-torture, or for the purpose of destroying another, is declared to be of the Tamasic nature.
- 17.20That gift which is given to one who does nothing in return, knowing it to be a duty to give in a suitable place and time to a worthy person, is held to be Sattvic.
- 17.21And, that gift which is given with the intention of receiving something in return, or expecting a reward, or begrudgingly, is considered to be Rajasic.
- 17.22The gift that is given in the wrong place and at the wrong time, to unworthy persons, without respect or with insult, is declared to be of a Tamasic nature.
Word-by-word→
- tu
- indeed
- api
- even
- imam
- this
- bhedam
- distinctions
- dānam
- charity
- tathā
- and
- bhavati
- is
- tapaḥ
- austerity
- priyaḥ
- dear
- sarvasya
- of all
- teṣhām
- of them
- yajñaḥ
- sacrifice
- āhāraḥ
- food
- śhṛiṇu
- hear
- tri-vidhaḥ
- of three kinds
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