Verse 14.18
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
ऊर्ध्वं गच्छन्ति सत्त्वस्था मध्ये तिष्ठन्ति राजसाः | जघन्यगुणवृत्तिस्था अधो गच्छन्ति तामसाः ||१८||
Transliteration (IAST)
ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthā madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ | jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ ||18||
Word-by-Word Meanings
ūrdhvam-upward
gacchanti-go
sattva-sthāḥ-those established in Sattva
madhye-in the middle
tiṣṭhanti-remain
rājasāḥ-the rajasic
jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthāḥ-abiding in the lowest guna
adhaḥ-downward
Translation
Those established in Sattva go upward; the rajasic remain in the middle; and the tamasic, abiding in the function of the lowest guna, go downward.
Commentary
Shankaracharya explains the cosmic trajectory of souls based on their predominant guna: sattvic souls ascend to higher planes, rajasic souls remain in the human realm, and tamasic souls descend to lower births. Ramanuja notes this summarizes verses 14-15 and establishes the urgency of cultivating Sattva as a stepping stone to transcendence.
Themes
karmamokshadharma
Related Verses
moksha1 verse