Verse 17.4
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
यजन्ते सात्त्विका देवान्यक्षरक्षांसि राजसाः | प्रेतान्भूतगणांश्चान्ये यजन्ते तामसा जनाः ||४||
Transliteration (IAST)
yajante sāttvikā devān yakṣa-rakṣāṁsi rājasāḥ | pretān bhūta-gaṇāṁś cānye yajante tāmasā janāḥ ||4||
Word-by-Word Meanings
Translation
Those in sattva worship the gods; those in rajas worship yakshas and rakshasas; and others, those in tamas, worship ghosts and hosts of nature spirits.
Commentary
Krishna illustrates how faith manifests in the choice of worship. Shankaracharya explains that the object of worship reveals the worshipper's inner nature. Sattvic people are drawn to luminous, benevolent deities; rajasic people to powerful beings that grant worldly desires; tamasic people to dark spirits. Madhva notes this classification applies to the predominant tendency, as most people have mixed natures.