रजस् तमश् चाभिभूय सत्त्वं भवति भारत । रजः सत्त्वं तमश् चैव तमः सत्त्वं रजस् तथा ॥
rajas tamaś cābhibhūya sattvaṃ bhavati bhārata | rajaḥ sattvaṃ tamaś caiva tamaḥ sattvaṃ rajas tathā ||
Sattva, rajas, or tamas — each can become dominant over the others, alternating in every mind.
Word by word (3)
- rajas tamaś ca abhibhūya sattvaṃ bhavati bhārata
- — sattva arises/predominates (bhavati) by overcoming/suppressing (abhibhūya) both rajas and tamas — O Bharata
- rajaḥ sattvaṃ tamaś ca (abhibhūya bhavati)
- — rajas (predominates) by overcoming sattva and tamas — implied abhibhūya
- tamaḥ sattvaṃ rajas tathā (abhibhūya bhavati)
- — tamas (predominates) by overcoming sattva and rajas likewise — the three-way alternating dominance
When sattva overcomes rajas and tamas, it predominates, O Bharata. When rajas overcomes sattva and tamas, it predominates. When tamas overcomes sattva and rajas, it predominates. The three continuously alternate in dominance.
A modern analogy
Three people in a room, taking turns being the loudest voice. When sattva speaks loudest, the other two are still present but quieter. When rajas erupts, sattva and tamas recede. When tamas descends, the other two are muffled. You contain all three at all times — the question is which one holds the floor.
V10 establishes the DYNAMIC nature of the guṇas: they are not fixed states but shifting balances. Each guṇa can predominate when it overcomes the other two. This is crucial for understanding sadhana (spiritual practice): practice is essentially the work of cultivating sattva's predominance over rajas and tamas — while V11-V13 will describe the SIGNS of each guṇa's predominance so the practitioner can self-assess.
abhibhūya ('having overcome') implies suppression, not elimination — the other two remain latent, ready to surge when conditions allow. This is the key to understanding why even spiritually advanced practitioners can have setbacks (tamas or rajas surge temporarily). The guṇas remain until complete guṇātīta is attained. This verse also justifies the possibility of moral/spiritual progress: one CAN increase sattva's dominance through right living, diet, company, and practice.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
MISSING — SH Ch.14 V10 not indexed; Ganguli and SW used as primary. [1]
Sattva arises, O descendant of Bharata, predominating over Rajas and Tamas; likewise Rajas over Sattva and Tamas; so, Tamas over Sattva and Rajas. [4]
Goodness increases, O descendant of Bharata, when it overpowers passion and darkness; and passion when it overpowers goodness and darkness; and darkness when it overpowers goodness and passion. [9]
Passion and darkness, being repressed, Goodness remains, O Bharata. Passion and goodness (being repressed), darkness (remains); Goodness and darkness (being repressed), passion (remains). [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Sitting as a neutral — unmoved by guṇas, knowing 'guṇas act' — firm, unshaken, the pure witness.
Tamas — born of ignorance — deludes all beings and binds through carelessness, laziness, and sleep.
Even the wise act by their nature. All beings follow nature. Forced repression accomplishes nothing.
Mental tapas: serenity of mind, kindliness, silence, self-restraint, and purity of motive/bhāva.
One who — given the five causes — sees the self alone as doer due to unrefined intellect sees not; that is durmati.
Holding that nihilistic view, ruined selves of limited mind and fierce action, they rise as enemies of the world.