सत्कारमानपूजार्थं तपो दम्भेन चैव यत् । क्रियते तद् इह प्रोक्तं राजसं चलम् अध्रुवम् ॥
satkāra-māna-pūjārthaṃ tapo dambhena caiva yat | kriyate tad iha proktaṃ rājasaṃ calam adhruvam ||
Rājasic tapas: done for reception, honour, worship, and show — unstable and transient.
Word by word (3)
- satkāra-māna-pūjārthaṃ tapo dambhena caiva yat kriyate
- — tapas performed (kriyate = done) for the purpose of (artham) gaining: satkāra (good reception/welcome), māna (honour/respect), pūjā (worship/veneration) — and with (caiva = ca+eva) dambha (ostentation/hypocrisy/showmanship)
- tad iha proktaṃ rājasam
- — that (tad) is said (proktam) here (iha = in this world/in this teaching) to be rājasic (rājasam) — the explicit classification
- calam adhruvam
- — unsteady (cala = moving/unstable) and transient/not lasting (adhruvam = not-fixed/impermanent) — the two defining characteristics of rājasic tapas; rajas creates movement and impermanence
That austerity which is practiced to gain welcome, honour, and reverence, and through ostentation — that is said here to be rājasic, unstable and impermanent.
A modern analogy
Rājasic tapas is religious performance art — the person who fasts conspicuously, meditates in public view, or practices austerity while subtly ensuring others notice. The tapas is real, but the driver is the audience. When the audience is gone, so is the motivation. Calam adhruvam (unstable and impermanent) describes both the practice and its fruits.
V18 classifies rājasic tapas with three sought-for outcomes (satkāra, māna, pūjā) plus the method of dambha (ostentation). Dambha appears three times in Ch.17 now: V5 (āsurī tapas driven by dambha), V12 (rājasic yajña for dambhārtham), and V18 (rājasic tapas with dambhena). This repetition shows that dambha is the primary marker of the rājasic debasement of religious practice across all domains. The verdict calam adhruvam (unstable and impermanent) is the rājasic counterpart to V17's yukta (disciplined and stable).
The three outcomes (satkāra-māna-pūjā) represent three levels of social recognition: satkāra = respectful treatment, māna = honour among peers, pūjā = being worshipped. The ascending scale shows the degree of ego-investment: rājasic tapas doesn't just want politeness (satkāra) — ultimately it wants to be worshipped (pūjā). This is the rājasic echo of the āsurī īśvaro 'ham ahaṃ bhogī (Ch.16 V15). The cala (unsteady) quality means the practice fluctuates with social feedback — fundamentally conditioned by others.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
That austerity which is practised with the object of gaining good reception, honour and worship, and with hypocrisy, is said to be of this world, to be Rajasic, unstable and uncertain. [1]
That austerity which is practised with the object of gaining welcome, honour, and worship, and with ostentation, is here said to be Rajasika, unstable, and transitory. [4]
The penance practised with the motive of gaining respect, honour, and reverence, and through ostentation, is said here to be passionate; it is unsteady and transient. [9]
That penance which is practised for gaining respect, honour and worship, and for ostentation, is said here to be of the quality of passion; it is uncertain and not lasting. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Rājasic food: bitter, sour, salty, hot, pungent, dry, burning — loved by the rājasic; yields pain, grief, disease.
Rājasic yajña: performed targeting fruit and for ostentation — know this, O best of Bharatas.
Tāmasic yajña: against ordinance, no food-sharing, no mantras, no dakṣiṇā, no śraddhā — declared tāmasic.
This teaching is never to be given to the non-ascetic, non-devotee, non-service-minded, or one who criticizes Me.
Even if the most sinful worships Me with undivided devotion — he must be deemed righteous, for he has rightly resolved.
Whatever you do, eat, offer, give, or practise as austerity — do it all as mad-arpaṇam, an offering to Me.