यया तु धर्मकामार्थान् धृत्या धारयते ऽर्जुन । प्रसङ्गेन फलाकाङ्क्षी धृतिः सा पार्थ राजसी ॥
yayā tu dharma-kāmārthān dhṛtyā dhārayate 'rjuna | prasaṅgena phalākāṅkṣī dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha rājasī ||
Rājasic dhṛti: holds fast to dharma, kāma, and artha with attachment, desiring the fruit of each.
Word by word (3)
- yayā tu dharma-kāmārthān dhṛtyā dhārayate 'rjuna
- — but (tu) by that dhṛti (yayā) by which one holds fast (dhārayate) dharma + kāma + artha (the three-fold puruṣārtha: righteousness, pleasure, wealth), O Arjuna — rājasic dhṛti holds the three pursuits but with attachment
- prasaṅgena phalākāṅkṣī dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha rājasī
- — with attachment (prasaṅgena = through-attachment), desiring/coveting (ākāṅkṣī) the fruit/reward (phala), that (sā) dhṛti (firmness), O Pārtha, is rājasic (rājasī) — the two markers: prasaṅga (attachment) + phalākāṅkṣā (fruit-desire)
- dharma-kāmārtha
- — dharma (righteousness/duty) + kāma (desire/pleasure) + artha (wealth/material gain) — the three of the four puruṣārthas (excluding mokṣa); the rājasic person holds fast to all three pursuits but does so with fruit-attachment, not the clarity of sāttvic dhṛti; crucially, dharma appears here — rājasic dhṛti can pursue dharma but does so for its fruits (reputation, karma-merit), not as pure dharma
But that firmness by which one, with attachment, holds to dharma, pleasure, and wealth, desiring the fruit of each — that firmness, O Pārtha, is rājasic.
A modern analogy
Rājasic dhṛti is the disciplined professional who holds steadily to their work (dharma), their personal pleasures (kāma), and their wealth-building (artha) — with impressive discipline. But underneath the discipline is attachment to outcomes: they persist because they want the results. If the results stopped coming, the discipline would likely collapse. Compare to sāttvic dhṛti (V33) where the holding is yogic, not fruit-driven.
V34 gives rājasic dhṛti. The interesting complexity: dharma appears in the rājasic list alongside kāma and artha. This shows that the Gita is not simply categorizing content (dharma = good, kāma = bad) but is analyzing the QUALITY of the holding. Rājasic dhṛti can include dharmic pursuits — but when dharma is pursued with fruit-attachment (phalākāṅkṣā), it becomes rājasic. This is the karma-kāṇḍa (ritual action for fruit) critique embedded in guṇa analysis: technically correct action (dharma) done with attachment = rājasic.
Prasaṅgena (through attachment) is the key word. Where sāttvic dhṛti is yogena (through yoga), rājasic dhṛti is prasaṅgena (through attachment). The structural parallel is precise: both hold something (dhārayate), but the motivation and ground of the holding differ completely. Sāttvic dhṛti holds through union with the higher reality; rājasic dhṛti holds through attachment to the lower pursuits (even when those pursuits include dharma).
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
But the firmness with which one holds fast to dharma and pleasures and wealth, desiring the fruit of each on its occasion, that firmness, O Partha, is Rajasic. [1]
But the fortitude by which one regulates (one's mind) to Dharma, desire, and wealth, desirous of the fruit of each from attachment, that fortitude, O Partha, is Rajasika. [4]
MISSING from index. [9]
But that constancy by which one holds to religion, desire, and profit, through attachment, desiring fruit, that constancy, O son of Pritha, is of the quality of passion. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Rājasic karma: done desiring pleasures or with ego-pride, involving great effort.
Rajas — passion, thirst, attachment — binds the embodied one specifically through attachment to action.
Sāttvic kartā: attachment-free, non-egotistic, firm, enthusiastic, unmoved by success or failure.
The unattached-minded, self-conquered, desire-free one attains supreme naiskarmya-siddhi through sannyāsa.
Sannyāsa = abandoning desire-motivated action; tyāga = abandoning fruits of ALL action — say the learned.
Therefore: do your required action without attachment — this is the path that leads to the Supreme.