Bhagavad Gita BG 14.7
Chapter 14, Verse 7 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम् । तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसङ्गेन देहिनम् ॥
rajo ragAtmakam viddhi trsna-sanga-samudbhavam tan nibadhnati kaunteya karma-sangena dehinam
Meaning
Know rajas to be characterized by passion — born of thirst and attachment. It binds the embodied one through attachment to action, O Kaunteya.
Understanding
Rajas: ragAtmakam (characterized by attachment/passion — raga is desire-based attraction). Trsna-sanga-samudbhavam (born of/arising from thirst and clinging). Karma-sangena nibadhnati (binds through attachment to action — the rajasic person cannot rest, must always be doing, striving, achieving). Rajas is the energy that keeps people active, ambitious, and restless. Its binding is through karma-sanga — the compulsion to act for results. The rajasic person identifies as the doer and is bound to the fruits of all actions.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| रागात्मकम् | ragAtmakam | characterized by passion/attachment (raga) |
| तृष्णा | trsna | thirst, craving, insatiable desire |
| कर्मसङ्गेन | karma-sangena | through attachment to action, clinging to doing |
| रजः | rajaḥ | the mode of passion |
| राग-आत्मकम् | rāga-ātmakam | of the nature of passion |
| विद्धि | viddhi | know |
| तृष्णा-सङ्ग | tṛṣṇā-saṅga | attachment and craving |
| समुद्भवम् | samudbhavam | arising from |
| तत् | tat | that |
| निबध्नाति | nibadhnāti | binds |
| कौन्तेय | kaunteya | O son of Kunti |
| कर्म-सङ्गेन | karma-saṅgena | by attachment to action |
| देहिनम् | dehinam | the embodied soul |