Bhagavad Gita BG 18.22
Chapter 18, Verse 22 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
यत्तु कृत्स्नवदेकस्मिन् कार्ये सक्तमहैतुकम् । अतत्त्वार्थवदल्पं च तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥
yat tu krtsnavad ekasmin karye saktam ahaitukam atattvarthavad alpam ca tat tamasam udahrtam
Meaning
But that knowledge which clings to one limited thing (ekasmin karye) as if it were the whole (krtsnavat), without reason (ahaitukam), without concern for truth (atattvarthavat), and petty (alpam) — that is declared tamasic.
Understanding
Tamasic jnana is the most contracted form of knowing. Krtsnavat ekasmin karye saktam (clinging to one particular thing as if it were the totality — krtsna = whole, sat = the same 'as if'): the tamasic knower takes one limited object, perspective, or framework and treats it as the complete picture. Ahaitukam (without reason, without grounds — irrational attachment). Atattvarthavat (without truth-correspondence — not oriented toward what is actually the case). Alpam (petty, small, contracted). If sattvic knowledge sees the One in all, and rajasic knowledge sees the many as ultimate, tamasic knowledge does not even reach the many — it is fixated on one thing without reason, treating that limited piece as everything. This is the knowledge of dogmatic rigidity, superstition, and willful ignorance.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| कृत्स्नवत् | krtsnavat | as if it were the whole, as if it were everything (krtsna = complete, total) |
| एकस्मिन् | ekasmin | in one (thing), to a single object |
| सक्तम् | saktam | clinging, attached, stuck to |
| अहैतुकम् | ahaitukam | without reason, without cause (a = without, hetu = reason/cause) |
| अतत्त्वार्थवत् | atattvarthavat | not corresponding to truth (a = not, tattva = truth/reality, artha = meaning/aim, vat = having) |
| अल्पम् | alpam | petty, small, contracted, little |
| यत् | yat tu | but which |
| कृत्स्नवत् | kṛtsnavat | as if everything |
| कार्ये | kārye | work, effect |
| अतत्त्वार्थवत् | atattvārthavat | not in accord with truth |
| अल्पम् | alpam ca | and little, meager |
| तत् | tat | that |
| तामसम् | tāmasam | in ignorance |
| उदाहृतम् | udāhṛtam | is declared |
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