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श्री
ह्रीं
क्लीं
गं
ऐं
क्रीं
हूं
सौं
दुं
ॐ तत् सत्
ॐ ऐं ह्रीं क्लीं चामुण्डायै विच्चे
या देवी सर्वभूतेषु शक्तिरूपेण संस्थिता
नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमस्तस्यै नमो नमः

Aligning Consciousness

Ch 14Verse 5
Adhyāya 14 Shloka 5

सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसम्भवाः | निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम् || ५ ||

sattvaṁ rajas tama iti guṇāḥ prakṛti-sambhavāḥ | nibadhnanti mahā-bāho dehe dehinam avyayam || 5 ||

"Material nature consists of three modes—goodness, passion and ignorance. When the eternal living entity comes in contact with nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, he becomes conditioned by these modes."

Historical Context

The Direct Meaning

Here, Krishna introduces the core subject matter of Chapter 14: The Three Gunas. He identifies them as Sattva (goodness), Rajas (passion), and Tamas (ignorance). These three modes or qualities are born directly from material nature (prakṛti-sambhavāḥ). What do they do? They act as ropes that tightly bind and condition (nibadhnanti) the otherwise eternal, imperishable soul (dehinam avyayam) within the physical body (dehe).

Translated from the original Sanskrit text

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