Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga

Arjuna asks the profound question: What is the status of those who worship with genuine faith but without following scriptural injunctions - are they in sattva, rajas, or tamas?

Krishna reveals the fundamental insight: Faith itself is threefold - sattvic, rajasic, and tamasic - born from one's inherent nature, and this determines everything about one's spiritual life.

A person IS their faith - the most profound equation in spiritual psychology: 'yo yac-chraddhaH sa eva saH' - whatever your faith, that indeed you are.

What you worship reveals your inner nature: sattvic beings worship divine forces, rajasic beings worship power-entities, and tamasic beings worship ghosts and lower spirits.

Krishna describes spiritual malpractice: those who perform terrible austerities not sanctioned by scripture, driven by hypocrisy, ego, desire, and attachment - a warning against self-torture masquerading as spirituality.

Those who torture the body's elements and, unknowingly, torture the Divine dwelling within - know them to be of demonic resolve. Self-violence is violence against God.

The threefold analysis extends to everyday life: food, sacrifice, austerity, and charity all come in sattvic, rajasic, and tamasic varieties. Krishna will now detail each.

Sattvic food promotes life, vitality, strength, health, happiness, and satisfaction - it is juicy, smooth, substantial, and pleasing to the heart.

Rajasic food is extreme in taste - bitter, sour, salty, very hot, pungent, dry, burning - and produces pain, grief, and disease.

Tamasic food is stale, tasteless, putrid, leftover, and impure - it promotes dullness, disease, and spiritual degradation.

Sattvic sacrifice is performed according to scriptural injunction, without desire for results, with the simple understanding: 'This ought to be done.'

Rajasic sacrifice is performed with an eye on results and for the sake of show - even outwardly correct worship becomes rajasic when motivated by desire and ostentation.

Tamasic sacrifice is devoid of proper procedure, distribution of food, mantras, proper gifts, and faith - it is mechanical ritual without life or meaning.

The austerity of the body consists of worship of the divine and wise, cleanliness, simplicity, celibacy, and non-violence - using the body as instrument of spiritual discipline.

True speech-austerity is the rare art of speaking truth that heals rather than hurts - words that are simultaneously honest, kind, and beneficial.

The ultimate austerity is invisible - cultivating an inner climate of serenity, gentleness, and purity where thoughts themselves become offerings.

The alchemy of sattvic austerity: when discipline meets supreme faith and detachment from reward, ordinary practice becomes spiritual gold.

When austerity becomes performance - practiced for applause, status, or admiration - it yields only unstable, impermanent results that crumble like ego itself.

The darkest corruption of tapas: foolish self-torture masquerading as spirituality, or 'austerity' weaponized to harm others - both spring from fundamental ignorance.

Sattvic giving: the right gift, to the right person, at the right time, in the right place, with absolutely no expectation of return - given simply because giving is right.

Rajasic giving: the gift that comes with strings attached - expecting return favors, aiming at rewards, or given reluctantly with inner resistance and resentment.

The dark parody of giving: wrong time, wrong place, wrong recipient - topped with contempt and disrespect. Such 'charity' degrades both giver and receiver.

The sacred triad OM TAT SAT - three words that name the unnameable Brahman, the mystical formula from which all Vedic wisdom, spiritual knowledge, and sacred ritual emerged in the beginning.

Therefore OM - the primal sound that sanctifies all beginnings. Those who know Brahman always commence their sacrifices, charities, and austerities by uttering this sacred syllable.

TAT - 'That' which transcends all results. Liberation-seekers perform actions with 'Tat' consciousness, releasing attachment to fruits by remembering the transcendent goal beyond all worldly gains.

SAT means both Reality (what truly exists) and Goodness (what is virtuous). This sacred word blesses action with truth and moral alignment, anchoring spiritual practice in authenticity.

Steadfastness itself is SAT - staying firm in sacrifice, austerity, and charity. And any action performed for the sake of the Supreme is also called SAT: reality, truth, genuine spiritual practice.

The chapter's stark conclusion: Whatever is done without faith - sacrifice, charity, austerity, any action - is ASAT, unreal. It bears no fruit here in this life nor in the life beyond.