Gita 18.8
Moksha Sanyasa Yoga
दुःखमित्येव यत्कर्म कायक्लेशभयात्त्यजेत् | स कृत्वा राजसं त्यागं नैव त्यागफलं लभेत् ||८||
duḥkham ity eva yat karma kāya-kleśa-bhayāt tyajet | sa kṛtvā rājasaṁ tyāgaṁ naiva tyāga-phalaṁ labhet ||8||
In essence: Abandoning action simply because it is painful or fearing bodily exertion—this rajasic tyaga gains nothing. Fear and comfort-seeking cannot produce liberation.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "What's the difference between wisely avoiding unnecessary difficulty and rajasic avoidance?"
Guru: "The difference is what motivates the decision. Wise discrimination assesses: 'Is this truly my duty? Is this the right action?' Then, if difficult, it proceeds. Rajasic avoidance assesses: 'Is this comfortable? Is this easy?' And abandons what is genuinely required simply because it's hard. The former starts from duty, the latter from comfort. The former can include strategic timing; the latter is simple fear."
Sadhak: "But aren't we supposed to avoid suffering? Isn't that spiritual?"
Guru: "Avoiding unnecessary suffering is wise. But the deepest suffering comes from violating one's dharma, from failing to become what one can become. The rajasic person avoids surface pain (kaya-klesha) but incurs deeper suffering—the pain of unfulfilled potential, the burden of avoided responsibility. True spirituality accepts necessary difficulty for genuine growth."
Sadhak: "Why does rajasic tyaga bring no fruit?"
Guru: "Because renunciation's fruit is freedom, and rajasic tyaga is itself bondage—bondage to comfort, to fear, to the body's preferences. You cannot gain freedom by being enslaved to ease. The very motivation (avoiding discomfort) perpetuates the problem (identification with body-mind comfort). Liberation comes from transcending body-identified consciousness, not from serving it."
Sadhak: "How common is this rajasic tyaga?"
Guru: "Extremely common. Every time someone avoids a difficult conversation that should happen, a challenging growth opportunity, a demanding but appropriate commitment—'it's too hard, too much trouble'—this is rajasic tyaga. Modern life offers many comfortable alternatives to growth. 'Self-care' can become rajasic excuse. Genuine self-care includes accepting necessary difficulty."
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🌅 Daily Practice
Identify one thing you've been avoiding because it seems too hard, painful, or troublesome. Ask honestly: 'Is this truly not my duty, or am I in rajasic avoidance?' If the latter, commit to addressing it today, even in small measure. The commitment itself shifts from rajas toward sattva.
Notice the rajasic calculation arising: 'This will be difficult, this will be uncomfortable, therefore I won't.' Catch it in real-time. Then consciously choose: either proceed with the duty (building tapas) or honestly acknowledge that this is not truly required (with clarity, not rationalization). The awareness itself is progress.
Reflect on where fear of difficulty influenced your choices today. No harsh judgment—rajas is human. But clear seeing is essential. What duty did you complete despite difficulty? What did you avoid? How did both feel? The reflection builds the discrimination that transforms rajasic patterns.