Bhagavad Gita 17.4 meaningYou are what you trust
In simple wordsSo simple a child gets it
“Calm people worship God; restless people worship power; dull people worship fear.”
What it means
“Clear-minded people worship the divine; restless people worship power and wealth; dull-minded people worship ghosts and spirits.”
The original Sanskrit
यजन्ते सात्त्विका देवान्यक्षरक्षांसि राजसाः । प्रेतान्भूतगणांश्चान्ये यजन्ते तामसा जनाः ॥
yajante sāttvikā devānyakṣarakṣāṃsi rājasāḥ pretānbhūtagaṇāṃścānye yajante tāmasā janāḥ
Translations
Literal translation
Those having the sattva quality worship the gods; those having rajas, the demi-gods and ogres; and other people possessed of tamas worship ghosts and the hosts of spirits.
Swami Gambhirananda
हिंदी अनुवाद
सात्त्विक पुरुष देवताओं को पूजते हैं और राजस लोग यक्ष और राक्षसों को, तथा अन्य तामसी जन प्रेत और भूतगणों को पूजते हैं।
Swami Tejomayananda
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Commentaries
How great teachers across 1,200 years have explained this verse.
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Keep reading · 17.5“Some people practise extreme self-punishment that no scripture recommends, driven by hypocrisy, ego, desire, attachment and force.”