🪷 Bhagavad-Gītā · 18.21

Chapter 18 · मोक्षसंन्यासयोग · Mokṣa-Sannyāsa-Yoga · "The Yoga of Liberation & Renunciation" · Verse 21 of 78

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पृथक्त्वेन तु यज्ज्ञानं नानाभावान्पृथग्विधान्।वेत्ति सर्वेषु भूतेषु तज्ज्ञानं विद्धि राजसम्।।18.21।।
— Bhagavad-Gītā 18.21 · the yathārtha śloka (Devanāgarī Sanskrit · canonical)

🪷 English Translations

Five authentic English voices · each from a distinct sampradāya · together revealing the verse's full śabda-tattva.

Shri Purohit Swami · Poetic English · 1935 · public domain · Cosmo Press tradition
18.21 The knowledge which thinks of the manifold existence in all beings as separate - that comes from Passion.
Swami Sivananda · Direct prose · Divine Life Society
18.21 But that knowledge which sees in all beings various entities of distinct kinds as different from one another know thou that knowledge to be Rajasic.
Swami Gambīrānanda · Word-key glosses · Advaita Ashrama · Śaṅkara-school
18.21 Tu, but; viddhi, know; tat, that; jnanam, knowledge; to be rajasam, originating from rajas; yat, which; sarvesu bhutesu, amidst all things; vetti, apprehends-since knowledge cannot be an agent of hends-since knowledge cannot be an agent of action, therefore the meaning implied is, 'that, knowledge৷৷.through which one apprehends৷৷.'-; nana-bhavan, the different entities; prthagvidhan, of various kinds, i.e., those possessing diverse characteristics and different from oneself; prthakrvena, as distinct, as separate in each body.
Swami Ādidevānanda · Śrī-Vaiṣṇava perspective · Rāmānuja school
18.21 Whatever knowledge perceives in Brahmana etc., at the time of work, the entity known as the Atman as of diverse nature because the bodies of those beings are tall or fair and are fit to attain the fruits of work - know that knowledge to be Rajasika. The point is this: It is not a condemnation of the plurality of Atman. The Atman, though distinct, is uniform everywhere. The bodily attributes do not affect it. The knowledge lacking this understanding is stigmatised as Rajasa.
Dr. S. Sankaranarayan · Academic precision · modern scholarly
18.21. That instrument-of-knowledge, by means of which one considers the varied natures of different sorts in all beings as [really] different-that is regarded to be of the Rajas (Strand).

🪷 Hindi Translation · हिन्दी अनुवाद

For the Hindi-aware seer · Pūjya Swami Rāmsukhdās ji's translation · the highest-readability modern Hindi rendering · Gītā-Press Gorakhpur tradition.

🪷 Swami Rāmsukhdās · Sādhaka-Sañjīvanī tradition · Gītā-Press Gorakhpur · highest modern Hindi reading
।।18.21।।परन्तु जो ज्ञान अर्थात् जिस ज्ञानके द्वारा मनुष्य सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंमें अलग-अलग अनेक भावोंको अलग-अलग रूपसे जानता है, उस ज्ञानको तुम राजस समझो।

🪷 English Commentaries · The Ācārya Voices

The classical commentary tradition rendered in English · each ācārya speaks from their own sampradāya · the seer chooses the depth of darśana.

Swami Sivananda · Verse-by-verse word-keys with Sanskrit anchors
18.21 पृथक्त्वेन as different from one another? तु but? यत् which? ज्ञानम् knowledge? नानाभावान् various entities? पृथग्विधान् of distinct kinds? वेत्ति knows? सर्वेषु (in) all? भूतेषु in beings? तत् that? ज्ञानम् knowledge? विद्धि know? राजसम् Rajasic.Commentary Knowledge which sees As knowledge cannot be an agent? this should be interpreted to mean knowledge by which one sees.Entities Selves or souls.Different from one another Regarding them as different in different bodies.The knowledge that is led by the idea of separateness is passionate. Enveloping as it does the manifold creation with the veil of separateness? it deludes even the wise man. Owing to passionate knowledge? beings appear to be separate and the perception of unity is also lost sight of. That knowledge which beholds multiplicity in created objects and differentiates them as being small or great? according to their form and size? is of passionate nature and tainted. A man with passionate knowledge sees diversity everywhere. He beholds the many only.Now I will explain to thee? O Arjuna? knowledge that is of the ality of darkness? in order that thou mayest avoid it.
Swami Gambīrānanda · Advaita-school commentary (Śaṅkara tradition)
18.21 Tu, but; viddhi, know; tat, that; jnanam, knowledge; to be rajasam, originating from rajas; yat, which; sarvesu bhutesu, amidst all things; vetti, apprehends-since knowledge cannot be an agent of hends-since knowledge cannot be an agent of action, therefore the meaning implied is, 'that, knowledge৷৷.through which one apprehends৷৷.'-; nana-bhavan, the different entities; prthagvidhan, of various kinds, i.e., those possessing diverse characteristics and different from oneself; prthakrvena, as distinct, as separate in each body.
Swami Ādidevānanda · Rāmānuja Śrī-Vaiṣṇava commentary
18.21 Whatever knowledge perceives in Brahmana etc., at the time of work, the entity known as the Atman as of diverse nature because the bodies of those beings are tall or fair and are fit to attain the fruits of work - know that knowledge to be Rajasika. The point is this: It is not a condemnation of the plurality of Atman. The Atman, though distinct, is uniform everywhere. The bodily attributes do not affect it. The knowledge lacking this understanding is stigmatised as Rajasa.
Dr. S. Sankaranarayan · Modern academic scholarship
18.21 See Comment under 18.22
Swami Chinmayānanda · Chinmaya Mission · modern Vedantic teaching
।।18.21।। जब हम इन्द्रिय? मन और बुद्धि के माध्यम से जगत् का अवलोकन करते हैं? तब? निसन्देह उसमें हमें असंख्य प्रकार के भेद दृष्टिगोचर होते हैं। परन्तु जो वस्तु जिस रूप में दिखाई देती है? उसके उसी रूप को सत्य समझ लेना अविवेक का लक्षण है। राजसी पुरुष का मन सदैव चंचल और अस्थिर रहने के कारण वह कभी शान्त मन से विचार नहीं कर पाता और यही कारण है कि वह दृष्टिगोचर भेद? जैसे वनस्पति? पशु? मनुष्य आदि को परस्पर सर्वथा भिन्न और सत्य मान लेता है। ऐसे ज्ञान को राजस ज्ञान कहते हैं।

🪷 Hindi Vyākhyā · हिन्दी व्याख्या

Pūjya Swami Rāmsukhdās ji's Sādhaka-Sañjīvanī · one of the greatest modern Hindi vyākhyās of the Gītā · direct, pure, deeply Vedāntic · the modern Sanātana-jāgaraṇa.

🪷 Swami Rāmsukhdās · Sādhaka-Sañjīvanī · Hindi vyākhyā · the modern bilingual anchor
।।18.21।। व्याख्या -- पृथक्त्वेन तु (टिप्पणी प0 904.1) यज्ज्ञानं नानाभावान् पृथग्विधान् -- राजस ज्ञानमें राग की मुख्यता होती है -- रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि (गीता 14। 7)। रागका यह नियम है कि वह जिसमें आ जाता है? उसमें किसीके प्रति आसक्ति? प्रियता पैदा करा देता है और किसीके प्रति द्वेष पैदा करा देता है। इस रागके कारण ही मनुष्य? देवता? यक्षराक्षस? पशुपक्षी? कीटपतङ्ग? वृक्षलता आदि जितने भी चरअचर प्राणी हैं? उन प्राणियोंकी विभिन्न आकृति? स्वभाव? नाम? रूप? गुण आदिको लेकर राजस ज्ञानवाला मनुष्य उनमें रहनेवाली एक ही अविनाशी आत्माको तत्त्वसे अलगअलग समझता है।वेत्ति सर्वेषु भूतेषु तज्ज्ञानं विद्धि राजसम् -- इसी तरह जिस ज्ञानसे मनुष्य अलगअलग शरीरोंमें अन्तःकरण? स्वभाव? इन्द्रियाँ? प्राण आदिके सम्बन्धसे प्राणियोंको भी अलगअलग मानता है? वह ज्ञान राजस कहलाता है। राजस ज्ञानमें जडचेतनका विवेक नहीं होता। सम्बन्ध -- अब तामस ज्ञानका वर्णन करते हैं।

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