Yoga through Discerning the Three Divisions of Faith
Verse 17.4
यजन्ते सात्त्विका देवान्यक्षरक्षांसि राजसाः।प्रेतान्भूतगणांश्चान्ये यजन्ते तामसा जनाः।।17.4।।
yajante sāttvikā devān yakṣha-rakṣhānsi rājasāḥ pretān bhūta-gaṇānśh chānye yajante tāmasā janāḥ
Word Meanings
yajante—worship; sāttvikāḥ—those in the mode of goodness; devān—celestial gods; yakṣha—semi-celestial beings who exude power and wealth; rakṣhānsi—powerful beings who embody sensual enjoyment, revenge, and wrath; rājasāḥ—those in the mode of passion; pretān-bhūta-gaṇān—ghosts and spirits; cha—and; anye—others; yajante—worship; tāmasāḥ—those in the mode of ignorance; janāḥ—persons
Translation · English
The sattvic, or pure, men worship the gods; the rajasic, or passionate, worship the yakshas and rakshasas; the others, the tamasic or deluded people, worship ghosts and hosts of nature-spirits.
Deep Meaning · English
In this verse, Bhagavan Krishna reveals the profound truth that the object of one's worship is a mirror of one's own inner constitution. The act of 'yajana' or worship here transcends mere ritual; it represents the subconscious magnetic pull of the soul toward a specific ideal. Those established in Sattva seek the Devas—archetypes of light, harmony, and cosmic order—because their hearts resonate with the expansive, selfless, and luminous nature of the divine. They strive for spiritual evolution and the alignment of the human will with the Divine Will. Conversely, those in the mode of Rajas seek Yakshas and Rakshasas, reflecting a consciousness obsessed with control, material accumulation, and the gratification of the ego's power-driven fantasies. This is a life defined by the pursuit of temporary dominance rather than eternal peace. Finally, those in the mode of Tamas gravitate toward Pretas and Bhutas—entities dwelling in the shadows of existence, representing decay, fear, and regression. This indicates a psyche captured by inertia, base impulses, and the fragmented remnants of past attachments. The Gita illustrates here that we do not merely choose our gods; our gods are chosen for us by the quality of our Gunas. Krishna is teaching Arjuna that the nature of one's devotion dictates the direction of one's destiny, urging him to purify his internal disposition so that he might naturally ascend toward the highest light.
The divinity we worship is ultimately a manifestation of our own internal quality of consciousness, reflecting whether our heart gravitates toward illumination, power, or regression.
Connected Verses
This establishes the fundamental law that the mode of goodness leads upward, passion keeps one in the middle, and ignorance causes one to sink.
Krishna explicitly states that those who worship the ancestors, spirits, or gods eventually go to them, but those who worship the Supreme reach the Supreme.
This verse reinforces that when a devotee wishes to worship with faith, Krishna makes that faith unwavering, even if the object of worship is a subordinate deity.
Krishna confirms this reciprocal relationship by stating that as men surrender to Him, so He reveals Himself to them.
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