Chapter 17, Verse 10
यातयामं गतरसं पूति पर्युषितं च यत् | उच्छिष्टमपि चामेध्यं भोजनं तामसप्रियम् ||१७-१०||
yātayāmaṃ gatarasaṃ pūti paryuṣitaṃ ca yat . ucchiṣṭamapi cāmedhyaṃ bhojanaṃ tāmasapriyam ||17-10||
Meaning
17.10 That which is state, tasteless, putrid, rotten, refuse and impure, is the food liked by the Tamasic.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Tamasic food is that which has lost all vitality — yata-yamam (stale and overcooked), gata-rasam (drained of taste and nourishment), puti (foul), paryushitam (left over from the day before), and even ucchishtam and amedhyam, that which is refuse and impure. It carries no life force and dulls whoever consumes it. This corresponds to the nature of tamas: inertia, decay, and unconsciousness.
The symbolism reaches beyond the kitchen. A tamasic disposition gravitates toward what is stagnant, neglected, and lifeless — not only in food but in habits, environments, and company. What we routinely accept into ourselves shapes our energy and awareness. To eat the dead and decayed is, in a sense, to feed our own dullness. Krishna invites us to notice whether the things we habitually consume awaken us or sink us further into heaviness.
💡 Key Takeaway
What is stale, lifeless, and impure dulls the spirit — be mindful of feeding yourself things that deaden rather than awaken you.
Related Verses
श्रीभगवानुवाच | त्रिविधा भवति श्रद्धा देहिनां सा स्वभावजा | सात्त्विकी राजसी चैव तामसी चेति तां शृणु ||१७-२||
śrībhagavānuvāca . trividhā bhavati śraddhā dehināṃ sā svabhāvajā . sāttvikī rājasī caiva tāmasī ceti tāṃ śṛṇu ||17-2||
17.2 The Blessed Lord said Threefold is the faith of the embodied, which is inherent in their nature the Sattvic (pure), the Rajasic (passionate) and the Tamasic (dark). Do thou hear of it.
आहारस्त्वपि सर्वस्य त्रिविधो भवति प्रियः | यज्ञस्तपस्तथा दानं तेषां भेदमिमं शृणु ||१७-७||
āhārastvapi sarvasya trividho bhavati priyaḥ . yajñastapastathā dānaṃ teṣāṃ bhedamimaṃ śṛṇu ||17-7||
17.7 The food also which is dear to each is threefold, as also sacrifice, austerity and almsgiving. Hear thou the distinction of these.
आयुःसत्त्वबलारोग्यसुखप्रीतिविवर्धनाः | रस्याः स्निग्धाः स्थिरा हृद्या आहाराः सात्त्विकप्रियाः ||१७-८||
āyuḥsattvabalārogyasukhaprītivivardhanāḥ . rasyāḥ snigdhāḥ sthirā hṛdyā āhārāḥ sāttvikapriyāḥ ||17-8||
17.8 The foods which increase life, purity, strength, health, joy and cheerfulness (good appetite), which are savoury and oleaginous, substantial and agreeable, are dear to the Sattvic (pure) people.