Chapter 17, Verse 13
विधिहीनमसृष्टान्नं मन्त्रहीनमदक्षिणम् | श्रद्धाविरहितं यज्ञं तामसं परिचक्षते ||१७-१३||
vidhihīnamasṛṣṭānnaṃ mantrahīnamadakṣiṇam . śraddhāvirahitaṃ yajñaṃ tāmasaṃ paricakṣate ||17-13||
Meaning
17.13 They declare that sacrifice to be Tamasic which is contrary to the ordinances of the scriptures, in which no food is distributed, which is devoid of Mantras, gifts and faith.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Tamasic sacrifice is empty of every essential element: vidhi-hinam (no order or right procedure), asrishta-annam (no sharing of food with others), mantra-hinam (no sacred utterance), adakshinam (no gift or gratitude offered), and — most tellingly — shraddha-virahitam, utterly devoid of faith. It is a hollow gesture performed mechanically, with neither understanding nor heart.
Krishna isolates faithlessness as the deepest flaw. Where rajasic worship at least burns with desire, tamasic worship is merely going through the motions, careless and unconscious. The absence of generosity (no food shared), of reverence (no mantra), and of sincerity (no faith) drains the act of all meaning. This is a caution against lifeless ritualism — doing sacred things out of empty habit, with the inner light extinguished. Without faith, even the most outwardly correct observance is dead.
💡 Key Takeaway
An act performed without faith, sincerity, or generosity is hollow — go through life present and reverent, not mechanical and empty.
Related Verses
अर्जुन उवाच | ये शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य यजन्ते श्रद्धयान्विताः | तेषां निष्ठा तु का कृष्ण सत्त्वमाहो रजस्तमः ||१७-१||
arjuna uvāca . ye śāstravidhimutsṛjya yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ . teṣāṃ niṣṭhā tu kā kṛṣṇa sattvamāho rajastamaḥ ||17-1||
17.1 Arjuna said Those who, setting aside the ordinances of the scriptures, perform sacrifice with faith, what is their condition, O Krishna? Is is Sattva, Rajas or Tamas?
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.
सत्त्वानुरूपा सर्वस्य श्रद्धा भवति भारत | श्रद्धामयोऽयं पुरुषो यो यच्छ्रद्धः स एव सः ||१७-३||
sattvānurūpā sarvasya śraddhā bhavati bhārata . śraddhāmayo.ayaṃ puruṣo yo yacchraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ ||17-3||
17.3 The faith of each is in accordance with his nature, O Arjuna. The man consists of his faith; as a man's faith is, so is he.