Chapter 18, Verse 29
बुद्धेर्भेदं धृतेश्चैव गुणतस्त्रिविधं शृणु | प्रोच्यमानमशेषेण पृथक्त्वेन धनञ्जय ||१८-२९||
buddherbhedaṃ dhṛteścaiva guṇatastrividhaṃ śṛṇu . procyamānamaśeṣeṇa pṛthaktvena dhanañjaya ||18-29||
Meaning
18.29 Hear thou the threefold division of intellect and firmness according to the Gunas, as I declare them fully and distinctly, O Arjuna.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna continues his systematic survey, now turning to buddhi (intellect or understanding) and dhriti (firmness or steadiness of will). Each, he promises, will be set out fully and distinctly according to the three gunas.
This pairing is deliberate and practical. Buddhi is the faculty that discerns what should be done; dhriti is the power that holds steady in doing it. Together they form the inner engine of right living — clear judgment and the resolve to act on it. By examining how these too are colored by sattva, rajas, and tamas, Krishna gives Arjuna a precise vocabulary for understanding the quality of his own decisions and his own perseverance.
💡 Key Takeaway
Both clear judgment and steady resolve come in pure, restless, and dark varieties worth recognizing in yourself.
Related Verses
निश्चयं शृणु मे तत्र त्यागे भरतसत्तम | त्यागो हि पुरुषव्याघ्र त्रिविधः सम्प्रकीर्तितः ||१८-४||
niścayaṃ śṛṇu me tatra tyāge bharatasattama . tyāgo hi puruṣavyāghra trividhaḥ samprakīrtitaḥ ||18-4||
18.4 Hear from Me the conclusion or the final truth about this abandonment, O best of the Bharatas; abandonment, verily, O best of men, has been declared to be of three kinds.
पञ्चैतानि महाबाहो कारणानि निबोध मे | साङ्ख्ये कृतान्ते प्रोक्तानि सिद्धये सर्वकर्मणाम् ||१८-१३||
pañcaitāni mahābāho kāraṇāni nibodha me . sāṅkhye kṛtānte proktāni siddhaye sarvakarmaṇām ||18-13||
18.13 Learn from Me, O mighty-armed Arjuna, these five causes as declared in the Sankhya system for the accomplishment of all actions.
अधिष्ठानं तथा कर्ता करणं च पृथग्विधम् | विविधाश्च पृथक्चेष्टा दैवं चैवात्र पञ्चमम् ||१८-१४||
adhiṣṭhānaṃ tathā kartā karaṇaṃ ca pṛthagvidham . vividhāśca pṛthakceṣṭā daivaṃ caivātra pañcamam ||18-14||
18.14 The seat (body), the doer, the various senses, the different functions of various sorts, and the presiding deity, also, the fifth.