Each guna produces its own fruit.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
कर्मणः सुकृतस्याहुः सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम् |रजसस्तु फलं दुःखमज्ञानं तमसः फलम् ||१४-१६||
karmaṇaḥ sukṛtasyāhuḥ sāttvikaṃ nirmalaṃ phalam . rajasastu phalaṃ duḥkhamajñānaṃ tamasaḥ phalam ||14-16||
Use this verse for habit consequence mapping.
Meaning
The result of good action is said to be pure and sattvic; the result of rajas is sorrow, and the result of tamas is ignorance.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Sattva gives purity, rajas gives sorrow, and tamas gives ignorance.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna explains the outcomes of the gunas. Sattva produces clean results, rajas produces dissatisfaction and stress, while tamas deepens ignorance.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna now describes the harvest each guṇa yields, for actions take their colour from the quality that motivates them. Deeds done in sattva — sukṛta, good and well-performed — bear a nirmala, stainless fruit: peace, wisdom, and clean satisfaction. Actions driven by rajas, however well they begin, ripen into duḥkha, pain, because craving can never be filled and its objects always slip away. And the fruit of tamasic action is ajñāna — deepening ignorance and confusion.
This is a teaching about consequences read from the inside. We may judge an action by its outward result, but the Gita asks us to look at the inner motive, for that determines the true harvest. Work done with calm clarity leaves the heart lighter; work done from greed leaves it heavier, whatever the outcome; work done in heedless dullness only thickens the fog. The same deed, differently motivated, ripens into peace, pain, or darkness.
In daily life
Judge habits by their long-term fruit, not short-term pleasure.
Late-night scrolling may feel pleasant briefly but produces tamasic dullness the next day.
Try this today
Pick one habit and write its sattvic, rajasic, or tamasic fruit.
I choose actions by their true fruit.Reflect
What fruit is my current habit producing?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘रजसः तु फलम्’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on consequences, in other chapters
- Verse 16.19The nature we cultivate becomes the world we are reborn into — character shapes destiny across lifetimes.
- Verse 17.4What you choose to worship reveals what you truly value — let your reverence rise toward the highest, not the fearful or the greedy.
- Verse 13.22What you cling to shapes where you go — attachment to nature's qualities keeps the wheel of rebirth turning.
- Verse 15.2Desire-driven actions send down new roots that bind us deeper into the cycle of becoming.
Swipe left for 14.17 · Inner outputs reveal the active guna.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 14.16
Who says Bhagavad Gita 14.16, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 14.16, in Chapter 14, Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga (Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 14.16 mean?
The result of good action is said to be pure and sattvic; the result of rajas is sorrow, and the result of tamas is ignorance. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 14.16 for daily life?
Judge habits by their long-term fruit, not short-term pleasure. Late-night scrolling may feel pleasant briefly but produces tamasic dullness the next day.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 14.16 mean?
कर्मणः सुकृतस्य — of good action; आहुः — they say; सात्त्विकम् निर्मलम् फलम् — the fruit is sattvic and pure; रजसः तु फलम् — but the fruit of rajas; दुःखम् — is pain.
Where does verse 14.16 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 16 of 27 in Chapter 14, Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga. The next verse is 14.17.