Motive changes the quality of worship.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
अभिसन्धाय तु फलं दम्भार्थमपि चैव यत् |इज्यते भरतश्रेष्ठ तं यज्ञं विद्धि राजसम् ||१७-१२||
abhisandhāya tu phalaṃ dambhārthamapi caiva yat . ijyate bharataśreṣṭha taṃ yajñaṃ viddhi rājasam ||17-12||
Use this verse before public spiritual actions.
Meaning
O best of Bharatas, sacrifice performed with desire for results or for the sake of show should be known as rajasic.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Rajasic sacrifice seeks reward, reputation, or display.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna warns that even sacred acts can be hijacked by ambition. If the motive is result, status, networking, branding, or praise, the offering becomes rajasic.
Read the traditional commentary
Rajasic sacrifice is defined by two motives: abhisandhaya phalam — performing it with a definite eye on the reward — and dambha-artham, doing it for display and reputation. The outer form may be flawless, even lavish, but the inner driver is gain and image. Worship becomes a transaction or a performance staged for the approval of others.
The teaching exposes a subtle trap that pervades religious and worldly life alike. We can do all the right things outwardly while the heart remains entangled in ambition and self-promotion. Krishna does not condemn the act itself but its contamination by craving and pride.
The same gesture of offering can be pure or impure depending entirely on what the mind is reaching for. Where the deed is bent toward fruit and applause, its spiritual value is diminished, however impressive it appears.
In daily life
Check whether your spiritual act is service or self-promotion.
A person may donate mainly to be seen as generous or spiritual.
Try this today
Before one offering, remove one expectation of praise or gain.
I purify my offering from display and reward-seeking.Reflect
What reward am I expecting from this good action?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘भरतश्रेष्ठ’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on rajas, in other chapters
- Verse 18.24Action driven by craving, ego, and exhausting strain is restless and binding, not free.
- Verse 3.25Work as hard as the most driven person, but let your motive be the good of all rather than personal gain.
- Verse 7.16Whatever motive first turns you toward the Divine — pain, curiosity, or need — is a valid and welcomed beginning.
- Verse 14.16The inner quality behind your actions, not just their outcome, decides whether you harvest peace, pain, or confusion.
Swipe left for 17.13 · Careless worship becomes tamasic.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 17.12
Who says Bhagavad Gita 17.12, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 17.12, in Chapter 17, Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga (Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 17.12 mean?
O best of Bharatas, sacrifice performed with desire for results or for the sake of show should be known as rajasic. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 17.12 for daily life?
Check whether your spiritual act is service or self-promotion. A person may donate mainly to be seen as generous or spiritual.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 17.12 mean?
अभिसन्धाय तु फलम् — but aiming at a reward; दम्भार्थम् अपि च एव — and also for the sake of show / ostentation; यत् इज्यते — that which is performed; भरतश्रेष्ठ — O best of the Bharatas (Arjuna); तम् यज्ञम् विद्धि राजसम् — know that sacrifice to be rajasic.
Where does verse 17.12 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 12 of 28 in Chapter 17, Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga. The next verse is 17.13.