Rajasic determination is result-attached persistence.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
यया तु धर्मकामार्थान्धृत्या धारयतेऽर्जुन |प्रसङ्गेन फलाकाङ्क्षी धृतिः सा पार्थ राजसी ||१८-३४||
yayā tu dharmakāmārthāndhṛtyā dhārayate.arjuna . prasaṅgena phalākāṅkṣī dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha rājasī ||18-34||
Use this verse when goals become reward-obsession.
Meaning
O Arjuna, that determination by which one holds to dharma, desire, and wealth while attached and longing for fruits is rajasic.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Rajasic determination persists, but for results, desire, and gain.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Rajasic firmness can be strong, but it is tied to fruit, ambition, and attachment. It may sustain effort, yet its motive keeps the mind restless.
Read the traditional commentary
Rajasic dhriti is the firmness with which a person clings tightly to dharma, kama, and artha — duty, pleasure, and wealth — but always prasangena, through attachment, and always with a hungry eye on the reward. The resolve is real, yet it is harnessed to craving.
This is the determination of the worldly striver. Such a person can be remarkably persistent, but their steadiness serves desire rather than freedom. They pursue even worthy aims like duty and prosperity in a grasping spirit, anxious for results. Krishna marks this firmness as rajasic not because its goals are evil but because attachment to outcomes contaminates it, making it restless and ultimately binding.
In daily life
Notice when discipline is driven by craving for outcome.
A person may work out consistently only for image validation, not health or discipline.
Try this today
Reframe one goal from reward-driven to value-driven.
I turn restless persistence into value-based steadiness.Reflect
What fruit is driving my persistence?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘धर्मकामार्थान्’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on rajas, in other chapters
- Verse 14.7Restless craving disguises itself as productivity — it is attachment to doing, not action itself, that binds you.
- Verse 3.37The real enemy within is insatiable desire, which sours into anger — name it clearly, for an enemy understood can be conquered.
- Verse 2.62The chain from desire to suffering begins with where we choose to dwell with our attention — wisdom lies in managing attention before desire manages us.
- Verse 17.9Constantly chasing intense stimulation — in food or in life — thrills for a moment but breeds agitation and suffering over time.
Swipe left for 18.35 · Tamas stubbornly holds harmful states.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 18.34
Who says Bhagavad Gita 18.34, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 18.34, in Chapter 18, Moksha Sannyas Yoga (Moksha Sannyas Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 18.34 mean?
O Arjuna, that determination by which one holds to dharma, desire, and wealth while attached and longing for fruits is rajasic. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 18.34 for daily life?
Notice when discipline is driven by craving for outcome. A person may work out consistently only for image validation, not health or discipline.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 18.34 mean?
यया तु — but that by which; धर्मकामार्थान् — duty, pleasure and wealth; धृत्या धारयते — with firmness one holds fast; अर्जुन — O Arjuna; प्रसङ्गेन — through attachment.
Where does verse 18.34 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 34 of 78 in Chapter 18, Moksha Sannyas Yoga. The next verse is 18.35.