Bhagavad Gita 14.17: meaning and translation
Chapter 14: Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga. Krishna says
From sattva, Krishna says, knowledge arises; from rajas, greed; and from tamas come carelessness, confusion and ignorance.
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Bhagavad Gita 14.17
सत्त्वात्सञ्जायते ज्ञानं रजसो लोभ एव च ।प्रमादमोहौ तमसो भवतोऽज्ञानमेव च ॥
Sattvatsanjayate jnanam rajaso lobha eva chaPramadamohau tamaso bhavatojnanameva cha
sattvātsañjāyate jñānaṃ rajaso lobha eva ca |pramādamohau tamaso bhavato’jñānameva ca ||
Our explanation From sattva, Krishna says, knowledge arises; from rajas, greed; and from tamas come carelessness, confusion and ignorance.
हिंदी अर्थ कृष्ण कहते हैं कि सत्त्व से ज्ञान उत्पन्न होता है, रज से लोभ, और तम से प्रमाद, मोह और अज्ञान।
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- सत्त्वात् sattvāt · from sattva (noun (neuter), ablative singular) Dictionary: sat-tva, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1135, col. 2 “the quality of purity or goodness”
- सञ्जायते sañjāyate · arises (present, 3rd person singular) Dictionary: saṃ-jan, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1133, col. 1 “arise or come forth from (abl.), come into existence”
- ज्ञानम् jñānam · knowledge (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: jñāna, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 426, col. 1 “knowing, becoming acquainted with, knowledge”
- रजसः rajasaḥ · from rajas (noun (neuter), ablative singular) Dictionary: rajas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 863, col. 2 “the ‘darkening’ quality, passion, emotion, affection”
- लोभः lobhaḥ · greed (noun (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: lobha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 905, col. 1 “covetousness, cupidity, avarice”
- एव eva · also (indeclinable) Dictionary: 1. eva, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 232, col. 2 “just, exactly, very, same, only, even, alone, merely”
- च ca · and (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. ca, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 380, col. 1 “and, both, also, moreover, as well as”
- प्रमादमोहौ pramādamohau · carelessness and delusion (compound (masculine), nominative dual) Dictionary: pra-māda, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 685, col. 2 “negligence, carelessness about (abl. or comp.)”; moha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 836, col. 1 “loss of consciousness, bewilderment, perplexity, distraction, infatuation, delusion, error, folly”
- तमसः tamasaḥ · from tamas (noun (neuter), ablative singular) Dictionary: tamas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 438, col. 1 “one of the 3 qualities or constituents of everything in creation”
- भवतः bhavataḥ · arise (both) (present, 3rd person dual) Dictionary: 1. bhū, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 760, col. 2 “arise, come into being, exist”
- अज्ञानम् ajñānam · ignorance (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: a-jñāna, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 10, col. 3 “non-cognizance; ignorance”
- एव eva · also (indeclinable) Dictionary: 1. eva, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 232, col. 2 “just, exactly, very, same, only, even, alone, merely”
- च ca · and (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. ca, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 380, col. 1 “and, both, also, moreover, as well as”
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 109.
From goodness is produced knowledge, from passion avarice1, and from darkness heedlessness and delusion and ignorance also.
Footnotes (the translator’s own) - Cf. Sutta Nipâta, p. 15. ↩
Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 109.
From goodness is produced knowledge, from passion avarice1, and from darkness heedlessness and delusion and ignorance also.
Footnotes (the translator’s own) - Cf. Sutta Nipâta, p. 15. ↩
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Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 132.
From Sattva wisdom is born, and also greed from Rajas; negligence and delusion are of Tamas and also unwisdom.
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 277.
From Satva arises wisdom, and greed from Rajas; miscomprehension, and delusion and ignorance arise from Tamas.
You are reading this one
Cite this verse
The translation: K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 109. Bhagavad Gita 14.17.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 132. Bhagavad Gita 14.17.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 277. Bhagavad Gita 14.17.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 14.17: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 25, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/14/17/
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Bhagavad Gita 14.17
सत्त्वात्सञ्जायते ज्ञानं रजसो लोभ एव च ।
प्रमादमोहौ तमसो भवतोऽज्ञानमेव च ॥
“From goodness is produced knowledge, from passion avarice, and from darkness heedlessness and delusion and ignorance also.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 109, public domain)
“From Sattva wisdom is born, and also greed from Rajas; negligence and delusion are of Tamas and also unwisdom.”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 132, public domain)
“From Satva arises wisdom, and greed from Rajas; miscomprehension, and delusion and ignorance arise from Tamas.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 277, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/14/17/ Nothing is sent from this site. Your own app sends it, to the chat you choose. The picture quotes the translation you chose on this page, with its name and year.
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. Source and changes
Questions families ask
Who speaks Bhagavad Gita 14.17?
Krishna speaks this verse, in chapter 14 (Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga).
Where does the Sanskrit text come from?
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. See the source
Is the meaning on this page a translation?
Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
Source and licence
- Sanskrit text
- The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation (Annie Besant, G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922). Public domain. The Sanskrit on these pages was read from this printing’s page images.
- Translation
- The Bhagavadgîtâ with the Sanatsugâtîya and the Anugîtâ, translated by Kâshinâth Trimbak Telang (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, ed. F. Max Müller) (Kashinath Trimbak Telang, F. Max Müller, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1882). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song, translated by Annie Besant (Annie Besant, Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1895). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita, with Sanskrit Text; Paraphrase with Word-by-word Literal Translation; English Rendering and Comments, Index, &c., by the Swami Swarupananda (Himalayan Series, No. XX) (Swami Swarupananda, The Editors and Publishers, Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, Prabuddha Bharata Press, Mayavati, Almora, Himalayas, 1909). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Common wording
- In this text, 32 words follow today's common wording, checked against sanskritdocuments.org; Sanskrit Wikisource; Gita Press, Gorakhpur; GRETIL, Göttingen and Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
- Our explanation
- Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
- Checked
- Checked against the cited edition, October 14, 2026.
- Updated
- October 25, 2026