Bhagavad Gita 17.19: meaning and translation
Chapter 17: Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga. Krishna says
Austerity done from a foolish notion (mūḍha-grāha), with torment to oneself, or to bring another to ruin, Krishna says, is called tāmasa.
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Bhagavad Gita 17.19
मूढग्राहेणात्मनो यत्पीडया क्रियते तपः ।परस्योत्सादनार्थं वा तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥
Mudhagrahenatmano yatpidaya kriyate tapahParasyotsadanartham va tattamasamudahritam
mūḍhagrāheṇātmano yatpīḍayā kriyate tapaḥ |parasyotsādanārthaṃ vā tattāmasamudāhṛtam ||
Our explanation Austerity done from a foolish notion (mūḍha-grāha), with torment to oneself, or to bring another to ruin, Krishna says, is called tāmasa.
हिंदी अर्थ कृष्ण कहते हैं कि जो तप मूर्खतापूर्ण हठ से, अपने को पीड़ा देकर, या किसी दूसरे का नाश करने के लिए किया जाता है, वह तामस कहलाता है।
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- मूढग्राहेण mūḍhagrāheṇa · from a foolish notion (compound (masculine), instrumental singular) Dictionary: mūḍha-grāha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 825, col. 2 “confused notion, misconception, infatuation”
- आत्मनः ātmanaḥ · of oneself (noun (masculine), genitive singular) Dictionary: ātman, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 135, col. 1 “the individual soul, self, abstract individual”
- यत् yat · which (pronoun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: yad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 844, col. 2 “who, which, what, whichever, whatever, that”
- पीडया pīḍayā · with torment (noun (feminine), instrumental singular) Dictionary: pīḍā, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 629, col. 2 “pain, suffering, annoyance, harm, injury”
- क्रियते kriyate · is done (present passive, 3rd person singular) Dictionary: 1. kṛ, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 301, col. 1 “to do, make, perform, accomplish, cause, effect”
- तपः tapaḥ · austerity (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: tapas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 437, col. 1 “religious austerity, bodily mortification, penance, severe meditation”
- परस्य parasya · of another (adjective (masculine), genitive singular) Dictionary: 1. para, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 586, col. 2 “another (different from one's self)”
- उत्सादनार्थम् utsādanārtham · to ruin (compound, accusative used as an adverb (for the sake of)) Dictionary: ut-sādana, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 182, col. 1 “destroying, overturning”; artha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 90, col. 3 “aim, purpose”
- वा vā · or (indeclinable) Dictionary: 1. vā, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 934, col. 2 “or”
- तत् tat · that (pronoun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: tad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 434, col. 1 “m. he, f. she, n. it, that, this”
- तामसम् tāmasam · tāmasa (adjective (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: tāmasa, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 442, col. 3 “appertaining to or affected by the quality tamas”
- उदाहृतम् udāhṛtam · is called (past participle (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: ud-āhṛta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 185, col. 3 “said, declared, illustrated; called, named, entitled”
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 120.
And that penance is described as dark, which is performed under a misguided conviction, with pain to oneself, or for the destruction of another.
Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 120.
And that penance is described as dark, which is performed under a misguided conviction, with pain to oneself, or for the destruction of another.
You are reading this one
Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 149.
That austerity done under a deluded understanding, with self-torture, or with the object of destroying another, that is declared tâmasic.
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 314.
That austerity which is practised out of a foolish notion, with self-torture or for the purpose of ruining another, is declared to be Támasic.
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. 120. Bhagavad Gita 17.19.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 149. Bhagavad Gita 17.19.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 314. Bhagavad Gita 17.19.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 17.19: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 25, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/17/19/
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Bhagavad Gita 17.19
मूढग्राहेणात्मनो यत्पीडया क्रियते तपः ।
परस्योत्सादनार्थं वा तत्तामसमुदाहृतम् ॥
“And that penance is described as dark, which is performed under a misguided conviction, with pain to oneself, or for the destruction of another.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 120, public domain)
“That austerity done under a deluded understanding, with self-torture, or with the object of destroying another, that is declared tâmasic.”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 149, public domain)
“That austerity which is practised out of a foolish notion, with self-torture or for the purpose of ruining another, is declared to be Támasic.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 314, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/17/19/ 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 17.19?
Krishna speaks this verse, in chapter 17 (Shraddhatraya 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 15, 2026.
- Updated
- October 25, 2026