Bhagavad Gita 18.25
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 25 of 78
अनुबन्धं क्षयं हिंसाम् अनपेक्ष्य च पौरुषम् । मोहाद् आरभ्यते कर्म यत् तत् तामसम् उच्यते ॥
anubandhaṃ kṣayaṃ hiṃsām anapekṣya ca pauruṣam | mohād ārabhyate karma yat tat tāmasam ucyate ||
Tāmasic karma: begun from delusion, ignoring consequences, waste, injury to beings, and one's own capacity.
Word by word (3)
- anubandhaṃ kṣayaṃ hiṃsām anapekṣya ca pauruṣam
- — without regarding (anapekṣya = not looking at, ignoring) the consequence/result (anubandham = what follows, the downstream consequence), the loss/waste (kṣayam = destruction/loss), the harm/injury to beings (hiṃsā), and also (ca) one's own capacity/manhood (pauruṣam = capability, strength)
- mohād ārabhyate karma yat tat tāmasam ucyate
- — action (karma) that is begun/undertaken (ārabhyate) from delusion (mohāt = from moha/confusion), that (yat) is called/said (ucyate) tāmasic (tāmasam) — four things ignored + moha as the root = tāmasic karma
- anapekṣya
- — without regarding/ignoring (a + apekṣya = not-having-considered; from apekṣ = to look toward, to consider); the key participial: all four items — anubandha, kṣaya, hiṃsā, pauruṣa — are ignored via this single act of non-consideration; anapekṣya IS the tāmasic cognitive failure in action
That action which is undertaken from delusion, without considering consequences, loss, harm to beings, and one's own capability — that is called tāmasic.
A modern analogy
Tāmasic karma is like a drunk driver — acting from a clouded (moha) consciousness, ignoring consequences (anubandha), ignoring the potential harm (hiṃsā), and overestimating their own capacity (pauruṣa). The four things ignored together paint a portrait of the consciousness completely obscured by tamas: no foresight, no concern for others, no self-knowledge.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
The action which is undertaken from delusion, without regarding the consequence, loss, injury, and ability, that is declared to be Tamasic. [1]
That action is declared to be Tamasika which is undertaken through delusion, without heed to the consequence, loss of power and wealth, injury to others, and one's own ability. [4]
That action which is commenced from delusion, regardless of consequences, loss, injury to living beings, and one's own ability, is called dark. [9]
The action undertaken with delusion, regardless of consequences, loss, injury to others, and own ability, is declared tāmasic. [13]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
This most secret śāstra spoken — knowing it, one becomes truly wise and kṛta-kṛtya: all duties fulfilled.
Wise action without fruit-seeking breaks the birth-cycle and leads to the sorrowless state.
Kṣatriya dharma: bravery, vigor, fortitude, skill, not-fleeing-battle, generosity, lordly bearing — born of svabhāva.
Acting for reward is the lowest form of action. Seek the wisdom that transcends reward-seeking.
Dying in rajas, one is born among the action-attached; dying in tamas, one is born in irrational wombs.
The fruit of sattvic action is pure; the fruit of rajas is pain; the fruit of tamas is ignorance.
Verse 25 of 78 · back to Chapter 18