Bhagavad Gita — Moksha Sannyasa Yoga, Shloka 29
Moksha Sannyasa Yoga
बुद्धेर्भेदं धृतेश्चैव गुणतस्त्रिविधं शृणु । प्रोच्यमानमशेषेण पृथक्त्वेन धनंजय ॥ १८.२९ ॥
buddher bhedaṃ dhṛteś caiva guṇatas trividhaṃ śṛṇu | procyamānam aśeṣeṇa pṛthaktvena dhanaṃjaya || 18.29 ||
Hear from Me, O Dhanañjaya, the threefold distinction of intellect and of steadfastness, according to the guṇas, set forth completely and separately.
Hear from Me, O Dhanañjaya, the threefold distinction of intellect and firmness according to the guṇas, explained fully and separately.
Listen, O Dhanañjaya, to the threefold differentiation—by the guṇas—of intellect and of steadfastness, which I will expound completely, in distinct divisions.
This verse is programmatic: it introduces the upcoming analysis of buddhi (discriminative understanding) and dhṛti (steadfastness). Translations differ mainly in how dhṛti is glossed (firmness, perseverance, fortitude).
FAQs
It frames cognition and will-power as variable qualities shaped by underlying dispositions (guṇas), anticipating a structured account of how people judge and persist differently.
Buddhi and dhṛti are treated as functions within prakṛti conditioned by guṇas; the teaching implies that what appears as “my” intellect or resolve may be influenced by constitutive qualities of nature.
After describing types of agents, the text turns to the inner instruments that guide action—discernment and perseverance—key to the chapter’s soteriological aim (liberation through right understanding and disciplined action).
The verse encourages differentiating between clarity of judgment and sheer persistence, and examining how mood, habits, and environment influence both.