Shloka 29
Karma Yoga — Karma Yoga
प्रकृतेर्गुणसंमूढाः सज्जन्ते गुणकर्मसु । तानकृत्स्नविदो मन्दान्कृत्स्नविन्न विचालयेत् ॥ ३.२९ ॥
prakṛter guṇa-sammūḍhāḥ sajjante guṇa-karmasu | tān akṛtsnavido mandān kṛtsnavin na vicālayet || 3.29 ||
प्रकृतीच्या गुणांनी मोहग्रस्त झालेले लोक गुणकर्मांत आसक्त होतात; सर्वसमग्र जाणणारा कृत्स्नवित्, अंशतः जाणणाऱ्या मंदबुद्धींना विचलित करू नये.
Those deluded by nature’s guṇas become attached to the actions of the guṇas; the knower of the whole should not unsettle the dull who know only a part.
Confused by the guṇas of nature, they cling to guṇa-based actions; the one who knows the whole should not disturb those slow ones who know incompletely.
The verse reinforces a graded pedagogy: rather than condemning the attached, it advises the ‘kṛtsnavit’ (comprehensive knower) to avoid destabilizing partial understandings.
FAQs
It recognizes that attachment can be structurally reinforced by temperament and habit; change is more effective when it respects a person’s current capacity.
The guṇas are presented as binding forces; insight into them yields freedom, but the transmission of that insight must be appropriate to the listener.
Following the analysis of guṇas and doership, Krishna advises how the wise should relate to those still operating under guṇa-driven attachment.
In mentoring, avoid shaming or abrupt deconstruction; instead, scaffold understanding so responsibilities are maintained while insight grows.