Shloka 7
Adhyāya 41 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Gurv-anumati and Strategic Counsel (युधिष्ठिरस्य गुर्वनुमतिः)
रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासड्रसमुद्धवम् । तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसड्रेन देहिनम्
rajo rāgātmakaṁ viddhi tṛṣṇā-saṅga-samudbhavam | tan nibadhnāti kaunteya karma-saṅgena dehinam ||
हे अर्जुना! रजोगुण हा रागरूप आहे असे जाण; तो तृष्णा व आसक्तीपासून उत्पन्न होतो. हे कौन्तेया, तो देहीला कर्माच्या आसक्तीने (आणि कर्मफळाच्या लिप्सेने) बांधतो.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Rajas is identified as passion born of craving and attachment; it binds the embodied self by creating involvement in action and especially in the pursuit of results, leading to continual restlessness and moral-spiritual entanglement.
In the teaching on the three guṇas, Kṛṣṇa explains to Arjuna how each guṇa operates. Here he defines rajas and describes its mechanism of bondage: it drives the person into action fueled by desire and attachment, tying the self to outcomes.