arjuna uvaca: ye sastra-vidhim utsrijya yajante sraddhayanvitah, tesam nistha tu ka krishna sattvam aho rajas tamah
Arjuna asks Krishna about those who worship with faith but without following scriptural injunctions — what is their standing? Are they in sattva, rajas, or tamas? This question opens the chapter's inquiry into the three types of faith.
- •Faith can exist without formal scriptural study
- •The quality of faith varies among individuals
- •Krishna will classify faith according to the three gunas
asraddhaya hutam dattam tapas taptam kritam ca yat, asad ity ucyate partha na ca tat pretya no iha
Whatever is offered, given, practiced as austerity, or performed without faith is called 'Asat' — it is of no value either in this world or the next, O Partha.
- •Faith (sraddha) is the indispensable foundation of all spiritual acts
- •Actions performed without faith are called Asat — unreal and worthless
- •The chapter closes by emphasizing that without sraddha, no practice yields lasting fruit
sraddhaval anasuyas ca srinuyad api yo narah so 'pi muktah subhal lokan prapnuyat punya-karmanam
And the person who listens to this with faith and without malice, even that person shall be liberated and shall attain the auspicious worlds of the righteous. Even hearing the Gita with sincerity bears transformative spiritual fruit.
- •Faithful, non-malicious hearing of the Gita leads to liberation and auspicious rebirths
- •Sraddha — faith — is the essential quality of the receptive listener
- •Even passive hearing without complete understanding carries profound spiritual benefit