Chapter 18: Moksha-sannyasa-yoga:: Verse 21
पृथक्त्वेन तु यज्ज्ञानं नानाभावान्पृथग्विधान् ।
वेत्ति सर्वेषु भूतेषु तज्ज्ञानं विद्धि राजसम् ॥
pṛthaktvena tu yajjñānaṃ nānā-bhāvān-pṛthag-vidhān
vetti sarveṣu bhūteṣu tajjñānaṃ viddhi rājasam – 18.21
Know that to be the rājasa knowledge, whereby one perceives separateness and plural attitudes and expressions in all beings.
Chapter 18: Moksha-sannyasa-yoga: - Verse 21
Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha
In sattvika knowledge, prime importance is given to something subtler than what the senses perceive. But in rajasa knowledge, all that has no place and purpose. “Senses perceive objects as separate, and there is nothing more to think about them. Each being has its body, and each body is separate and independent. To bother beyond this is an indulgence in vain. Let us be governed only by what the senses see.” – This is rajasa knowledge.
Rajasa knowledge totally denies inner growth, expansion and elevation, which are the only factors making human life different from that of other animals. The rajasa people think: “Any probe and assessment beyond the sensory findings will only confuse one, bringing instability and imbalance. Let us not indulge in any such line of thinking. By arguing that there is a presence inside the visible body, and that is subtle and pervasive, what do we gain? It is like measuring the thickness of a shadow! What earthly purpose is there in such a probe or finding? One has to be practical and purposeful in what he does.”
