Arjuna Asks About Faith of Different People

Opening context: Arjuna’s question in the field of dharma

In the middle of the Kurukṣetra dialogue, Arjuna asks a precise practical question about human orientation: what is the nature of faith — śraddhā — among different people and how does that shape their acts and ends (Gītā 17.1)? This short exchange (Chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gītā, verses 1–28) moves from psychology to ritual, food, charity and austerity. It has been read for centuries not only as a taxonomy of moral temperament but also as a guide to lived religious practice across Śaiva, Vaiṣṇava, Śākta and Smārta contexts.

What Arjuna asks and what Krishna answers

Arjuna begins by saying that he sees faith of various kinds among people. Krishna responds by dividing faith along the three classical guṇas — sattva (purity and harmony), rajas (passion and activity) and tamas (inertia and ignorance) — and then describes how each guna colours:

• forms of worship and the object of worship (Gītā 17.4–7);
• types of food and dietary effects (17.8–10);
• ways of performing austerity and charity (17.11–22);
• worship practices and their fruits (17.23–28).

Threefold pattern — concise traits

• Sattvic faith: directed to what is pure, wise and harmonising. Foods are fresh, nourishing and moderate; sacrifices and gifts are done without expectation of return and with reverence. The result tends toward clarity, self-control and spiritual progress (Gītā 17.8, 17.20–21).
• Rajasic faith: motivated by desire, ego and attachment. Foods are stimulating or over-spiced; austerities are performed for show or gain; charity is given to the famous or for recognition. Results reinforce activity, ambition and entanglement (Gītā 17.9–17.21).
• Tamasic faith: rooted in ignorance or delusion. Foods are stale or impure; rites are performed incorrectly or with evil intent; charity is given destructively or harmfully. Outcomes tend toward confusion, degradation and bondage (Gītā 17.10, 17.21).

Practical domains Krishna touches

Krishna’s treatment is concrete. He lists foods, gifts, sacrifices and austerities by example rather than giving abstract definitions — a pedagogic move that allows practitioners to recognise patterns in everyday life. For instance, the Gītā’s food categories (17.8–10) are often cited in classical dietary ethics; verses on charity (17.20–22) distinguish motives and recipients; and the passages on vow and worship (17.11–19, 23–28) show how inward attitude determines ritual efficacy.

How commentators and traditions read the chapter

Classical commentators diverge in emphasis while broadly agreeing about the threefold typology. Śaṅkarācārya (Advaita) reads the classification as aiding discrimination between what binds and what frees: sattvic dispositions incline one toward jñāna (knowledge) and final release. Rāmānuja (Viśiṣṭādvaita) sees the categories through the lens of devotion: right-directed śraddhā culminates in surrender to Nārāyaṇa. Madhva (Dvaita) stresses the personal God and argues that devotional orientation (bhakti) determines posthumous results. Modern Vaiṣṇava interpreters often highlight verses that encourage steadfast, devotional worship directed to the Supreme as the highest form of faith (cf. Gītā 17.23–25).

Scholars and premodern exegetes also note that Krishna does not write off ritual per se: he evaluates ritual by motive and understanding. Worship offered with delusion or selfish craving has limited or even harmful consequences; worship offered with clear, disinterested faith is transformative. For many Smārta readings this allows inclusive ritual practice, while Śākta and Tantric traditions may interpret the criteria differently, emphasising the inner orientation and the guru’s role in removing tamasic impediments.

Living traditions: variety in practice

• Vaiṣṇava communities often emphasise devotional intention: the same puja can be sattvic if offered with surrender, rajasic if offered for results, or tamasic if mechanical or superstitious.
• Śaiva and Śākta practitioners may read the chapter as instruction on proper tapas and mantra practice: external austerities matter only when inner dispassion accompanies them.
• Smārta and temple traditions use the Gītā’s categories to teach ethical ritual: who receives alms, why, and how festivals and fasts are observed depend on intent as much as on form.

Contemporary relevance and cautions

The Gītā’s psychology remains useful for navigating ritual pluralism and moral choice: it encourages self-examination of motives. At the same time, modern readers should be cautious about simplistic labeling: scripture lists tendencies, not immutable destinies. Devotional communities emphasise transformation: a person’s predominant guna can change through practice, teaching and grace.

Practical note

The chapter also has practical implications—dietary and ascetic recommendations are given in everyday terms. If you follow fasts, breath practices or prolonged austerities mentioned in classical texts, consult an experienced teacher and, where health is concerned, a medical professional.

Conclusion: an ethics of orientation, not a caste of fate

When Arjuna asks about faith, Krishna gives a diagnostic tool rather than a final sentence. The threefold division shows how the same outward action—offering, gift, fast—can bear different moral and spiritual fruit according to inner orientation. Across Hindu schools this teaching has been deployed to encourage sincerity, discourage superstition, and point practitioners toward greater freedom. In that sense, Chapter 17 stands as a brief but rich handbook for living religion: observe actions, examine motives, and cultivate a faith that leads to clarity and compassion.