Conclusion—The Perfection of Renunciation

18.30

pravṛttiṁ ca nivṛttiṁ ca

kāryākārye bhayābhaye

bandhaṁ mokṣaṁ ca yā vetti

buddhiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī

pravṛttim—deserving; ca—also; nivṛttim—not deserving; kārya—work; akārye—reaction; bhaya—fearful; abhaye—fearlessness; bandham—obligation; mokṣam ca—and liberation; yā—that which; vetti—knows; buddhiḥ—understanding; sā—that; pārtha—O son of Pṛthā; sāttvikī—in the mode of goodness.

TRANSLATION

O son of Pṛthā, that understanding by which one knows what ought to be done and what ought not to be done, what is to be feared and what is not to be feared, what is binding and what is liberating, that understanding is established in the mode of goodness.

PURPORT

Actions which are performed in terms of the directions of the scriptures are called pravṛtti, or actions that deserve to be performed, and actions which are not so directed are not to be performed.

One who does not know the scriptural directions becomes entangled in the actions and reactions of work.

Understanding which discriminates by intelligence is situated in the mode of goodness.