Srimad Bhagavadgita -Ramsukhdas 1659

Srimad Bhagavadgita Sadhaka Sanjivani -Swami Ramsukhdas

Chapter 17 Sraddhavirahitam yajnam tamasam paricakgate:- As far as, offering an oblation into the fire, (yajna) is concerned, the tamasika people think that it is very foolish, that food articles, such as grain, churned butter, barley, rice, coconut, date, palm etc., which are useful to maintain the body, should be burnt in a fire. If they perform sacrifice, that is only to gain name, fame, honour and praise, without obeying scriptural ordinances, without distributing food, without chanting hymns, and without paying any donations. They have no faith, either in scripture, or sacred hymns, or sacrifice or its fruit, out of delusion. They act, contrary to ordinance of scriptures. They are just like, the people of the Kali age, who do not believe in caste and social order, and who are engrossed in activities, contrary to ordinances of the scriptures. In tamasa sacrifice, a man having cast aside the ordinance of scriptures, acts according to his own sweet will and it is offered without faith. These two feelings are involved in it. So, he attains, neither the occult power, nor the highest goal, nor even happiness, here or hereafter. He rather descends into the womb of an insect, a bird or a beast or into infernal regions. Absence of faith, is the cause of their damnation. As they perform forbidden actions, without faith, they must get punishment for it. In a sacrifice, if the doer, his knowledge, actions, fortitude, intellect, company, the scripture and eatables, are sattvika, it is sattvika sacrifice, if they are rajasika, it is rajasika sacrifice, and if they are tamasika, it is tamasika sacrifice.