14-17

सत्त्वत् सन्जायते ज्ञानम् रजसो लोभ एव च ।
प्रमाद मोहौ तमसः भवतः अज्ञानम् एव च ॥ १७ ॥

sattvat sanjAyate jJAnam rajaso lobha eva ca |
pramAda mohau tamasaH bhavataH ajJAnam eva ca || 17 ||

ज्ञानम् सन्जायते [jJAnam sanjAyate] Knowledge arises सत्त्वत् [sattvat] from sattva . रजसः [rajasaH] From rajas , लोभ एव [lobha eva] it’s only avarice. तमसः [tamasaH] From tamas , प्रमाद मोहौ [pramAda mohau] mistakes and misconceptions भवतः [bhavataH] arise, अज्ञानम् एव च [ajJAnam eva ca] certainly followed by ignorance.

Thus, when sattva gains more and more predominance over a sequence of births, the true nature of the Self is realized.

When rajas gains predominance in this way, avarice takes over and we are driven by a longing for ‘the good life’.

When tamas gains predominance, people are careless and indulge in regrettable activities. From this comes misconception. From that, the quality of tamas gains more predominance, resulting in ignorance and lack of awareness.