Verse 12.31

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

वेदाभ्यासस्तपो ज्ञानं शौचमिन्द्रियनिग्रहः ।
धर्मक्रियाऽत्मचिन्ता च सात्त्विकं गुणलक्षणम् ॥ ३१ ॥

vedābhyāsastapo jñānaṃ śaucamindriyanigrahaḥ |
dharmakriyā'tmacintā ca sāttvikaṃ guṇalakṣaṇam || 31 ||

Vedic study, austerity, knowledge, purity, control over the organs, practice of virtue and meditation on the Soul,—are the characteristics of the quality of ‘Sattva.’—(31)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

‘The characteristics of the quality’ is the declaration of the subject of treatment.

The term ‘sāttvikam’ is to be construed with difficulty as follows:—‘Guṇalakṣaṇam’ is that by which the quality is characterised; and the question arising ‘of what quality?’—the answer is supplied by the term ‘sāttvikam,’ ‘of sattva.’—When need arises, even the part of a compound becomes construed by itself, with another word; and the meaning thus comes to be that—‘this is the characteristic of the quality of ‘Sattva.’ This phrase should be understood to stand on the same footing as the phrase ‘devadattasya gurukulam,’ where the term ‘guru’ though forming the subordinate factor of the compound ‘gurukulam,’ is construed with the term ‘devadattasya.’

The meaning of the words has been already explained.—(31)

 

Comparative notes by various authors

Yājñavalkya (3.136).—‘Knowing the Self, pure, self-controlled, devoted to austerities, with senses under control, acting righteously, and cognisant with the Veda, a man abounds in the attribute of Sattva and is born among celestial beings.’

(See 83, below.)