B.G 17.13 Class By H.G Suśānt Rāma Dās Prabhu 17 August 2024

Bhagavad-Gītā As It Is Chapter 17 The Divisions of Faith Text No 13

विधिहीनमसृष्टान्नं मन्‍त्रहीनमदक्षिणम् ।
श्रद्धाविरहितं यज्ञं तामसं परिचक्षते ॥ १३ ॥

vidhi-hīnam asṛṣṭānnaṁ
mantra-hīnam adakṣiṇam
śraddhā-virahitaṁ yajñaṁ
tāmasaṁ paricakṣate

Synonyms
vidhi-hīnam — without scriptural direction; asṛṣṭa-annam — without distribution of prasādam; mantra-hīnam — with no chanting of the Vedic hymns; adakṣiṇam — with no remunerations to the priests; śraddhā — faith; virahitam — without; yajñam — sacrifice; tāmasam — in the mode of ignorance; paricakṣate — is to be considered.

Translation
Any sacrifice performed without regard for the directions of scripture, without distribution of prasādam [spiritual food], without chanting of Vedic hymns and remunerations to the priests, and without faith is considered to be in the mode of ignorance.

Purport
Faith in the mode of darkness or ignorance is actually faithlessness. Sometimes people worship some demigod just to make money and then spend the money for recreation, ignoring the scriptural injunctions. Such ceremonial shows of religiosity are not accepted as genuine. They are all in the mode of darkness; they produce a demoniac mentality and do not benefit human society.