Bhagavad Gita 17.2

tri-vidhā bhavati śraddhā

dehināṁ sā svabhāva-jā

sāttvikī rājasī caiva

tāmasī ceti tāṁ śṛṇu

 

Threefold is faith in every soul,

Born of nature, shaping its role;

In goodness, passion, darkness it stays,

Now hear of these three distinct ways.

 

My dear Lord, one of the greatest challenges on the spiritual path is dealing with people who do not share my faith or, even when they formally share my faith, do not share my understanding of it.

O all-knowing Lord, you outline criteria for understanding faith in objective, universal, and non-sectarian terms through the three modes of material nature, which shape the interaction between matter and consciousness, thereby influencing how people see, think, and act. Help me to see interpersonal differences as arising primarily from the way their body-mind machine is conditioned by the modes, and not necessarily as a reflection of their core character or the substance of their faith.

O Lord, who are the supreme guide, equip me to interact with those who disagree with me in a way that elevates their consciousness. And when I cannot, alert me to protect my consciousness from being pulled down.

O all-attractive Lord, help me avoid labeling people based on externals such as ethnicity, nationality, or religiosity. Let me relate to them based on their core spiritual potential as your eternal parts, and how they are expressing or repressing it. Help me avoid the sentimentality of thinking that everyone is simply good or bad. While I strive to be objective in terms of the modes, help me to also be sensitive. May I thus do both: protect myself from being unnecessarily hurt by others; and prevent myself from acting in ways that hurt them unnecessarily.

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17.02 The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: According to the modes of nature acquired by the embodied soul, one’s faith can be of three kinds – in goodness, in passion or in ignorance. Now hear about this.