Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan

Bg 17.19

mūḍha-grāheṇātmano yat
pīḍayā kriyate tapaḥ
parasyotsādanārthaṁ vā
tat tāmasam udāhṛtam

Synonyms: 

mūḍha — foolish; grāheṇa — with endeavor; ātmanaḥ — of one’s own self; yat — which; pīḍayā — by torture; kriyate — is performed; tapaḥ — penance; parasya — to others; utsādana–artham — for the sake of causing annihilation; vā — or; tat — that; tāmasam — in the mode of darkness; udāhṛtam — is said to be.

Translation: 

Penance performed out of foolishness, with self-torture or to destroy or injure others, is said to be in the mode of ignorance.

mūḍha-grāheṇā, mudha is foolishness so that strategy which is performed with foolishness and grāheṇā there is lot of endeavor in it.

ātmano yat, pīḍayā kriyate, that by which to torment oneself. 

Not only torment oneself but parasyotsādanārthaṁ vā, one also wants to cause destructions utsādana–artham, Srila Prabhupada translated as in annihilation. 

vā tat tāmasam udāhṛtam, so austerity that one performs because of destroying others that is austerity in the mode of ignorance. Srila Prabupada gave example of Hiranyakasapu. Also Vrikasur or Bhasmasur he is doing austerity to please Lord Shiva he was cutting his own flesh, and offering into fire, and finally he is about to cut his own head, and Lord Shiva appeared not because he is pleased, but he felt pity for him, and when Lord Shiva appears what did he says whoever I touch let that person become ashes it is example of parasyotsādanārthaṁ vā, austerity for the cause of distress and devastation for others. 

There is another example of this in a fictitious story but the principle is illustrated nicely, when a person does tapa and god appears and know his envious nature he said whatever you will get your neighbor will get the double so that person has asked to god to make him blind by one eye.

So one thinks that other’s misery is one’s own pleasure. This is tamasik.

End of transcription.