Chapter 18: Moksha Sanyaas Yoga, verse 7
नियतस्य तु संन्यासः कर्मणो नोपपद्यते।
मोहात्तस्य परित्यागस्तामसः परिकीर्तितः ॥
Say itniyatasya tu sannyāsaḥ karmaṇo nopapadyate
mohāt tasya parityāgas tāmasaḥ parikīrtitaḥ
Translation
Verily, the renunciation of obligatory action is not proper; the abandonment of the same out of delusion is declared to be Tamasic.
Swami Sivananda
Abandoning one's daily obligatory acts is not justifiable; giving up those through delusion is said to be rooted in tamas.
Swami Gambirananda
Follows the commentary of Shankara (Advaita).
But the renunciation of obligatory acts is not proper; abandonment of these through delusion is declared to be of a Tamasic nature.
Swami Adidevananda
Follows the commentary of Ramanuja (Vishishtadvaita).
The renunciation of the enjoined action does not make sense; and completely relinquishing it, out of ignorance, is proclaimed on all sides as an act of Tamas (Strand).
Dr. S. Sankaranarayan
Follows the commentary of Abhinavagupta (Kashmir Shaivism).
It is not right to give up actions which are obligatory; and if they are misunderstood, it is the result of sheer ignorance.
Shri Purohit Swami
नियत कर्मका तो त्याग करना उचित नहीं है। उसका मोहपूर्वक त्याग करना तामस कहा गया है।
Swami Ramsukhdas
नियत कर्म का त्याग उचित नहीं है; मोहवश उसका त्याग करना "तामस त्याग" कहा गया है।
Swami Tejomayananda
Classical commentariesFor deeper study. Most are in the original Sanskrit.
Advaita
Non-dual: the self and the absolute are one.
Vishishtadvaita
Qualified non-dual: souls are real parts of the divine.
Dvaita
Dual: the soul and God are eternally distinct.
Shuddhadvaita
Pure non-dual, centred on grace and devotion.
Kashmir Shaivism
The Gita read through Trika Shaiva philosophy.
Modern teachers
20th-century teachers writing for today's readers.