ऊर्ध्वं गच्छन्ति सत्त्वस्था मध्ये तिष्ठन्ति राजसाः | जघन्यगुणवृत्तिस्था अधो गच्छन्ति तामसाः
ūrdhvaṃ gacchanti sattvasthā madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ . jaghanyaguṇavṛttisthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ
安住于萨堠（sattva）者向上提升；安住于罗阇（rajas）者居于中间；安住于答摩（tamas），即安住于最低劣古纳（Guna）行为者，则向下沉沦。
People who conform to sattva go higher up; those who conform to rajas stay in the middle; those who conform to tamas, who conform to the actions of the lowest ality, go down.
安住于萨堠（Sattva）者，舍弃肉身后成为天堂之主。罗阇（Rajasic）者生于此地为人。答摩（Tamasic）者则向下沉沦，即他们将生于牛兽之胎。他们也可能生于人类的最低阶层，这些最低阶层的人类虽具人形，实则与野兽无异，其行为残暴。因此，他们不一定需要转世为动物。人因无知或幻觉知识的力量而将自己与自然认同，并执着于自然的三古纳（Gunas）。这是其生于高低等生物之胎的原因。他因执着于古纳（Gunas）而感到“我快乐”、“我痛苦”或“我迷惑”。前几节经文描述了古纳（Gunas）的性质、功能、它们如何将人束缚于轮回（Samsara）、每种古纳（Guna）占主导时的影响，以及人在特定古纳（Guna）影响下所达到的境界。现在，主在以下经文中描述，当人认识到超越三古纳（Gunas）的祂时，便能获得解脱。
Those who abide in Sattva become the lords of heaven after giving up the physical body. The Rajasic are rorn on this earth as human beings. The Tamasic go downwards? i.e.? they will be born in the wormbs of cattle and beasts. They may take their birth amongst the lowest grades of human beings. The lowest grades of human beings are only brutes though they have assumed human form. Their actions are brutal. Therefore it is not necessary for them to enter into animal incarnation.Man identifies himself with Nature on account of the force of ignorance or illusory knowledge and gets attached to the alities of Nature. This is the cause of his birth in the wombs of high or low creatures. He feels? I am happy? miserable or deluded? on account of the attachment to the Gunas.The nature of the Gunas? their functions? how they bind a man to the Samsara? the effects of each Guna when it is predominant? and the plane reached by the man when he is under the influence of a particular Guna are described in the previous verses. Now the Lord describes in the following verse that liberation comes when one knows Him Who is above the three Gunas.