सत्त्वानुरूपा सर्वस्य श्रद्धा भवति भारत |
श्रद्धामयोऽयं पुरुषो यो यच्छ्रद्ध: स एव स: || 3||
sattvānurūpā sarvasya śhraddhā bhavati bhārata
śhraddhā-mayo ‘yaṁ puruṣho yo yach-chhraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ
sattva-anurūpā—conforming to the nature of one’s mind; sarvasya—all; śhraddhā—faith; bhavati—is; bhārata—Arjun, the scion of Bharat; śhraddhāmayaḥ—possessing faith; ayam—that; puruṣhaḥ—human being; yaḥ—who; yat-śhraddhaḥ—whatever the nature of their faith; saḥ—their; eva—verily; saḥ—they
Translation:
The faith of each man is in accordance with his natural disposition. A man, Ο Bhārata, is made of his faith; what his faith is, that verily he is.
Commentary:
The mind (the inner organ) is alone the Jiva (man). So if the mind is pure, purity becomes the essence of that man. Here the word ‘sattva‘ means mind. Every individual acquires that nature which he has brought with him from his experience in former births. And his faith takes on that quality only. He is that faith, qualified by his Samskaras. So it is the duty of man to instill Sattvic disposition into his character and by practice transcend that also to reach the highest state. The Tamasic and Rajasic kinds of Sraddha should be abandoned, because they also pull man downwards into lower forms of existence. Among the qualities, Sattva is the nearest to Atma, and in Suddha-sattva, man directly perceives Atma, and enters the Nirguna state. That is the real Self of man, that is his final goal.
Question: What kind of Sraddha does man acquire?
Answer: It is in conformity with the disposition of his mind.
Question: With what is man filled?
Answer: Sraddha.
Question: What is the state of man?
Answer: It is just what his mind is. This state is called Jiva. (The real man is the supreme Self and not the reflected personality created in the mind).