tatra sattvam nirmalatvat
O sinless one, the mode of goodness, being purer than the others, is illuminating, and it frees one from all sinful reactions. Those situated in that mode develop knowledge, but they become conditioned by the concept of happiness.
rajaḥ—mode of passion; rāga-ātmakam—born of desire or lust; viddhi—know; tṛṣṇā—hankering; saṅga—association; samudbhavam—produced of; tat—that; nibadhnāti—is bound; kaunteya—O son of Kuntī; karma-saṅgena—association with fruitive activity; dehinam—of the embodied.
The mode of passion is born of unlimited desires and longings, O son of Kuntī, and because of this one is bound to material fruitive activities.
tamas tv ajnana-jam viddhi
tamaḥ—mode of ignorance; tu—but; ajñāna-jam—products of ignorance; viddhi—knowing; mohanam—delusion; sarva-dehinām—of all embodied beings; pramāda—madness; ālasya—indolence; nidrābhiḥ—sleep; tat—that; nibadhnāti—binds; bhārata—O son of Bharata.