अश्रद्धया हुतं दत्तं तपस्तप्तं कृतं च यत् | असदित्युच्यते पार्थ न च तत्प्रेत्य नो इह ||१७-२८||
aśraddhayā hutaṃ dattaṃ tapastaptaṃ kṛtaṃ ca yat . asadityucyate pārtha na ca tatprepya no iha ||17-28||
Chapter 17 · Verse 28
Shraddha Traya Vibhaga Yoga
श्रद्धात्रयविभागयोग
In plain words
Asat That which changes form and has no permanent existence. It does not mean nonexistence as such. Acts of sacrifice austerity and gift that are performed without faith under pressure or to prevent some sort of trouble or to gratify a craving are Asat in their nature.
Translation
17.28 Whatever offering or gift is made, whatever austerity is practised and whatever action is performed without faith, that is called Asat, O Arjuna. It is naught here or hereafter.
Meaning
Asat That which changes form and has no permanent existence. It does not mean nonexistence as such. Acts of sacrifice austerity and gift that are performed without faith under pressure or to prevent some sort of trouble or to gratify a craving are Asat in their nature. They yield no permanent benefit or fruit to anybody. Any sacrifice austerity or gift done without dedicating it to the Lord will be of no avail to the doer in this earthly life here or in the life beyond hereafter. It would be as useless as showers of rain falling on rocky ground or pouring oblations of ghee (clarified butter) on cold ashes. If you have no faith you will become egoistic and obstinate. Your heart will become hard. If you perform even hundreds of sacrifices without faith without the spirit of selfsurrender to the Lord even if you distribute the wealth of the whole world in charity without faith in and devotion to the Lord all these would be worthless and useless. The sages will not appreciate such sacrifices or gifts. Energy money and time are simply wasted. Thus in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad Gita the science of the Eternal the scripture of Yoga the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna ends the seventeenth discourse entitledThe Yoga of the Division of the Threefold Faith.,
Word by word
अश्रद्धया without faith हुतम् is sacrificed दत्तम् given तपः austerity तप्तम् is practised कृतम् performed च and यत् whatever असत् Asat इति thus उच्यते is called पार्थ O Partha न not च and तत् that प्रेत्य hereafter (after death) न not इह here.