Bhagavad Gita Chapter 14, Verse 7

रजो रागात्मकं विद्धि तृष्णासङ्गसमुद्भवम् | तन्निबध्नाति कौन्तेय कर्मसङ्गेन देहिनम् ||

rajo rāgātmakaṁ viddhi tṛṣṇā-saṅga-samudbhavam tan nibadhnāti kaunteya karma-saṅgena dehinam

O son of Kunti, know rajas to be of the nature of passion, arising from thirst and attachment. It binds the embodied soul through attachment to action.

Krishna describes rajas guna: 'Rajo rāgātmakaṁ viddhi'—know rajas to be of the nature of passion (rāgātmakam). 'Tṛṣṇā-saṅga-samudbhavam'—arising from thirst (tṛṣṇā) and attachment (saṅga). Rajas is characterized by passion, desire, and activity. 'Tan nibadhnāti kaunteya karma-saṅgena dehinam'—it binds (nibadhnāti) the embodied soul (dehinam) through attachment to action (karma-saṅgena). This is the key: rajas binds you through attachment to action. When you're driven by passion, desire, and restlessness, constantly seeking to do more, achieve more, you're under the influence of rajas. You're bound because you're attached to action itself—the need to be doing, achieving, accomplishing. This constant activity keeps you in material existence. Understanding this helps you recognize rajas and work toward transcending it.