Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 18: Freedom through Renunciation
Bhagavad Gita 18.30
प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च कार्याकार्ये भयाभये ।
बन्धं मोक्षं च या वेत्ति बुद्धिः सा पार्थ सात्त्विकी ॥
pravṛttiṃ ca nivṛttiṃ ca kāryākārye bhayābhaye | bandhaṃ mokṣaṃ ca yā vetti buddhiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī ||
The understanding that knows when to act and when to hold back, what should be done and what should not, what is to be feared and what is not, what binds and what frees: that understanding, Arjuna, is of clarity.
Modern context
Sattvic understanding knows when to act and when to hold back, what to do and what not to do, what to fear and what not to fear, what binds and what frees. It is practical wisdom: the ability to read a situation rightly. 'What to fear and what not to fear' is especially valuable. Much suffering comes from fearing the wrong things and not fearing the right ones.