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Translation and commentary by Dr.
Radhakrishnan
Sanskrit Text and transliteration by
Veeraswamy Krishnaraj
CHAPTER IV The Way of Knowledge The Tradition of jñāna Yoga श्रीभगवानुवाच इमं
विवस्वते योगं
प्रोक्तवानहमव्ययम्
। विवस्वान्मनवे
प्राह मनुरिक्ष्वाकवेऽब्रवीत्
॥४-१॥ śrībhagavān uvāca: imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam śrībhagavān uvāca: imam1 vivasvate2 yogam3
proktavān4 aham5 avyayam6 The Blessed Lord said: 4.1. I proclaimed this
imperishable yoga to Vivasvān; Vivasvān told it to Manu and Manu
spoke it to Ikṣvāku. एवं
परम्पराप्राप्तमिमं
राजर्षयो विदुः
। स
कालेनेह महता
योगो नष्टः परन्तप
॥४-२॥ evaṁ paramparāprāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo
viduḥ evam1 paramparā2
prāptam3 imam4 rājarṣayaḥ5
viduḥ6 4.2. Thus handed down from one
to another the royal sages knew it till that yoga was lost to the world
through long lapse of time, O Oppressor of the foe (Arjuna). 1 rājarṣayaḥ:
royal sages .. Rama, Kṛṣṇa
and Buddha were all princes who taught the highest wisdom. kālena8 mahatā10:
by the great efflux of time. This
teaching has become obscured by the lapse of ages. To
renovate the faith for the welfare of humanity, great teachers arise. Kṛṣṇa
now gives it to his pupil to reawaken faith in him and illumine his
ignorance. A tradition is authentic when it
evokes an adequate response to the reality represented by it. It is valid,
when our minds thrill and vibrate to it. When it fails to achieve this end,
new teachers arise to rekindle it. स
एवायं मया तेऽद्य
योगः प्रोक्तः
पुरातनः । भक्तोऽसि
मे सखा चेति रहस्यं
ह्येतदुत्तमम्
॥४-३॥ sa evāyaṁ mayā tedya yogaḥ proktaḥ purātanaḥ saḥ1 eva2 ayam3
mayā4 te5 adya6 yogaḥ7
proktaḥ8 purātanaḥ9 4.3. This same ancient yoga has been
today declared to thee by Me; for thou art My devotee and My friend; and this
is the supreme secret, yogaḥ7 purātanaḥ9:
ancient yoga. The teacher declares
that he is not stating any new doctrine but is only restoring the old
tradition, the eternal verity, handed down from master to pupil. The teaching
is a renewal, a rediscovery, a restoration of knowledge long forgotten. All
great teachers like Gautama the Buddha and Mahāvīra, S. and R. are
content to affirm that they are only restating the teachings of their former
masters. Milindapañha explains that it is an ancient way that had been lost
that the Buddha opens up again," When the Buddha returns to his father's
capital in an ascetic's garb with a begging bowl in hand, his father asks
him: "Why is this?" and the answer comes: "My father, it is
the custom of my race." The king in surprise asks: "What race?" and the
Buddha answers:
The great teachers do not lay
claim to originality but affirm that they are expounding the ancient truth which
is the final norm by which all teachings are judged, the eternal source of
all religions and philosophies, the philosophia perennis, the Sanātana dharma, what Augustine calls
the "wisdom that was not made; but is at this present, as it hath ever
been and so shall ever be. bhaktosi me sakhā ceti: Thou
art My devotee and My friend. Revelation is never closed. So long as the
human heart has qualities of devotion and friendship, God will disclose His
secrets to them. Divine self-communication is possible wherever we have
sincerity and a sense of need. Religious revelation is not a past event; it
is that which continues to be. It is possible for all beings and not the
privilege of a few. "Every one that is of the Truth heareth
my voice," said Jesus to Pilate. IV. The Way of Knowledge page
153 अर्जुन
उवाच अपरं
भवतो जन्म परं
जन्म विवस्वतः
। कथमेतद्विजानीयां
त्वमादौ प्रोक्तवानिति
॥४-४॥ arjuna uvāca arjuna uvāca Arjuna said: 4.4. Later was Thy birth and
earlier was the birth of Vivasvat. How then am I to understand that thou didst
declare it to him in the beginning? The Buddha claimed to have been
the teacher of countless Bodhisattvas in bygone ages. Saddharmapuṇdarīka,
XVI I. Jesus said: "Before Abraham was, I am." John
viii, 58. The Theory of Avatars श्रीभगवानुवाच बहूनि
मे व्यतीतानि
जन्मानि तव चार्जुन
। तान्यहं
वेद सर्वाणि न
त्वं वेत्थ परन्तप
॥४-५॥ Śrībhagavānuvāca: bahūni me vyatītāni janmāni
tava cārjuna Śrībhagavānuvāca: bahūni1 me2
vyatītāni3 janmāni4 tava5 ca6
arjuna7 The Blessed Lord said: 4.5. Many are My lives that are
past, and thine also, O Arjuna; all of them I know
but thou knowest not, O Scourge of the foe (Arjuna). अजोऽपि
सन्नव्ययात्मा
भूतानामीश्वरोऽपि
सन् । प्रकृतिं
स्वामधिष्ठाय
संभवाम्यात्ममायया
॥४-६॥ ajopi sann avyayātmā
bhūtānām īśvaropi san ajaḥ1 api2 san3
avyaya4 ātmā5 bhūtānām6
īśvaraḥ7 api8 san9 4.6. Though (I am) unborn, and My self (is) imperishable, though (I am) the lord of all
creatures, yet establishing Myself in My own nature, I come into (empiric)
being through My power (maya). The embodiments of human beings
are not voluntary. Driven by prakṛti through ignorance, they are born
again and again. The Lord controls prakṛti
and assumes embodiment through His own free will. The ordinary
birth of creatures is determined by the force of prakṛti, avaśaṁ prakṛter
veśāt, while the Lord takes
birth through his own power, ātmamāyayā. prakṛtim10 adhiṣṭhāya12:
establishing in My own nature. He
uses His nature in a way which is free from subjection to karma. There is no suggestion
here that the becoming of the one is a mere appearance. It is
intended realistically. It is an actual becoming by māyā,
"the capacity to render the impossible actual." S.
's view that ''I appear to be born
and embodied, through My own power but not in reality unlike others' is not
satisfactory. Yogamāyā refers to the free will of God, His
svecchā, His incomprehensible power. The assumption of imperfection by
perfection, of lowliness by majesty of weakness by power is the mystery of
the universe. It is māyā from the logical standpoint. यदा
यदा हि धर्मस्य
ग्लानिर्भवति
भारत । अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य
तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम्
॥४-७॥ yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata yadā1 yadā2
hi3 dharmasya4 glāniḥ5 bhavati6
bhārata7 4.7. Whenever there is a decline
of righteousness and rise of unrighteousness, O Bharata (Arjuna), then I send
forth (create incarnate) Myself. "Whenever
righteousness wanes, and unrighteousness increases the Almighty Lord, Hari,
creates himself. Wherever there is a serious tension in life, when a sort of
all-pervasive materialism invades the hearts of human souls, to preserve the
equilibrium, an answering manifestation of wisdom and righteousness is
essential. The Supreme, though unborn and undying, becomes manifest in human
embodiment to overthrow the forces of ignorance and selfishness. IV The
Way of Knowledge 155 Avatara
means descent, one who has descended. The Divine comes down to the earthly
plane to raise it to a higher status. God descends when man rises. The
purpose of the avatar is to inaugurate a new world, a new dharma. By his
teaching and example, he shows how a human being can raise himself to a
higher grade of life. The issue between right and wrong is a decisive one.
God works on the side of the right. Love and mercy are ultimately more
powerful than hatred and cruelty. Dharma will conquer adharma, truth wil1
conquer falsehood; the power behind death, disease and sin wil1 be overthrown
by the reality which is Being, Intelligence and Bliss. Dharma
literally means mode of being. It is the essential nature
of a being that determines its mode of behavior. So long as our
conduct is in conformity with our essential nature, we are acting in the
right way. Adharma is nonconformity to our nature. If the harmony of the
world is derived from the conformity of all beings
to their respective natures, the disharmony of the world is due to their
nonconformity. God does not stand aside, when we abuse our freedom and cause
disequilibrium. He does not simply wind up the world, set it on the right track and then let it jog along by itself. His loving hand
is steering it all the time. The
conception of dharma is a development of the idea of ṛta which connotes
cosmic as well as moral order in the Rg. Veda. The ṛta
which gives logical significance and ethical elevation to the world is under
the protection of Varuṇa. The god of the Gītā, is the
upholder of righteousness śāśvatadharmagoptā (XI,
18), not a God beyond good and evil, remote and unconcerned with man's
struggle with unrighteousness. परित्राणाय
साधूनां विनाशाय
च दुष्कृताम्
। धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय
सम्भवामि युगे
युगे ॥४-८॥ paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ
vināśāya ca
duṣkṛtām paritrāṇāya1
sādhūnām2 vināśāya3 ca4
duṣkṛtām5 4.8.
For the protection of the good, for the destruction of the wicked and for the
establishment of righteousness, I come into being from age to age. It is
the function of God as Viṣṇu ,the
protector of the world, to keep the world going on lines of righteousness. He
assumes birth to re-establish right when wrong prevails. जन्म
कर्म च मे दिव्यमेवं
यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः
। त्यक्त्वा
देहं पुनर्जन्म
नैति मामेति सोऽर्जुन
॥४-९॥ janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ janma1 karma2 ca3
me4 divyam5 evam6 yaḥ7
vetti8 tattvataḥ9 4.9. He who knows thus in its
true nature My divine birth and works, is not born again, when he leaves his
body but comes to Me, O Arjuna. Kṛṣṇa
as an avatar or descent of the Divine into the
human world discloses the condition of being to which the human souls should
rise. The birth of the birthless means the revelation of the mystery in the
soul of man. The avatāra fulfils a
number of functions in the cosmic process. The conception makes out that
there is no opposition between spiritual life and life in the world. If the
world is imperfect and ruled by the flesh and the devil, it is our duty to
redeem it for the spirit. The avatāra points out the way by which men
can rise from their animal to a spiritual mode of existence by providing us
with all example of spiritual life. The Divine nature is
not seen in the incarnation in its naked splendor but is mediated by
the instrumentality of manhood. The Divine greatness is
conveyed to us in and through these great individuals. Their lives
dramatize for us the essential constituents of human life ascending to the
fulfilment of its destiny. The Bhāgavata says, "The
omnipresent Lord appears in the world, not only for destroying the demoniac
forces but also for teaching mortals. How else could the Lord who is blissful
in Himself experience anxieties about Sītā, etc.
He knows hunger and thirst, sorrow and suffering, solitude and forsakenness.
He overcomes them all and asks us to take courage from His example. He not
only teaches us the true doctrine by which we can die to our separate
temporal selfness and come to union with Timeless Spirit but He offers
Himself to be a channel of grace. By inviting souls to trust and love Him, He
promises to lead them to the knowledge of the Absolute. The historical fact
is the illustration of a process ever unfolding in the heart of man. The
avatāra helps us to become what we potentially are. In Hindu and
Buddhist systems of thought, there is no servitude to one historic fact. We
can all rise to the divine status and the avatāras help us to achieve
this inner realization. Cp. Gautama the Buddha: "Then the Blessed One
spoke and said, 'Know Vasettha, that from time to time a Tathāgata is
born into the world, a fully enlightened one, blessed and worthy, abounding
in wisdom and goodness, happy with the knowledge of the worlds, unsurpassed
as a guide to erring mortals, a teacher of gods and men, a Blessed Buddha. He
proclaims the truth both in its letter and in its spirit, lovely in its
origin, lovely in its progress, lovely in its consummation. A higher life
doth he make known in all its purity and in all its perfectness.' According
to Mahāyāna Buddhism there have been many previous Buddhas and
Gautama would have a successor in Mettreya (Maitreya). Gautama himself passed
through many births and acquired the qualities which enabled him to discover
the Truth. It is possible for others to do the same. We hear of disciples
taking the vow to attain the enlightenment of a Buddha. These systems do not
believe in any exclusive revelation at one unique instant of time. वीतरागभयक्रोधा
मन्मया मामुपाश्रिताः
। बहवो
ज्ञानतपसा पूता
मद्भावमागताः
॥४-१०॥ vītarāgabhayakrodhā manmayā mām upāśritāḥ vīta-rāga-bhaya-krodhāḥ1
manmayāḥ2 mām3 upāśritāḥ4 4.10. Delivered from passion,
fear and anger, absorbed in Me, taking refuge in Me, many purified by the austerity
of wisdom, have attained to My state of being. madbhāvam8 the
supernatural being that I possess. The purpose of incarnation is
not simply to uphold the world order but also to help human beings to become perfected in their nature. The freed soul becomes
on earth a living image of the Infinite. The ascent of man into Godhead is
also the purpose of the descent of God into humanity. The aim of the dharma
is this perfection of man and the avatar generally declares that He is the
truth, the way and the life. ये
यथा मां प्रपद्यन्ते
तांस्तथैव भजाम्यहम्
। मम
वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते
मनुष्याः पार्थ
सर्वशः ॥४-११॥ ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha
sarvaśaḥ 4.11 ye1 yathā2
mām3 prapadyante4 tān5 tathā6
eva7 bhajāmi8 aham9 mama10 vartma11
anuvartante12 manuṣyāḥ13 pārtha14
sarvaśaḥ15 4.11 4.11. As men approach me so do I
accept them: men on all sides follow my path, O Partha
(Arjuna). mama10 vartma11:
My path; the way of worshipping Me. sarvaśaḥ15:
on all sides; sarvaprakāraḥ, in all
ways, is another rendering. This verse brings out the wide
catholicity of the Gītā
religion God meets every aspirant with
favour and grants to each his heart's desire. He does not extinguish the hope
of any but helps all hopes to grow according to their nature. Even those who
worship the Vedic deities with sacrifices and with expectation of reward find
what they seek by the grace of the Supreme. Those who are
vouchsafed the vision of truth convey it through symbols to ordinary
people who cannot look upon its naked intensity. Name and form are used to reach the Formless. Meditation on any favorite
forms may be adopted. The Hindu thinkers are
conscious of the amazing variety of ways in which we may approach the
Supreme, of the contingency of all forms. They know that it is impossible for
any effort of logical reason to give us a true picture of ultimate reality.
From the point of view of metaphysics (paramārtha), no manifestation is
to be taken as absolutely true, while from the
standpoint of experience (vyavahāra), every one of them has some
validity. The forms we worship are aids to help us to become conscious of our
deepest selves. So long as the object of worship holds fast the attention of
the soul, it enters our mind and heart and fashions them. The importance of
the form is to be judged by the degree in which it
expresses ultimate significance. The Gita does not speak of this
or that form of religion but speaks of the impulse which is
expressed in all forms, the desire to find God and understand our
relation to Him. 1 The
same God is worshipped by all. The differences of conception and approach are determined by
local coloring and social adaptations. All manifestations belong to
the same Supreme. "Viṣṇu is Śiva and Śiva is Viṣṇu
and whoever thinks they are different goes to hell, 2
"He who is known as Viṣṇu is verily Rudra and he who is
Rudra is Brahmā, One entity functions as three gods that is Rudra, Viṣṇu
and Brahmā.'' 3 Udayanācārya
writes: "Whom the Śaivas worship as Śiva, the Vedāntins
as Brahman, the Buddhists as Buddha, the Naiyyāyikas who specialize in
canons of knowledge as the chief agent, the followers of the Jaina code as
the ever free, the ritualists as the principle of law, may that Hari, the
lord of the three worlds, grant our prayers." 4
If he had been writing in this age, he would have added "whom the
Christians devoted to work as Christ and the Mohammedans as Allah," 5 God is the rewarder of all who
diligently seek Him, 1 Cp.
All worship was to him sacred, since he believed that in its most degraded
forms, among the most ignorant and foolish of worshippers, there has yet been
some true seeking after the Divine, and that between these and the most
glorious ritual or the highest philosophic certainty there lies so small a
space that we may believe the Saints in paradise regard it with a
smile." Elizabeth Waterhouse, Thoughts of a Tertiary; quoted in Evelyn
Underhill, Worship (1937), p.1. 2
Cp. also Maitrāyaṇī
Up. See also Atharva veda: The one light manifests
itself in various forms. 3, 4. Sanskrit
transliterated text not included 5 Abul
Fazl describes the spirit of Akbar's Universal
Faith in these words: "O God, in every temple I see people that seek
Thee, and in every language I hear spoken, people praise Thee. Polytheism and
Islam feel after Thee; each religion says 'Thou art One, without equal.' If
it be a mosque, people murmur the holy prayer and if
it be a Christian Church, people ring the bell from Love to Thee. Sometimes I
frequent the Christian cloister, sometimes the mosque. But it
is Thou whom I search from temple to temple. Thy elect have no
dealings with either heresy or orthodoxy for neither of them stands behind
the screen of Thy truth. Heresy to the heretic; and religion
to the orthodox. But the dust of the rose petal belongs to the heart
of the perfume seller." Blochmann, Aini Akbari, p. xxx. whatever
views of God they may hold. The spiritually immature are unwilling to
recognize other gods than their own. Their attachment to their creed makes
them blind to the larger unity of the Godhead. This is the result of egotism
in the domain of religious ideas. The Gītā, on the other hand,
affirms that though beliefs and practices may be many and varied, spiritual
realization to which these are the means is one. A strong consciousness of one's
own possession of the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth added
to a condescending anxiety for the condition of those who are in outer
darkness produces a state of mind which is not remote from that of an
inquisitor. काङ्क्षन्तः
कर्मणां सिद्धिं
यजन्त इह देवताः
। क्षिप्रं
हि मानुषे लोके
सिद्धिर्भवति
कर्मजा ॥४-१२॥ kāṅkṣantaḥ karmaṇāṁ siddhiṁ yajanta iha devatāḥ kāṅkṣantaḥ1
karmaṇām2 siddhim3 yajante4 iha5
devatāḥ6 4.12.
Those who desire the fruition of their works on earth offer sacrifices to the
gods (the various forms of the one Godhead) for the fruition of works in this
world of men is very quick. The Desireless Nature of God's
Work चातुर्वर्ण्यं
मया सृष्टं गुणकर्मविभागशः
। तस्य
कर्तारमपि मां
विद्ध्यकर्तारमव्ययम्
॥४-१३॥ cāturvarṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇakarmavibhāgaśaḥ cātur-varṇyam1
mayā2 sṛṣṭam3 guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ4 4.13. The
fourfold order was created by Me according to the divisions of quality and
work. Though I am its creator, know
Me to be incapable of action or change. cātur-varṇyam1:
the fourfold order. The emphasis is on guṇa (aptitude) and karma
(function) and not jāti (birth). The varṇa or the order to which
we belong is independent of sex, birth or breeding.
A class determined by temperament and vocation is not a caste determined by
birth and heredity. According to the M.B., the whole world was originally of
one class but later it became divided into four divisions on
account of the specific duties.
Even the distinction between caste and outcaste is artificial and
unspiritual. An ancient verse points out that the Brahmin and the outcaste are blood brothers. In the M.B., Yudhiṣṭhira says that it is difficult to
find out the caste of persons on account of the
mixture of castes. Men beget offspring in all sorts of women. So conduct is
the only determining feature of caste according to sages. The fourfold order is designed for human evolution. There
is nothing absolute about the caste system which has changed its character in
the process of history. Today it cannot be regarded
as anything more than an insistence on a variety of ways in which the social
purpose can be carried out. Functional groupings will never be out of date
and as for marriages they will happen among those who belong to more or less
the same stage of cultural development, The present morbid condition of India
broken into castes and subcastes is opposed to the unity taught by the
Gītā, which stands for an organic as against an atomistic
conception of society. akartāram10:
non-doer. As the Supreme is unattached, He is said' to be a non-doer. Works
do not affect His changeless being, though He is the unseen background of all
works. Action
without Attachment does not lead to Bondage न
मां कर्माणि लिम्पन्ति
न मे कर्मफले स्पृहा
। इति
मां योऽभिजानाति
कर्मभिर्न स बध्यते
॥४-१४॥ na māṁ karmāṇi limpanti na
me karmaphale spṛhā na1 mām2
karmāṇi3 limpanti4 na5 me6
karma-phale7 spṛhā8 4.14. Works do not defile Me;
nor do I have yearning for their fruit. He who knows Me
thus is not bound by works. एवं
ज्ञात्वा कृतं
कर्म पूर्वैरपि
मुमुक्षुभिः
। कुरु
कर्मैव तस्मात्त्वं
पूर्वैः पूर्वतरं
कृतम् ॥४-१५॥ evaṁ jñātvā kṛtaṁ karma pūrvair
api mumukṣubhiḥ evam1 jñātvā2
kṛtam3 karma4 pūrvaiḥ5 api6
mumukṣubhiḥ7 4.15. So knowing was work done also by the men of old who sought
liberation. Therefore do thou also work as the ancients did in former times. The ignorant perform action for
self-purification (ātma śuddhyartham) and the wise perform
action for the maintenance of the world (lokasaṁgrahārtham).
As the ancients carried out the
work ordained by tradition, Arjuna is called upon to
do his duty as a warrior. Cp. "Lord of the Universe, Supreme Spirit,
Beneficent God, at Thy command only, I shall carryon this pilgrimage of life,
for the good of the creatures and for Thy glory. Action
and Inaction किं
कर्म किमकर्मेति
कवयोऽप्यत्र
मोहिताः । तत्ते
कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि
यज्ज्ञात्वा
मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात्
॥४-१६॥ kiṁ karma kimakarmeti kavayopy atra mohitāḥ kim1 karma2 kim3
akarma4 iti5 kavayaḥ6 api7
atra8 mohitāḥ10 4.16. What is action? What is inaction ?—as to this even the wise are bewildered. I will
declare to thee what action is, knowing which thou shalt be
delivered from evil. कर्मणो
ह्यपि बोद्धव्यं
बोद्धव्यं च विकर्मणः
। अकर्मणश्च
बोद्धव्यं गहना
कर्मणो गतिः ॥४-१७॥ karmaṇo hy api
boddhavyaṁ boddhavyaṁ
ca vikarmaṇaḥ karmaṇaḥ1 hi2
api3 boddhavyam4 boddhavyam5 ca6
vikarmaṇaḥ7 4.17. One has to understand what
action is, and likewise one has to understand what is wrong
action and one has to understand about inaction. Hard to understand is
the way of work. What is the right course is not generally
obvious. The ideas of our time, the prescription of tradition, the voice of conscience
get mixed up and confuse us. In the midst of all
this, the wise man seeks a way out by a reference to immutable truths, with
the insight of the highest reason. कर्मण्यकर्म
यः पश्येदकर्मणि
च कर्म यः । स
बुद्धिमान्मनुष्येषु
स युक्तः कृत्स्नकर्मकृत्
॥४-१८॥ karmaṇy akarma yaḥ paśyed akarmaṇi ca karma yaḥ karmaṇi1 akarma2
yaḥ3 paśyet4 akarmaṇi5 ca6
karma7 yaḥ8 4.18. He who in action sees
inaction and action in inaction, he is wise among men, he is a yogin and he
has accomplished all his work. So long as we work in a detached
spirit our mental balance is not disturbed. We refrain from actions which are
born of desire and do our duties, with a soul linked with the Divine. So true non-activity is to preserve inner composure and to be
free from attachment. Akarma means the absence of bondage resulting
from work because it is done without attachment. He
who works without attachment is not bound. We are acting even when we sit
quiet without any outward action. Cp. Aṣṭavakragītā.
The turning away from action by fools due to perversity and ignorance amounts
to action. The action of the wise (that is their desireless action) has the
same fruit as that of renunciation. S. explains that in atman there
is no action; in the body however there is no rest,
even when there seems to be rest. R. holds that akarma is
ātmajñāna. The wise man is he who sees jñāna in the true
performance of karma. For him jñāna and karma go together. According to Madhva, akarma is
the inactivity of the self and the activity of Viṣṇu. Therefore
the wise man is he who sees the activity of the Lord whether the individual
is active or not. यस्य
सर्वे समारम्भाः
कामसंकल्पवर्जिताः
। ज्ञानाग्निदग्धकर्माणं
तमाहुः पण्डितं
बुधाः ॥४-१९॥ yasya sarve samārambhāḥ kāmasaṁkalpavarjitāḥ yasya1 sarve2
samārambhāḥ3 kāma4 saṁkalpa5
varjitāḥ6 4.19. He whose undertakings are
all free from the will of desire, whose works are burned up in the fire of wisdom,
him the wise call a man of learning. Such a worker has the
universality of outlook born of wisdom (jñāna) and freedom from selfish
desire. Though he works, he really does nothing. त्यक्त्वा
कर्मफलासङ्गं
नित्यतृप्तो
निराश्रयः । कर्मण्यभिप्रवृत्तोऽपि
नैव किंचित्करोति
सः ॥४-२०॥ tyaktvā karmaphalāsaṅgaṁ
nityatṛpto nirāśrayaḥ tyaktvā1
karma-phala-āsaṅgam2 nitya-tṛptaḥ3
nirāśrayaḥ4 4.20. Having abandoned
attachment to the fruit of works, ever content, without any kind of
dependence, he does nothing though he is ever engaged in work. Cp. Aṣṭavakragītā.
"He who is devoid of existence and non-existence) who is wise, satisfied,
free from desire, does nothing even if he may be acting in the eyes of the
world." "He who, without attachment
to them, surrenders to God all religious practices ordained by the
scriptures, obtains the perfection of non-action; the promised fruit is only
to attract us to action. निराशीर्यतचित्तात्मा
त्यक्तसर्वपरिग्रहः
। शारीरं
केवलं कर्म कुर्वन्नाप्नोति
किल्बिषम् ॥४-२१॥ nirāśīr yatacittātmā tyaktasarvaparigrahaḥ nirāśīḥ1
yata2 citta-ātmā3 tyakta4 sarva5
parigrahaḥ6 4.2I. Having no desires, with
his heart and self under control, giving up all possessions, performing
action by the body alone, he commits no wrong. śārīram7 karma9 is
work required for the maintenance of the body according to S. and
Madhusūdana. It is work done by the body alone according to Vedānta
Deśika, Virtue or vice does not belong
to the outer deed. When a man is rid of his passions
and self-will, he becomes a mirror reflecting the will of the Divine. The
human soul becomes the pure channel of Divine power. यदृच्छालाभसंतुष्टो
द्वन्द्वातीतो
विमत्सरः । समः
सिद्धावसिद्धौ
च कृत्वापि न निबध्यते
॥४-२२॥ yadṛcchālābhasaṁtuṣṭo dvandvātīto vimatsaraḥ yadṛcchā1 lābha2
saṁtuṣṭaḥ3 dvandva4 atītaḥ5
vimatsaraḥ6 samaḥ7 siddhāu8
asiddhau9 ca10 kṛtvā11 api12
na13 nibadhyate14 4.22 4.22. He who is satisfied with whatever
comes by chance, who has passed beyond the dualities (of pleasure and pain),
who is free from jealousy, who remains the same in success
and failure, even when he acts, he is not bound.
Action by itself does not bind.
If it does, then we are committed to a gross dualism between God and the
world and the world becomes a cosmic blunder. The cosmos is a manifestation
of the Supreme and what binds is not the act but the selfish attitude to
action, born of ignorance which makes us imagine that we are so many separate
individuals with our special preferences and aversions. The teacher now proceeds to
point out how the actor, the act and the action are
all different manifestations of the one Supreme and action offered as a
sacrifice to the Supreme does not bind. Sacrifice
and Its Symbolic Value गतसङ्गस्य
मुक्तस्य ज्ञानावस्थितचेतसः
। यज्ञायाचरतः
कर्म समग्रं प्रविलीयते
॥४-२३॥ gatasaṅgasya muktasya jñānāvasthitacetasaḥ gata-saṅgasya1 muktasya2
jñāna3 avasthita4 cetasaḥ5 4.23. The work of a man whose
attachments are sundered, who is liberated, whose
mind is firmly founded in wisdom, who does work as a sacrifice, is dissolved
entirely. ब्रह्मार्पणं
ब्रह्म हविर्ब्रह्माग्नौ
ब्रह्मणा हुतम्
। ब्रह्मैव
तेन गन्तव्यं
ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना
॥४-२४॥ brahmārpaṇaṁ brahma havir brahmāgnau brahmaṇā
hutam brahma1 arpaṇam2
brahma3 haviḥ4 brahma5 agnau6
brahmaṇā7 hutam8 4.24. For him the act of
offering is God, the oblation is God. By God is it offered
into the fire of God. God is that which is to be attained
by him who realizes God in his works. The Vedic yajña is here interpreted in a larger, spiritual way. Though the
performer of yajña does work, he is not bound by it, for his earth life is
brooded over by the sense of eternity.1 1 Cp,
Mantiqu't-Tair.
E. T. by Fitzgerald. All you have been, and seen, and
done and thought, Not you but I have seen and been
and wrought… Pilgrim, pilgrimage and Road, Was but Myself toward Myself;
and your Arrival but Myself at my own
door ... Come, you lost Atoms, to your centre draw… Rays that have wandered into
Darkness wide, Return, and back into your Sun
subside." Quoted from Ananda
K. Coomaraswamy, Hinduism and Buddhism (1943), p.
42. दैवमेवापरे
यज्ञं योगिनः
पर्युपासते । ब्रह्माग्नावपरे
यज्ञं यज्ञेनैवोपजुह्वति
॥४-२५॥ daivam evāpare yajñaṁ yoginaḥ paryupāsate daivam1 eva2 apare3
yajñam4 yoginaḥ5 pari-upāsate6 4.25. Some yogins offer sacrifices
to the gods while others offer sacrifice by the sacrifice itself into the
fire of the Supreme. S. interprets yajña in the
second half of the verse as atman. "Others offer the self as
self into the fire of Brahman. Those who conceive the Divine in
various forms seek favors from them by performing the consecrated rites of
action, while others offer all works to the Divine itself. श्रोत्रादीनीन्द्रियाण्यन्ये
संयमाग्निषु
जुह्वति । शब्दादीन्विषयानन्य
इन्द्रियाग्निषु
जुह्वति ॥४-२६॥ śrotrādīnīndriyāṇy anye saṁyamāgniṣu
juhvati śrotra-ādīni1
īndriyāṇi2 anye3 saṁyama4
agniṣu5 juhvati6 4.26. Some offer hearing and the
other senses into the fires of restraint; others offer sound and the other
objects of sense in the fires of sense. By means of sacrifice
interpreted here as means to mental control and discipline, we strive to make
knowledge penetrate our whole being.' out whole being is surrendered and
changed. A right enjoyment of sense objects is compared
to a sacrifice in which the objects are the offering and senses the
sacrificial fires. Every form of self-control, where we surrender the
egoistic enjoyment for the higher delight, where we give up lower impulses is said to be a sacrifice. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- सर्वाणीन्द्रियकर्माणि
प्राणकर्माणि
चापरे । आत्मसंयमयोगाग्नौ
जुह्वति ज्ञानदीपिते
॥४-२७॥ sarvāṇīndriyakarmāṇi prāṇakarmāṇi
cāpare sarvāṇi1 indriya2A-karmāṇi2B
prāṇa-karmāṇi3 ca4 apare5 4.27. Some again offer all the
works of their senses and the works of the vital force into the fire of the
yoga of self-control, kindled by knowledge. द्रव्ययज्ञास्तपोयज्ञा
योगयज्ञास्तथापरे
। स्वाध्यायज्ञानयज्ञाश्च
यतयः संशितव्रताः
॥४-२८॥ dravyayajñās tapoyajñā yogayajñās tathāpare dravya-yajñāḥ1
tapo-yajñāḥ2 yoga-yajñāḥ3
tathā4 apare5 4.28. Some likewise offer as
sacrifice their material possessions. or their austerities
or their spiritual exercises while others of subdued minds and severe vows
offer their learning and knowledge. अपाने
जुह्वति प्राणं
प्राणेऽपानं
तथापरे । प्राणापानगती
रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणाः
॥४-२९॥ apāne juvhati prāṇaṁ
prāṇepānaṁ tathāpare apāne1 juvhati2
prāṇam3 prāṇe4 apānam5
tathā6 apare7 4.29. Others again who are
devoted to breath control, having restrained the paths of prāṇa (the
outgoing breath) and apāna (the incoming breath) pour as sacrifice
prāṇa into apāna and apāna into prāṇa. अपरे
नियताहाराः प्राणान्प्राणेषु
जुह्वति । सर्वेऽप्येते
यज्ञविदो यज्ञक्षपितकल्मषाः
॥४-३०॥ apare niyatāhārāḥ
prāṇān prāṇeṣu
juvhati apare1 niyata2
āhārāḥ3 prāṇān4
prāṇeṣu5 juvhati6 4.30. While others, restricting their
food, pour as sacrifice their life breaths into life breaths. All these are
knowers of sacrifice (know what sacrifice is) and by sacrifice have their
sins destroyed. Restraint is the essence of all
sacrifice and so all sacrifices may be regarded as
means to spiritual growth. यज्ञशिष्टामृतभुजो
यान्ति ब्रह्म
सनातनम् । नायं
लोकोऽस्त्ययज्ञस्य
कुतोऽन्यः कुरुसत्तम
॥४-३१॥ yajñaśiṣṭāmṛtabhujo yānti brahma sanātanam yajña1-śiṣṭa2-amṛta3-bhujaḥ4
yānti5 brahma6 sanātanam7 4.31. Those who eat the sacred
food that remains after a sacrifice attain to the eternal Absolute; this
world is not for him who offers no sacrifice, how then
any other world, O Best of the Kurus (Arjuna)? The law of the world is
sacrifice and he who violates it cannot obtain mastery either here or beyond.
एवं
बहुविधा यज्ञा
वितता ब्रह्मणो
मुखे । कर्मजान्विद्धि
तान्सर्वानेवं
ज्ञात्वा विमोक्ष्यसे
॥४-३२॥ evaṁ bahuvidhā yajñā vitatā brahmaṇo mukhe evam1 bahu-vidhāḥ2
yajñāḥ3 vitatāḥ4 brahmaṇaḥ5
mukhe6 4.32. Thus many forms of sacrifice are
spread out in the face of Brahman (Le. set forth as the means of reaching the
Absolute) Know thou that all these are born of work ,
and so knowing thou shalt be freed. Wisdom
and Work श्रेयान्द्रव्यमयाद्यज्ञाज्ज्ञानयज्ञः
परन्तप । सर्वं कर्माखिलं
पार्थ ज्ञाने
परिसमाप्यते
॥४-३३॥ śreyān dravyamayād yajñāj jñānayajñaḥ paraṁtapa śreyān1 dravyamayāt2 yajñāt3 jñāna-yajñaḥ4 parantapa5 IV
The Way of Knowledge Page 169 (4.33) Knowledge as a sacrifice
is greater than any material sacrifice, 0 scourge of the foe (Arjuna), for
all works without any exception culminate in wisdom. The goal is the lifegiving wisdom, which gives us freedom of action and
liberation from the bondage of work. तद्विद्धि
प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन
सेवया । उपदेक्ष्यन्ति
ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः
॥४-३४॥ tad
viddhi praṇipātena
paripraśnena sevayā tat1 viddhi2 praṇipātena3
paripraśnena4 sevayā5 (4.34) Learn that by humble
reverence, by inquiry and by service. The men of wisdom who have seen the
truth will instruct thee in knowledge. Wise men will teach us the truth
if we approach them in a spirit of service and reverent inquiry. Until we
realize the God within, we must act according to the advice of those who have
had the experience of God. If we accept what is said in the Śāstras
or taught by the teacher in unthinking bust, that
will not do. Reason must be satisfied. "He who has no personal knowledge
but has only heard of many things cannot understand the meaning of scriptures
even as a spoon has no
idea of the taste of the soup.1 We must combine devotion
to the teacher with the most unrestricted right of free examination and
inquiry. Blind obedience to an external authority is
repudiated. Today there are several teachers who
require of their followers unthinking obedience to their dictates. They seem
to believe that the death of intellect is the condition of the life of
spirit. Many credulous and simple-minded people are drawn
to them not so much by their spiritual powers as by the publicity of their
agents and the human weakness for novelty, curiosity, and excitement. This is
against the Hindu tradition which insists on jijñāsā or inquiry, manana or reflection or
paripraśna in the words of the Gītā. But mere intellectual
apprehension will not do. Intellect can only give fragmentary views, glimpses
of the Beyond, but it does not give the consciousness of the Beyond. We must
open the whole of our inner being to establish personal contact. The disciple
has to tread the interior path. The ultimate authority is the inner light
which is not to be confused with the promptings of desire. By the quality of
service and self-effacement, we knock down the obstructing prejudices and let
the wisdom in us shine. Truth achieved is different from truth imparted.
Ultimately, what is revealed in the scriptures (praṇipātā-śravaṇa),
what is thought out by the mind (paripraśna-manana)
and what is realized by
the spirit through service and meditation (śeva-nididhyāsana)
must agree. 2 We must consort with the
great minds of the past, reason about them and intuitively apprehend what is
of enduring value in them. This verse makes out that in
spiritual life, faith comes first, then knowledge,
and then experience. Those who have experienced the
truth are expected to guide us. The seers owe a duty
to their less fortunate brethren and guide them to the attainment of
illumination which they have reached. 1 yasya nāsti
nijā Prājña kevalaṁ tu bahuśrutaḥ na
sa jānāti śāstrārthaṁ
darvī sūtarasān iva.
M.B., II, 55, 1 2 Cp,
Plato: ('A man should persevere till he has achieved one of two things:
either he should discover the truth about them for himself or learn it from some one else; or if this is impossible he should take
the best and most irrefragable of human theories and make it the raft on
which he sails through life." Phaedo, 85. Cp. Plotinus: "Out of discussion we call to
vision" to those desiring to see we point the path, our teaching is a
guiding in the way, the seeing must be the very act
of him who has made the choice." Enneads, VI, 9, 4.
170 The Bhagavadgita In
Praise of Wisdom यज्ज्ञात्वा
न पुनर्मोहमेवं
यास्यसि पाण्डव
। येन
भूतान्यशेषेण
द्रक्ष्यस्यात्मन्यथो
मयि ॥४-३५॥ yaj
jñātvā na punar moham
evaṁ yāsyasi pāṇḍava yat1 jñātvā2 na3 punaḥ4 moham5 evam6 yāsyasi7 pāṇḍava8 (4.35) When thou hast known it,
thou shalt not fall again into this confusion, 0 Pandava
(Arjuna), for by this thou shalt see all existences without exception in the
Self, then in Me. When the sense of difference is
destroyed actions do not bind, since ignorance is the source of bondage and
the self, having attained wisdom, is free from it. IV
The Way of Knowledge 171 अपि चेदसि
पापेभ्यः सर्वेभ्यः
पापकृत्तमः । सर्वं ज्ञानप्लवेनैव
वृजिनं सन्तरिष्यसि
॥४-३६॥ api
ced asi pāpebhyaḥ sarvebhyaḥ
pāpakṛttamaḥ api1 cet2 asi3 pāpebhyaḥ4 sarvebhyaḥ5 pāpa-kṛt-tamaḥ6 (4.36) Even if thou shouldst be the most sinful of all sinners, thou shalt
cross over all evil by the boat of wisdom alone. यथैधांसि
समिद्धोऽग्निर्भस्मसात्कुरुतेऽर्जुन
। ज्ञानाग्निः
सर्वकर्माणि
भस्मसात्कुरुते
तथा ॥४-३७॥ yathaidhāṁsi
samiddhognir bhasmasāt
kuruterjuna yatha1 edhāṁsi2 samiddhaḥ3 agniḥ4
bhasmasāt5 kurute6 arjuna7 (4.37) As the fire which is kindled turns its fuel to ashes, O Arjuna, even so does
the fire of wisdom tum to ashes all work. न हि ज्ञानेन
सदृशं पवित्रमिह
विद्यते । तत्स्वयं
योगसंसिद्धः
कालेनात्मनि
विन्दति ॥४-३८॥ na
hi jñānena sadṛśaṁ
pavitram iha vidyate na1 hi2 jñānena3 sadṛśam4 pavitram5 iha6 vidyate7 (4.38) There is nothing on earth
equal in purity to wisdom. He who becomes perfected
by yoga finds this of himself, in his self in course of time. Self-control discovers it to man at last. Faith
is Necessary for Wisdom श्रद्धावाँल्लभते
ज्ञानं तत्परः
संयतेन्द्रियः
। ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा
परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति
॥४-३९॥ śraddhāvāṁl
labhate jñānaṁ
tatparaḥ saṁyatendriyaḥ śraddhāvān1 labhate2 jñānam3 tatparaḥ4 saṁyata5 indriyaḥ6 (4.39) He who has faith, who is
absorbed in it (i.e. wisdom) and who has subdued his senses gains wisdom and
having gained wisdom he attains quickly the supreme peace. śraddhā:
faith. Faith is necessary for gaining wisdom. Faith is not blind belief. It
is the aspiration of the soul to gain wisdom. It is the reflection in the
empirical self of the wisdom that dwells in the deepest levels of our being.
If faith is constant, it takes us to the realization of wisdom. jñāna as wisdom is free from doubts while
intellectual knowledge where we depend on sense data and logical inference,
doubt and skepticism have their place. Wisdom is not
acquired by these means. We have to live it inwardly and grow into its
reality. The way to it is through faith and self-control. parāṁ
śāntim.: the supreme peace. Nilakaṇtha suggests that he attains the supreme
state of bliss, after
the karma which has commenced to operate completes its course.1 1 videhakaivalyam…pārabdhakarmasamāptausatyṁ.
172 The Bhagavadgita अज्ञश्चाश्रद्दधानश्च
संशयात्मा विनश्यति
। नायं लोकोऽस्ति
न परो न सुखं संशयात्मनः
॥४-४०॥ ajñaś
cāśraddadhānaś ca saṁśayātmā
vinaśyati ajñaḥ1 ca2 aśraddadhānaḥ3 ca4 saṁśaya5
ātmā6 vinaśyati7 (4.40) But the man who is
ignorant, who has no faith, who is of a doubting nature, perishes. For the
doubting soul, there is neither this world nor the world beyond nor any
happiness. We
must have a positive basis for life, an unwavering faith which stands the
test of life. योगसंन्यस्तकर्माणं
ज्ञानसंछिन्नसंशयम्
। आत्मवन्तं न कर्माणि
निबध्नन्ति धनंजय
॥४-४१॥ yogasaṁnyastakarmāṇaṁ
jñānasaṁchinnasaṁśayam yoga1 sannyasta2 karmāṇam3 jñāna4 sañchinna5 saṁśayam6 ( 4.4I) Works do not bind him
who has renounced all works by yoga, who has destroyed all doubt by wisdom
and who ever possesses his soul, O winner of wealth
(Arjuna). The
mutual relationship of true work, wisdom and
self-discipline is here brought out. yogasaṁnyastakarmāṇam: yoga1 sannyasta2 karmāṇam3 who
has renounced all works by yoga. This may refer to those who develop
even-mindedness with worship of God as its characteristic, and so dedicate
all works to God or to those who have insight into the highest reality and so
are detached from works.1
Madhusūdana. 1
yogena bhagavadārādhanalakṣaṇasamatvabuddhirūpeṇa
saṁnya- stāni
bhagavati samarpitāni karmāṇi
yena yadvā paramārtha
darśanalakṣaṇena yogena saṁnyastāni tyaktāni, karmāṇi
yena tam yogasaṁnyastakarmāṇam. ātmavantam7 : who
possesses his self, While he does work for others, he remains his own self.
In the eager pursuit of the good of others, he does not lose his hold on the
self. IV.
The Way of Knowledge 173 तस्मादज्ञानसम्भूतं
हृत्स्थं ज्ञानासिनात्मनः
। छित्त्वैनं संशयं
योगमातिष्ठोत्तिष्ठ
भारत ॥४-४२॥ tasmād
ajñānasañbhūtaṁ hṛtsthaṁ
jñānāsinātmanaḥ tasmāt1 ajñāna2
sañbhūtam3 hṛt-stham4 jñāna5 asina6 ātmanaḥ7 (4.42) Therefore having cut
asunder 'with the sword of wisdom this doubt in thy heart that is born of ignorance,
resort to yoga and stand up, O Bhārata (Arjuna). Arjuna
is here called upon to perform action with the help
of knowledge and concentration. The doubt in his heart whether it is better
to fight or abstain is the product of ignorance. It will be
destroyed by wisdom. Then he will know what is right for him to do. iti . . . jñānayogo
nāma caturtho 'dhyāyaḥ
This is the fourth chapter
entitled The Yoga of Divine Knowledge. Sometimes the chapter is
entitled jñāna Karmasaṁnyāsayoga,
the yoga of knowledge and (true) renunciation of action. End Chapter IV |
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