Yoga of renunciation of action in Knowledge

By living life in what way can a devotee dissolve the results of all actions and reach God?

The answer follows:

Sloka 24

Brahmarpanam brahmahavir brahmagnau brahmanaahutam

Brahmaivatena gantavyam brahma karma samaadhina

“The oblation is Brahman; the clarified butter is Brahman, offered by Brahman in the fire of Brahman: Brahman verily shall be reached by him who always sees Brahman in all actions”

This is one of the most famous slokas in the Bhagavad Gita and chanted as prayer before food.

There are five factors in any yagna (vedic ritual)

1. The person performing the yagna
2. The materials offered (clarified butter (ghee), etc.)
3. The fire into which the offerings are poured
4. The deity invoked
5. The process of offering

                        When a person sees himself, the deity, the materials, the fire and all his actions in Brahman, he reaches Brahman in this life itself. This Knowledge of Brahman can be obtained by various spiritual practices (sadhanas), like karma yoga, jnana yoga, bhakthi yoga and a varying combination of all three (integral yoga) depending on the individual Guna (sattva, rajas or tamas) and vaasanas.

                        To achieve this, some degree of detachment from this world, while fully engaged in this world, is essential. Study of our scriptures on Sanathana Dharma or puranas (like Bhagavatham) or ithihasas (Ramayana and Mahabharata) and satsang (study groups) with people who have similar interests are helpful. Singing bhajans, chanting mantras or practice

 of meditation consistently can also lead one towards that goal.

Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi in his “Upadesha saaram” says that we are given this body to do pooja, the speech to do japa and the mind to contemplate (meditate).

(“Kaaya vaan manaha kaaryam uttamam poojanam japas chintanam kramaat”)

(Upadesha Saaram – verse 4)

Sloka 25-32

In the next few slokas, Sri Krishna discusses about 12 types of yagnas (sacrifices) that people perform to purify their mind and elevate their spiritual person in them to become perfect individuals. Krishna calls these people as “yogis”.

The yagnas are

1. Deva yagna - control of the sense organs (Devas) as sacrifice
2. Brahma yagna – which means “To know the individual (ego) as identical with Brahman, that is, to sacrifice the self in Brahman”- as per Adi Sankara
3. Srota and indriya yagna are offering of the restraint of hearing and other senses
4. Shabdadin – offering of sound
5. Sarva Indriyas – all the activities of the senses
6. Prana-indriya – vital energy
7. Dravya yagna – wealth offering
8. Tapo yagna – offering of penance (austerity)
9. Yoga yagna – offering of yoga as sacrifice
10. Svaadhyaaya – study of The Self (Atman) from the scriptures and the knowledge thus obtained as sacrifice
11. Offering of outgoing breath in the incoming breath and the incoming breath in the  

outgoing breath (solely absorbed in breath control)

12. Well regulated diet as yoga

These yogi’s sins are destroyed by their sacrificial activities. All these sacrifices are born of action.  

Sloka 33-34

“Superior is Knowledge sacrifice to sacrifice with objects since all actions end in Knowledge.”

 As per Swami Chinmayanandaji, Knowledge sacrifice means sacrificing our old thoughts and ideas in the Knowledge obtained by doing yagnas mentioned above.

 Sri Krishna continues:

“Know that by long prostration, by question and service, the wise who have realized the Truth, will instruct you (Arjuna) in Knowledge”

Here, Sri Krishna notes three requirements to acquire Knowledge

1. “Mental surrender” to a guru who has already gained this Knowledge by “subjective experience” of Brahman. Subjective experience means not just studying the scriptures alone but actually “Realizing the Self” (Brahman, Atman or Truth).
2. Sincerely questioning the teacher about doubts arising in the mind with humility and without ego or arrogance (for the sake of gaining this Knowledge alone.)
3. Serving the needs of the teacher and his family (as was the custom those days). We can find in His Krishna avatar, the young Sri Krishna along with His friend Sudhama (Kuselar) used to go to the forest and collect and bring things needed (to make fire for cooking) for his teacher’s wife at Sandhipani ashram.

“If the aspirant is earnest in his spiritual enlightenment, The Lord sees to it that he comes in contact with an “enlightened one” (a spiritual master).  Seek and the light is sent to you.”- Sri Ramakrishna

What is the proof that a person will not get confused again as to what is Truth and what is untruth?   The assurance comes:

Sloka 35-38

“Having gained this Knowledge, O Pandava, you shall not get deluded again”

What If a person is a very bad sinner, how can he (she) be cured of his (her) sinful activity?

“Even if you are the most sinful of sinners, yet you shall verily cross over all the sins by the raft of Knowledge”.

“Just as the blazing fire reduces fuel to ashes, O Arjuna, so does the Fire of Knowledge reduce all actions to ashes”. “There is no purifier in this world as Knowledge”.

Sloka 39-42

What happens to a person who has full faith in Krishna’s teachings?

“The man who is full of faith, who is devoted and who has subdued the senses, obtains this Knowledge: and having obtained (this) Knowledge, he goes very soon to the Supreme Peace”.

“Unless one has the faith of a baby, one cannot have access to the Lord. If the mother points out to someone and says, “He is your brother”, the baby believes it. The Grace of the Lord comes to him who has this kind of faith”- Sri Ramakrishna

What about the faithless person?

“The ignorant, the faithless, the doubting self goes to destruction. There is no happiness for the faithless in this world or the other world”.

“Therefore, with the sword of Knowledge, cut asunder the doubts born of ignorance, and take refuge in Yoga, O Bharatha”.

“Om tatsatiti Srimad Bhagavadgitasu upanisatsu brahmavidyayam yogasastre

  Sri Krishnaarjuna samvade Jnana Karma-Sanyasa yogo nama caturtho dhyayaha”

Thus, in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad Gita, in the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna, ends the fourth discourse titled “The Yoga of Renunciation of Action in Knowledge”.

 Summary

             In this chapter, Lord Krishna discusses the reasons for His avatars, the type of yagnas people perform to reach Him, how to obtain the Imperishable Knowledge of Brahman, how a Sage who has already gained this Knowledge behaves and the importance of having faith in Sri Krishna’s teachings. He also defines what “actionless actions” are. He declares that even the “worst sinner” can be purified by this Knowledge.

Hari Om!

Dr.Shanmugam