Jnana Karma Sannyasa Yoga: Shlokas 29 to 33
If you have not already done so, I would request you to review the Chapter 3, Karma Yoga before studying chapter 4 as that would help set the right context.
You can find the explanation of the shlokas 21 to 28 of chapter 4 here. Please go through that to get a better understand and maintain continuity in your learning.
You can also listen to all the episodes through my Spotify Portal.
Verse 4.29 to 4.33
अपाने जुह्वति प्राणं प्राणेऽपानं तथापरे |
प्राणापानगती रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणा: || 29||
अपरे नियताहारा: प्राणान्प्राणेषु जुह्वति |
सर्वेऽप्येते यज्ञविदो यज्ञक्षपितकल्मषा: || 30||
apāne juhvati prāṇaṁ prāṇe ’pānaṁ tathāpare
prāṇāpāna-gatī ruddhvā prāṇāyāma-parāyaṇāḥ
apare niyatāhārāḥ prāṇān prāṇeṣhu juhvati
sarve ’pyete yajña-vido yajña-kṣhapita-kalmaṣhāḥ
अपाने (apāne) – in the outgoing breath; जुह्वति (juhvati) – offers; प्राणं (prāṇaṁ) – the incoming breath; प्राणेऽपानं (prāṇe’pānaṁ) – in the incoming breath the outgoing; तथा (tathā) – so; अपरे (apare) – others; प्राणापानगती (prāṇāpānagatī) – the course of prāṇa and apāna; रुद्ध्वा (ruddhvā) – having restrained; प्राणायामपरायणा: (prāṇāyāmaparāyaṇāḥ) – devoted to the practice of prāṇāyāma.
अपरे (apare) – others; नियताहारा: (niyatāhārāḥ) – regulating their diet; प्राणान्प्राणेषु (prāṇānprāṇeṣu) – life-breaths in the life-breaths; जुह्वति (juhvati) – sacrifice; सर्वेऽप्येते (sarve’pyete) – all these; यज्ञविदो (yajñavido) – knowers of yajña; यज्ञक्षपितकल्मषा: (yajña-kṣapita-kalmaṣāḥ) – sins are destroyed by yajña.
Some offer their outgoing breath into the incoming breath, while others offer their incoming breath into the outgoing breath. Some arduously practice prāṇāyāma and restrain their incoming and outgoing breaths. They are known as prāṇāyāma yogis. Still others curtail their food intake and offer their breath into their life-energy as a sacrifice. All these knowers of sacrifice have their impurities destroyed by these sacrifices.
यज्ञशिष्टामृतभुजो यान्ति ब्रह्म सनातनम् |
नायं लोकोऽस्त्ययज्ञस्य कुतोऽन्य: कुरुसत्तम || 31||
yajña-śhiṣhṭāmṛita-bhujo yānti brahma sanātanam
nāyaṁ loko ’styayajñasya kuto ’nyaḥ kuru-sattama
यज्ञशिष्टामृतभुजो (yajña-śiṣṭāmṛta-bhujo) – those who eat the remnants of yajña; यान्ति (yānti) – attain; ब्रह्म (brahma) – Brahman; सनातनम् (sanātanam) – the eternal; न (na) – not; अयं (ayaṁ) – this; लोकोऽस्त्य (loko’sty) – world exists; अयज्ञस्य (ayajñasya) – for the non-performer of yajña; कुतोऽन्य: (kuto’nyaḥ) – how can there be another; कुरुसत्तम (kuru-sattama) – O best of the Kurus.
Those who consume the nectar remaining from the sacrifice, attain the eternal Brahman. O best of Kuru, those who do not perform sacrifice can find no happiness in this world or the next.
एवं बहुविधा यज्ञा वितता ब्रह्मणो मुखे |
कर्मजान्विद्धि तान्सर्वानेवं ज्ञात्वा विमोक्ष्यसे || 32||
evaṁ bahu-vidhā yajñā vitatā brahmaṇo mukhe
karma-jān viddhi tān sarvān evaṁ jñātvā vimokṣhyase
एवं (evaṁ) – thus; बहुविधा (bahuvdhā) – many kinds of; यज्ञा (yajñā) – sacrifices; वितता (vitatā) – are spread; ब्रह्मणो (brahmaṇo) – in the mouth of Brahman; मुखे (mukhe) – mouth; कर्मजान्विद्धि (karmajānviddhi) – know them to be born of work; तान्सर्वानेवं (tānsarvānevaṁ) – all those; ज्ञात्वा (jñātvā) – having known; विमोक्ष्यसे (vimokṣyase) – you will be liberated.
In this way, various types of sacrifices are prescribed in the Vedas. Understand them all to result from the action of consciousness. Knowing this, you will be liberated.
श्रेयान्द्रव्यमयाद्यज्ञाज्ज्ञानयज्ञ: परन्तप |
सर्वं कर्माखिलं पार्थ ज्ञाने परिसमाप्यते || 33||
śhreyān dravya-mayād yajñāj jñāna-yajñaḥ parantapa
sarvaṁ karmākhilaṁ pārtha jñāne parisamāpyate
श्रेयान्द्रव्यमयाद्यज्ञाज्ज्ञानयज्ञ: (śreyāndravyamayādyajñāj-jñānayajñaḥ) – the sacrifice of knowledge is better than sacrifice with materials; परन्तप (parantapa) – O chastiser of the enemy; सर्वं (sarvam) – all; कर्माखिलं (karmākhilaṁ) – all actions in their entirety; पार्थ (pārtha) – O Partha; ज्ञाने (jñāne) – in knowledge; परिसमाप्यते (parisamāpyate) – are encompassed.
O chastiser of the enemy, the sacrifice performed in knowledge is better than the mere sacrifice of material possessions. After all, O son of Pṛthā, all actions in their entirety culminate in knowledge.
Success in Bhakti is based on atma-samarpan
In the previous verses, Shri Krishna mentioned the various yogas, austerities, penances etc that spiritual aspirants practice, and how success in all of them was based on personal will power. And then Shri KRishna explained the difference between them and Bhakti Yoga where the success is based on surrender (atma-samarpan) and directing our senses towards Bhagavan.
Here, he describes the various pranayama practices done by yogis as a means to attain liberation.
Sacrifice through Pranayama
Prana is often mistaken to be the same as breath, but this isn’t accurate. Prana means ‘life force’. By learning to control our breathing, we can gain control over our life force and its activities within us. When we look closely, we see that the scriptures use Prana to describe different aspects of life within a living body. It’s the energy that runs the different systems within us. Typically, there are five types of Pranas highlighted, which actually refer to five fundamental bodily functions.
The Prana that controls perception and enables us to interact with the world around us is called “Prana” itself. It governs the respiratory and cardiovascular systems and allows for the intake of substances, such as food and air.
The function of excretion is overseen by “Apana,” which regulates the elimination of waste from our body. It’s like the waste management system of the body, involved in processes like urination, defecation, and menstruation.
The digestive function, responsible for breaking down food and assimilating nutrients, is governed by “Samana” It regulates the digestion and distribution of energy derived from the food we consume.
The circulatory system, which carries nutrients throughout the body, is maintained by “Vyana“. It’s the force that facilitates the circulation of energies, ensuring that the nutrients from our food reach every corner of our body.
Lastly, the Prana that oversees our ability to grow and enhance our mental and intellectual life is “Udana“. This is the energy that moves upwards and aids in conscious actions such as speech. It is also said to play a role in the functioning of the memory, thought process, and emotions.
Most people aren’t consciously aware of these inner life activities. But through Pranayama, a breathing technique, we can gain control over these systems. This means that a seeker, or someone on a spiritual path, can use Pranayama to withdraw his senses and focus inward. This ability to focus inward is particularly helpful when meditating.
Breathing consists of four parts:
Pūrak — the process of drawing the breath into the lungs. Inhaling.
Rechak — the process of emptying the lungs of breath. Exhaling.
Antar Kumbhak — holding the breath in the lungs after inhalation.
Bāhya Kumbhak — keeping the lungs empty after exhalation.
The kumbhaks are in themselves considered advanced practices and recommended to be practiced only under guidance of an experienced master.
Krishna says that hatha yogis offer as sacrifice the outgoing breath in the incoming breath, while some offer the incoming breath into the outgoing breath. Some arduously practice prāṇāyāma and restrain the incoming and outgoing breaths, purely absorbed in the regulation of the life-energy.
You can imagine how difficult these practices must be, and they are. It is not like how they show on TV advertisements where anybody can do pranayama anywhere. Doing it the right way is not easy and if not done correctly, pranayama can cause negative side effects. That is one of the reasons why Shri Krishna has said that Bhakti yoga is the easiest path for humans in Kali yuga. Krishna will talk more about this type of yoga in the sixth chapter. Let us remember that Arjuna was a great raja yogi and even he accepted that it was a very difficult form of yoga.
Although very difficult, Krishna says that this form of yoga is also considered as a valid sacrifice to cleanse oneself and reach self realization. In my humble opinion, we can use raja yoga to purify ourselves and make our body stronger. However, we need to rely on bhakti yoga for progressing on the path towards liberation.
Reiterating the importance of sacrifice
“O best of the Kuru dynasty, without sacrifice one can never live happily on this planet or in this life: what then of the next?”
To understand this shloka, it’s important to understand the context of Bhagavad Gita itself. In this scripture, the conversation between Prince Arjuna and Lord Krishna takes place on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, where Arjuna is filled with doubts and moral dilemmas about the imminent war.
Here, the term sacrifice doesn’t merely imply physical or material offerings. It’s a broad concept that includes different types of sacrifices such as the sacrifice of material possessions, sacrifice of ego, sacrifice of personal desires, sacrifice of results of our efforts etc. In this verse, Lord Krishna is teaching Arjuna about the importance of performing one’s duty without any expectations for the outcome and sacrificing the outcome or fruits to Him. He emphasizes that without the spirit of sacrifice, it is impossible to live a happy and fulfilling life in this world, let alone in the next life.
As you can see, Krishna emphasizes on the need for sacrifice in all aspects. Sacrificing the results of your actions, sacrificing your sensory pleasures, sacrificing your ego, sacrificing yourself as atma-samarpan, etc. It is very important to understand that this mindset of sacrifice is essential to advance in spirituality and progress towards liberation. The mindset we should have is like this: “I will only eat, smell, wear, live in, and talk about objects that have first been offered to you. In this way, by accepting the remnants as your prasād, I will easily conquer Maya.”
From what we’ve understood about the different kinds of sacrifices – be it giving away possessions, studying sacred scriptures like the Vedas, or practicing yoga – they all have a common goal: to control our senses.
Why is this control important? Because our desires and sense-based pleasures are what keep us tied to the physical world. Unless we can step beyond this, we won’t reach the highest level of existence – one that is filled with complete knowledge, endless joy, and eternal life. This highest state is known as the realm of Brahman.
All these sacrifices, in their own way, help us cleanse ourselves from the negative effects of being too attached to the material world. This spiritual progress not only makes our current life more joyful and prosperous, but also sets us on the path to the eternal divine realm after we leave this life.
When we reach this ultimate state, there are two possibilities: either we merge into the formless energy that is Brahman, or we join Krishna, the Supreme Being, in His divine abode. This is the ultimate goal and reward for living a life of sacrifice and spiritual discipline. Those who do not have this mindset and who do not perform such sacrifices remain entangled in the web of Maya and bound by their karmic reactions.
As discussed earlier, we should use bhakti and surrender ourselves to Him (atma-samarpan). We should also use bhakti to strengthen our jnana and use our jnana to perform nishkama karma. This is the way to progress on the path to salvation in this kali yuga.
Krishna also reminds us in 4.32 that bhakti or sacrifice done mechanically is not sufficient and does not help purify us or help us progress on the spiritual path. We have to do them consciously and use our intellect to understand what we are doing and why we are doing it. As discussed earlier, this is the reason why Krishna had said that manasa puja is superior to bahya puja.
In this verse, Lord Krishna emphasizes the importance of understanding and performing sacrifices as prescribed in the Vedas, and acknowledges that the realization of these sacrifices leads to liberation. Here, sacrifice (Yajna) is used in a broad sense, not limited to rituals involving offerings into the fire. It refers to a disciplined action done in a spirit of selflessness and duty, without attachment to the results. This can involve different forms such as giving up material possessions, devoting time to spiritual study, or practicing various forms of Yoga.
When Krishna says that these sacrifices are “born of work”, he suggests that all sacrifices are rooted in action (Karma). This links back to the central theme of the Bhagavad Gita, which advocates “Nishkama Karma Yoga” – the path of selfless action. Every sacrifice requires action, but the most important aspect of this action is the attitude with which it is performed – it should be done selflessly, without desire for the fruits of the action.
The verse concludes by saying that understanding this principle leads to liberation (Moksha). This implies that when an individual understands the essence of sacrifices and performs their duties selflessly as prescribed by the Vedas, they will be released from the cycle of birth and death, attaining eternal peace.
Therefore, this verse not only encourages the practice of sacrifices as a path to liberation, but also emphasizes the importance of gaining a deep understanding of these practices. It reiterates the concept that right knowledge leading to right action performed with the right mindset is the path to liberation.
We should focus on how deeply we are meditating upon Krishna when we chant His name. Chanting even one mala with devotion, focus and with the understanding that the name of God is not different from God, is a lot more effective than mechanically chanting many rounds. My humble request is that don’t focus only on the number of times you chant the holy name but also focus on the quality of each chant of the holy name.
Saint Kabir says this beautifully as:
माला फेरत जुग भया, फिरा न मन का फेर,
कर का मनका डारी दे, मन का मनका फेर।
You have been rotating the beads of your chanting mala for many ages, but the tendencies and distractions of your mind have not changed. Now put those beads down, and rotate the beads of the mind.
The explanations for the final set of shlokas for the 4th chapter can be found here:
References:
https://www.holy-bhagavad-gita.org/
https://www.rkmathharipad.org/video/bhagavad-gita-lectures-by-swami-ranganathanandaji/
https://www.asitis.com/
kṛṣṇadaasa
Servant of Krishna
Aka +Vinayak Raghuvamshi