Bhagavad-gita As It Is - Macmillan 1972 Edition -- Prabhupada Books (38 page)

Bg 4.22

TEXT 22

TEXT

yadṛcchā-lābha-santuṣṭo

dvandvātīto vimatsaraḥ

samaḥ siddhāv asiddhau ca

kṛtvāpi na nibadhyate

SYNONYMS

yadṛcchā-
out of its own accord;
lābha-
gain;
santuṣṭaḥ-
satisfied;
dvandva-
duality;
atītaḥ-
surpassed;
vimatsaraḥ-
free from envy;
samaḥ-
steady;
siddhau-
in success;
asiddhau-
failure;
ca-
also;
kṛtvā-
doing;
api-
although;
na-
never;
nibadhyate-
is affected.

TRANSLATION

He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady both in success and failure, is never entangled, although performing actions.

PURPORT

A Kṛṣṇa conscious person does not make much endeavor even to maintain his body. He is satisfied with gains which are obtained of their own accord. He neither begs nor borrows, but he labors honestly as far as is in his power, and is satisfied with whatever is obtained by his own honest labor. He is therefore independant in his livelihood. He does not allow anyone's service to hamper his own service in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. However, for the service of the Lord he can participate in any kind of action without being disturbed by the duality of the material world. The duality of the material world is felt in terms of heat and cold, or misery and happiness. A Kṛṣṇa conscious person is above duality because he does not hesitate to act in any way for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore he is steady both in success and in failure. These signs are visible when one is fully in transcendental knowledge.

Bg 4.23

TEXT 23

TEXT

gata-saṅgasya muktasya

jñānāvasthita-cetasaḥ

yajñāyācarataḥ karma

samagraṁ pravilīyate

SYNONYMS

gata-saṅgasya-
unattached to the modes of material nature;
muktasya-
of the liberated;
jñāna-avasthita-
situated in transcendence;
cetasaḥ-
of such wisdom;
yajñāya-
for the sake of Yajña (Kṛṣṇa);
ācarataḥ-
so acting;
karma-
work;
samagram-
in total;
pravilīyate-
merges entirely.

TRANSLATION

The work of a man who is unattached to the modes of material nature and who is fully situated in transcendental knowledge merges entirely into transcendence.

PURPORT

Becoming fully Kṛṣṇa conscious, one is freed from all dualities and thus is free from the contaminations of the material modes. He can become liberated because he knows his constitutional position in relationship with Kṛṣṇa; and thus his mind cannot be drawn from Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Consequently, whatever he does, he does for Kṛṣṇa, who is the primeval Viṣṇu. Therefore, all his works are technically sacrifices because sacrifice involves satisfying the Supreme Person, Kṛṣṇa. The resultant reactions to all such work certainly merge into transcendence, and one does not suffer material effects.

Bg 4.24

TEXT 24

TEXT

brahmārpaṇaṁ brahma havir

brahmāgnau brahmaṇā hutam

brahmaiva tena gantavyaṁ

brahma-karma-samādhinā

SYNONYMS

brahma-
spiritual nature;
arpaṇam-
contribution;
brahma-
the Supreme;
haviḥ-
butter;
brahma-
spiritual;
agnau-
in the fire of consummation;
brāhmaṇā-
by the spirit soul;
hutam-
offered;
brahma-
spiritual kingdom;
eva-
certainly;
tena-
by him;
gantavyam-
to be reached;
brahma-
spiritual;
karma-
activities;
samādhinā-
by complete absorption.

TRANSLATION

A person who is fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is sure to attain the spiritual kingdom because of his full contribution to spiritual activities, in which the consummation is absolute and that which is offered is of the same spiritual nature.

PURPORT

How activities in Kṛṣṇa consciousness can lead one ultimately to the spiritual goal is described here. There are various activities in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and all of them will be described in the following verses. But, for the present, just the principle of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is described. A conditioned soul, entangled in material contamination, is sure to act in the material atmosphere, and yet he has to get out of such an environment. The process by which the conditioned soul can get out of the material atmosphere is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. For example, a patient who is suffering from a disorder of the bowels due to overindulgence in milk products is cured by another milk product, namely curds. The materially absorbed conditioned soul can be cured by Kṛṣṇa consciousness as set forth here in the
Gītā
. This process is generally known as
yajña,
or activities (sacrifices) simply meant for the satisfaction of Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa. The more the activities of the material world are performed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or for Viṣṇu only, the more the atmosphere becomes spiritualized by complete absorption. Brahman means spiritual. The Lord is spiritual, and the rays of His transcendental body are called
brahmajyoti,
His spiritual effulgence. Everything that exists is situated in that
brahmajyoti,
but when the
jyoti
is covered by illusion
(māyā)
or sense gratification, it is called material. This material veil can be removed at once by Kṛṣṇa consciousness; thus the offering for the sake of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the consuming agent of such an offering or contribution; the process of consumption, the contributor, and the result are-all combined together-Brahman, or the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth covered by
māyā
is called matter. Matter dovetailed for the cause of the Absolute Truth regains its spiritual quality. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the process of converting the illusory consciousness into Brahman, or the Supreme. When the mind is fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is said to be in
samādhi,
or trance. Anything done in such transcendental consciousness is called
yajña,
or sacrifice for the Absolute. In that condition of spiritual consciousness, the contributor, the contribution, the consumption, the performer or leader of the performance, and the result or ultimate gain-everything-becomes one in the Absolute, the Supreme Brahman. That is the method of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Bg 4.25

TEXT 25

TEXT

daivam evāpare yajñaṁ

yoginaḥ paryupāsate

brahmāgnāv apare yajñaṁ

yajñenaivopajuhvati

SYNONYMS

daivam-
in worshiping the demigods;
eva-
like this;
apare-
some;
yajñam-
sacrifices;
yoginaḥ-
the mystics;
paryupāsate-
worship perfectly;
brahma-
the Absolute Truth;
agnau-
in the fire of;
apare-
others;
yajñam-
sacrifice;
yajñena-
by sacrifice;
eva-
thus;
upajuhvati-
worship.

TRANSLATION

Some yogīs perfectly worship the demigods by offering different sacrifices to them, and some of them offer sacrffices in the fire of the Supreme Brahman.

PURPORT

As described above, a person engaged in discharging duties in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is also called a perfect
yogī
or a first-class mystic. But there are others also, who perform similar sacrifices in the worship of demigods, and still others who sacrifice to the Supreme Brahman, or the impersonal feature of the Supreme Lord. So there are different kinds of sacrifices in terms of different categories. Such different categories of sacrifice by different types of performers only superficially demark varieties of sacrifice. Factual sacrifice means to satisfy the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, who is also known as
Yajña.
All the different varieties of sacrifice can be placed within two primary divisions: namely, sacrifice of worldly possessions and sacrifice in pursuit of transcendental knowledge. Those who are in Kṛṣṇa consciousness sacrifice all material possessions for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord, while others, who want some temporary material happiness, sacrifice their material possessions to satisfy demigods such as Indra, the sun-god, etc. And others, who are impersonalists, sacrifice their identity by merging into the existence of impersonal Brahman. The demigods are powerful living entities appointed by the Supreme Lord for the maintenance and supervision of all material functions like the heating, watering and lighting of the universe. Those who are interested in material benefits worship the demigods by various sacrifices according to the Vedic rituals. They are called
bahv-īśvara-vādī,
or believers in many gods. But others, who worship the impersonal feature of the Absolute Truth and regard the forms of the demigods as temporary, sacrifice their individual selves in the supreme fire and thus end their individual existences by merging into the existence of the Supreme. Such impersonalists spend their time in philosophical speculation to understand the transcendental nature of the Supreme. In other words, the fruitive workers sacrifice their material possessions for material enjoyment, whereas the impersonalist sacrifices his material designations with a view to merging into the existence of the Supreme. For the impersonalist, the fire altar of sacrifice is the Supreme Brahman, and the offering is the self being consumed by the fire of Brahman. The Kṛṣṇa conscious person, like Arjuna, however, sacrifices everything for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, and thus all his material possessions as well as his own self-everything-is sacrificed for Kṛṣṇa. Thus, he is the first-class
yogī
; but he does not lose his individual existence.

Bg 4.26

TEXT 26

TEXT

śrotrādīnīndriyāṇy anye

saṁyamāgniṣu juhvati

śabdādīn viṣayān anya

indriyāgniṣu juhvati

SYNONYMS

śrotra ādīni-
hearing process;
indriyāṇi-
senses;
anye-
others;
saṁyama-
of restraint;
agniṣu-
in the fire;
juhvati-
offers;
śabda-ādīn-
sound vibration, etc.;
viṣayān-
objects of sense gratification;
anye-
others:
indriya-
of sense organs;
agniṣu-
in the fire;
juhvati-
sacrifice.

TRANSLATION

Some of them sacrifice the hearing process and the senses in the fire of the controlled mind, and others sacrifice the objects of the senses, such as sound, in the fire of sacrifice.

PURPORT

The four divisions of human life, namely the
brahmacārī,
the
gṛhastha,
the
vānaprastha,
and the
sannyāsī,
are all meant to help men become perfect
yogīs
or transcendentalists. Since human life is not meant for our enjoying sense gratification like the animals, the four orders of human life are so arranged that one may become perfect in spiritual life. The
brahmacārīs,
or students under the care of a bona fide spiritual master, control the mind by abstaining from sense gratification. They are referred to in this verse as sacrificing the hearing process and the senses in the fire of the controlled mind. A
brahmacārī
hears only words concerning Kṛṣṇa consciousness; hearing is the basic principle for understanding, and therefore the pure
brahmacārī
engages fully in
harer nāmānukīrtanam-
chanting and hearing the glories of the Lord. He restrains himself from the vibrations of material sounds, and his hearing is engaged in the transcendental sound vibration of Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, the householders, who have some license for sense gratification, perform such acts with great restraint. Sex life, intoxication and meat eating are general tendencies of human society, but a regulated householder does not indulge in unrestricted sex life and other sense gratifications. Marriage on principles of religious life is therefore current in all civilized human society because that is the way for restricted sex life. This restricted, unattached sex life is also a kind of
yajña
because the restricted householder sacrifices his general tendency toward sense gratification for higher transcendental life.

Bg 4.27

TEXT 27

TEXT

sarvāṇīndriya-karmāṇi

prāṇa-karmāṇi cāpare

ātma-saṁyama-yogāgnau

juhvati jñāna-dīpite

SYNONYMS

sarvāṇi-
all;
indriya-
senses;
karmāṇi-
functions;
prāṇa-karmāṇi-
functions of the life breath;
ca-
also;
apare-
others;
ātma-saṁyama-
controlling the mind;
yoga-
linking process;
agnau-
in the fire of;
juhvati-
offers;
jñāna-dīpite-
because of the urge for self-realization.

TRANSLATION

Those who are interested in self-realization, in terms of mind and sense control, offer the functions of all the senses, as well as the vital force [breath], as oblations into the fire of the controlled mind.

PURPORT

The
yoga
system conceived by Patañjali is referred to herein. In the
Yoga-sūtra
of Patañjali, the soul is called
pratyag-ātmā
and
parag-ātmā.
As long as the soul is attached to sense enjoyment, it is called
parag-ātmā.
The soul is subjected to the functions of ten kinds of air at work within the body, and this is perceived through the breathing system. The Pātañjala system of
yoga
instructs one on how to control the functions of the body's air in a technical manner so that ultimately all the functions of the air within become favorable for purifying the soul of material attachment. According to this
yoga
system,
pratyag ātmā
is the ultimate goal. This
pratyag ātmā
is a withdrawal from activities in matter. The senses interact with the sense objects, like the ear for hearing, eyes for seeing, nose for smelling, tongue for tasting, hand for touching, and all of them are thus engaged in activities outside the self. They are called the functions of the
prāṇa-vāyu.
The
apāna-vāyu
goes downwards,
vyāna-vāyu
acts to shrink and expand,
samāna-vāyu
adjusts equilibrium,
udāna-vāyu
goes upwards-and when one is enlightened, one engages all these in searching for self-realization.