THE HOLY GITA, CHAPTER 5, SANYAS YOGA OR TRUE RENUNCIATION, VERSE NUMBER 1

THE HOLY GITA

CHAPTER 5

SANYASA YOGA OR TRUE RENUNCIATION:

VERSE NUMBER 1

Text in Transliteration:

                                arjuna uvacha

samnyaasam karmanaam krrshna punar yogam cha samsasi

yach chreya etayor ekam tan me broohi sunischitam

Text in English:

                               Arjuna said

Renunciation of action, O Krishna, you commend, and again its performance. Of the two, which one is the better? Tell me that conclusively.

COMMENTARY BY SWAMI SIDBHAVANANDA:

In Chapter IV verses 18, 19, 21, 24, 32, 33, 37 and 41 the Lord advocated the renunciation of action. But in the last verse of the same chapter he commended the performance of action. Two conflicting courses cannot be adopted simultaneously. Hence Arjuna raises this doubt.

COMMENTARY BY DR.S.RADHAKRISHNAN:

Shankara argues that the question is with reference to the unenlightened, for the man who has realized the Self has no longer any object to gain since he has achieved all. In III, 17, it is said that he has no more duties to perform. In such passages as III, 4 and IV, 6, the method of work is enjoined as an accessory to the acquisition of the knowledge of the Self, while in V, 8, always to meditate with a concentrated mind on the idea that it is not “I” that do it. It is not possible to imagine even in a dream that the man who knows the Self can have anything to do with work so opposed to right knowledge and entirely based on illusory knowledge. So Shankara contends that Arjuna’s question relates only to those who have not known the Self. For the ignorant, work is better than renunciation.

The intention of the Gita right through seems to be that the work to be abandoned is selfish work which binds us to the chain of karma and not all activity. We cannot be saved by works alone, but works are not opposed to saving wisdom.

COMMENTARY BY SWAMI SIVANANDA:

Thou teachest renunciation of actions and also their performance. This has confused me. Tell decisively now which is better. It is not possible for a man to resort to both of them at the same time. Yoga here means Karma Yoga. (Cf. III.2)

Comments by the blogger:

Arjuna could have had many reasons for this question.

First of all he might have genuine reason for the question. He might have thought the Lord of Gita comes up with two diametrically opposite viewpoint in having urged him to renunciate or give up action and in the same breath its performance.

The second reason could have been his desire to hear the nectar like words of the Lord further for a longer time. We should remember he is an ultimate student taking lessons from the ultimate Teacher. Still he comes up with this poser could mean he wants to feast upon His words at this psychological time.

The third also is more feasible: Arjuna could have come up with this poser so that the future generations might benefit from the words of God. Swami Sidbhvananda in his able commentary for Manickavasagar’s THIRUVASAGAM, gives such an incline. While the incomparable poet-yogi feels and expresses regrets in tearful ways that despite the Lord Shiva’s intercessions to help him many a time, the poet-yogi time and again go to women of dubious character and enjoy them, and begs forgiveness for that. Swami Sidbhavananda in his interpretations would say that truely great people have a way of considering the sins of the masses as their own and beg on their behalf forgiveness. This is the way of the saintly poet to work out the sins of the masses on his own body like Jesus Christ.