THE HOLY YOGA, CHAPTER 5, SANYASA YOGA OR THE RENUNCIATION, VERSE NUMBER 2

THE HOLY YOGA

CHAPTER 5

SANYASA YOGA OR THE RENUNCIATION:

VERSE NUMBER 2

Text in Transliteration:

                              sri bhagavaan uvaacha

samnyaasah karmayogas cha nihsreyasakaraav ubhau

tayos tu karmasamnyaasaat karmayogo visishyate

                                The Blessed Lord said:

Renunciation and performance of action both lead to freedom; of the two, performance of action is superior to the renunciation of action.

COMMENTARY BY SWAMI SIDBHAVANANDA:

‘Mukti’ or the emancipation of the soul is contained in ‘Sreyas’, and it is the acme of the human life. It can be gained either by the renunciation of action or by its performance. The sacred Badrikashrama in the interior of the Himalayas may be reached either by a plane or on foot. Of the two, the latter means i s preferable because of the wide experience and the fruitful contact with the people that it brings. Karma yoga is akin to walking to Badrikashrama, while karma sanyasa is like reaching that place by plane. Through the karma yoga method wide experience is gained, the divine possibilities in the human is being processed to perfection and benign communion with the Lord’s creation is established. These great purposes of life are denied to karma sanyasa.

SRI RAMAKRISHNA AS QUOTED BY SWAMI SIDBHAVANANDA:

The inexperienced player at a game of dice wants somehow to score a victory and he is intent on it. But an adept in it takes to the display of his talents first and attends to the gain next. ‘sadhakas’ (practitioners) who want to escape from the turmoils of the world are second to those who serve the world but are not bound by it.

COMMENTARY BY DR.S.RADHAKRISHNAN:

The Saankhya method involves the renunciation of works and the Yoga insists on their performance in the right spirit. They are at bottom the same but yoga way comes more naturally to us. The two ways are not inconsistent. In saankya, jnaana ior insight is emphasized. In yoga, volitional effort is stressed. In one, we know the Self by thinking away the alien elements; in the other, we will them away.

COMMENTARY BY SWAMI SIVANANDA:

Sannyasa (renunciation of action) and karma yoga (performance of action) both lead to Moksha or liberation or the highest bliss. Though both lead to Moksha, yet of the two means of attaining the Moksha, Karma Yoga is better than mere karma sannyasa(renunciation of action)without the knowledge of the Self.

But renunciation of actions with the knowledge of the Self is decidedly superior to Karma yoga.

Moreover, Karm Yoga is easy and is therefore suitable to all. (Cf. III.3; V.5, VL 46)

Comments of the blogger:

Both karma Yogis and Sankya yogis are tossed into the Samsara or the ocean of the worldly life. For men of contemplation Sankya is good. But for men of action, Karma yoga is not only ideal but it is the only marga or path. Moreover, all men of action cannot attain Moksha at one go. The dvandvas or duality is a strong enemy. The ‘I’ ness is an almost insurmountable hurdle even for the perfected karma yogis. And all men cannot take to even Karma Yoga. They, the majority of men just come, act for selfishness and go when the time is over only to come here later to pick up the thread. The Lord does not speak about the majority of the people! He only speaks about Karma yogis like Mahatma Gandhi. This is why the Lord states very pertinently in a stanza that of a thousand people who seek him only one or two make intensive effort at attaining Him, and of such a thousand people only one or to really succeed in their Yoga and of such thousand yogis only one or two attain Him!

Thus the majority of us are not even Karmayogis!

Here the Lord wants Arnjuna to be a Karma Yogi by indulging in war. He also asks us to indulge in the war of day-to-day life which is nothing but short of war between senses and sense objects. In this wise the Lord of Gita is more pertinent than the time He spoke to Arjuna. In this age of desk tops, lap tops, tablets and smartest of phones, the war between the senses and sense objects are at their height. We all should indulge in the war and pray also to God for Karma Yoga also includes Bakti Yoga or the Yoga of Devotion. We should try our level best to not be entwined by the dualities like pain and joy, success and defeat, shadow and light. And as and when we are defeated and find ourselves on the ground with our face to the ground, we should pray to God. The emancipation by gradation over a number of rebirths is the marga or way for us. Because we are overly worldly! But better than being one of the rapists of Nirbhaya, no?