What
is the meaning of the word yoga?
Based on the root verb 'yuj', yoga simply means union, association or attainment.
For instance, dhana means wealth and so dhana yoga means the attainment of wealth.
Similarly, putra means a child and so putra yoga means the attainment of a child.
Hence, the item which is to be attained through effort must be mentioned before the word yoga
as a prefix, and the word yoga must be defined in that context.
Today, it has become a fashion to use the word yoga independently!
In nivṛtti also, yoga is used with appropriate prefixes buddhi yoga or jñāna yoga, bhakti
yoga, karma yoga etc.
The phrase "Yogāya yujyasva" appears in the verse being discussed.
It literally means, "Unite with yoga", or "Unite with union", since yoga itself
means union.
This appears to be meaningless since there is a repetition of the idea of union.
So, to clarify the meaning, the word yoga is immediately defined in the subsequent line.
It is said "Yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam", which means "Yoga is the talent in actions".
This meaning of the word yoga is limited to this verse alone and is not to be extended
to any other context.
Here, since the word yoga is used without any prefix, its definition has been provided.
Similarly, the word yoga without any prefix is also used in two verses earlier in the
Gita, as "Yogasthaḥ kuru karmāṇi…
". It means that one should do actions by situating oneself in yoga, becoming free of
attachment, and being equal towards profit or loss.
In this context, yoga is defined as equality by the line "Samatvam yoga ucyate".
Hence, whenever a prefix is absent, the word yoga is defined in that context, and such
a definition should not be extended everywhere.
Wherever the prefix is used, the meaning is clear and no separate definition for yoga
is needed there.
Treating misery and happiness in an equal manner is said to be yoga (Samatvam yoga ucyate).
A practical example of the same is the fact that we enjoy hot dishes and sweet dishes
in a meal equally.
It does not mean that sweet and hot dishes are one and the same.
When you eat a sweet dish, cool tears of happiness appear, and when you eat a hot dish, hot tears
of misery appear.
So, the symptoms of enjoying the two also differ.
But the end result, which is joy, is equal in both.
In this example, souls are able to enjoy both sweet and hot dishes in their meals.
They derive equal joy or enjoyment after finishing their meals, which consist of both types of
dishes.
But human souls cannot similarly enjoy both misery and happiness in their lives in the
real world.
They can enjoy comedy and tragedy equally only in a movie.
The reason is that the world is real to the soul.
God can enjoy both misery and happiness in this world equally since the world is unreal
for God like a movie.
For the soul, the movie is unreal but the world is real.
So, it cannot enjoy comedy and tragedy equally in the real world.
The soul is different from God in not having the powers of creation, maintenance, and destruction
of this world.
Even in the enjoyment of tragedy and comedy, equally in the world, the soul is different
from God.
Hence, monism between God and the soul is impossible from any angle, which is the view
of Madhva.
Monism is possible for a particular human being if God wishes to become that human being
due to His omnipotence.
Monism in terms of the equal enjoyment of happiness and misery also cannot be achieved
by the soul through its own effort.
Only the grace of God can bring such monism (Īśvarānugrahādeva…).
If God wishes, the soul can become God when God merges with the soul, resulting in complete
monism.
Hence, such yoga in the sense of equality is in the hands of God alone.
The equality in enjoyment is related to one's subjective experience, which is only in the
theoretical or mental phase.
There is no equality in the physical world.
Hence, tragedy and comedy or their symptoms, are never equal.
This equality in the theoretical phase is related to thought or knowledge.
Hence, the four verses prominently recommend adopting buddhi yoga which is the yoga of
intelligence.
In other words, the verses recommend analysis.
Mere physical actions are said to be inert and pitiable (Kṛpaṇāḥ…) since they
only follow a person's thought or decision (Dūreṇahyavaram…).
The decision, in turn, is the result of the analysis done using one's intelligence.
Equality or yoga in the enjoyment of both happiness and misery is possible to the fullest
extent only for God.
But the soul can try to achieve it, at least to a certain extent, by detaching one's
mind from the fruit of the action (Saṅgam tyaktvā…).
Since this yoga is very useful in the service of God, God will bless the devotee who is
trying to achieve such equality of enjoyment in this real world.
The soul is attached to the fruit due to its inherent limited selfishness.
So even upon taking the best effort for attaining this yoga of equality, the soul cannot attain
the state of equal-enjoyment permanently.
For attaining the state of equal enjoyment in both tragedy and comedy in the real world,
God's grace is highly essential.
In the case of a person doing social service, there is some detachment from the fruit, while
doing the work since social service is basically work done for the benefit of others.
But full-time social work is not possible and some selfish work is inevitable at least
for the sake of one's livelihood.
If the word yoga is used without any prefix or definition, it must be taken to be the
attainment of the grace of God since His grace is necessary from the most basic level in
pravṛtti, all the way upto nivṛtti.
If you want the word yoga to be used in the sense of the attainment of God Himself, then
it can only mean the attainment of the relevant Incarnation of God.
In this sense, yoga or the union with God means recognizing the contemporary Human Incarnation
of God through knowledge, developing aspiration-free devotion for Him, and remaining associated
with Him through practical service and sacrifice.
Giving Up the Superficial Classification of Merit and Sin
In the verse "Buddhiyukto…", yoga is defined as the talent in action.
This talent too belongs only to knowledge and not to the inert actions.
Analysis shows us the good and bad sides of the so-called good deeds and the so-called
bad deeds.
Any given action should be performed only after recognizing its good and bad sides.
The bad side should be rejected, and the good side should be adopted.
Avoiding this analysis, one should not think that a so-called bad quality is totally bad
and that a so-called good quality is totally good.
Such wrong thinking will lead to an altogether rejection of the so-called bad and an indiscriminate
adoption of the so-called good.
By such blind performance of action, the soul incurs sin.
By proper analysis, one can skillfully avoid sin.
Thus, the complete and correct meaning of the verse is as follows: "The person established
in intelligent analysis (buddhi yukto), gives up (jahātīha) the blind acceptance or rejection
of the so-called good and the so-called bad (ubhe sukṛta duṣkṛte).
This indeed is the talent in action (yoga).
Hence, O Arjuna adopt this yoga."
The first three verses (Yogasthaḥ…, Dūreṇahyavaram….and Buddhiyukto…) describe action.
The implied action here is service to God, which is called karma saṁnyāsa.
The fourth verse (Karmajam…phalam tyaktvā) describes the sacrifice of the fruit of one's
work to God, which is offering one's hard-earned money to the contemporary Human Incarnation
of God.
Karma saṁnyāsa and karma phala tyāga, which are service and sacrifice done for the
contemporary Human Incarnation, together constitute karma yoga.
Karma yoga is also called as practical devotion since it is the practical expression and proof
of the devotion in the mind.
Thus, these four verses together describe karma yoga or practical devotion to the Human
Incarnation of God.
Through sharp analysis, using one's intelligence (Buddhi yukto…) one recognizes the actual
meritorious and sinful sides of both the so-called meritorious action and the so-called sinful
actions.
He then skillfully avoids the actual sinful action and does only the actual meritorious
action.
Such an analytical person discards the general superficial classification of merit and sin,
since he depends on the actually determining what is meritorious and what is sinful through
sharp analysis.
For example, a person without analysis, might reject totally anger in all contexts, and
not even use anger where it is necessary.
Such a person fails to adopt the good side of a bad quality.
Another person may worship God for the sake of some selfish fruit.
Such a person has adopted the bad side of a good deed.
He has failed to adopt the good side of the good deed, which is worshipping God out of
real love, without aspiring for any selfish fruit.
Both cases, show a lack of analysis.
By analysis alone can one identify both the good and bad sides of each quality, which
might have been considered to be either a good or bad quality due to ignorant classification.
Thus, buddhi yoga means leaving this superficial classification of merit and sin and instead
actually identifying the inner good and bad sides of both merit and sin.
This requires analysis using sharp intelligence.
Upon analysis, the person leaves the bad sides of the so-called merit and sin and adopts
good sides of both.
It is this leaving of the bad sides of both merit and sin upon analysis that is implied
in the verse "Buddhiyukto jahātīha ubhe sukṛta duṣkṛte".
The talent or skill in action, referred to in the line "Yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam",
lies in the identification of the actual merit and actual sin, and doing only the actually
meritorious action.
The Necessity of Killing Bhīṣma and Droṇa The entire Gita was taught in the context
of motivating Arjuna to fight with his grandfather, Bhīṣma, and his teacher, Droṇa.
The two were the most respected personalities in Arjuna's life and killing them was unthinkable
for him (Kathaṁ bhīṣmamahaṁ…).
Arjuna had assumed that the killing of respectable elders was a sin, based on a superficial ignorant
classification.
Superficially, killing is a sin.
But in reality, this so-called sinful action has both good and bad sides.
It is good to not kill any good person, and especially good and respectable elders.
But it is bad to not kill one's elders even if they are bad.
Bhīṣma and Droṇa did not control the wicked Kauravas when they were insulting Draupadi
in the royal court by attempting to take off her clothes before all.
This is an extreme sin.
Both these personalities were very powerful and were fully capable of controlling this
climax sin.
Yet they kept silent and their silence meant their approval of the sin, which made both
of them come under the category of the supporters of the sin (anumodakas).
This sharp analysis of the situation forces us to give up the superficial classification
of merit and sin.
It reveals the good and bad sides of both merit and sin.
It reveals that it was necessary for both the sinners to be punished.
This is the heart of Krishna in the context of these verses.
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