Chapter Three conclusion

Bhagavad-Gita Third Chapter

The Meaning of Sacrifice: Karma-yoga
Conclusion

by Michael Dolan/B.V. Mahayogi

Kṛṣṇa has spoken at length on ontology and the nature of the soul, while at the same time exhorting Arjuna to act, offering his in sacrifice to divinity while fixed in the wisdom of atma-yoga.

After listening carefully for some time to his friend and guide, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna at last asked: “And what of sin? My dear Kṛṣṇa, what is it that draws us to sinful acts? It seems that we somehow attracted to sin almost against our will. We are impelled somehow as if by force to sinful acts. Why is this?

The Bhagavad Gita notes:

God Himself replied:

"False ego moves one to become involved with the passions of material nature.

"Desire blooms.

Unfulfilled desire sparks anger.

Anger devours all.

"It is the enemy of this world.

"Just as smoke covers a fire, the spark of life--The atma is covered by different levels of lust and desire. As an embryo is enveloped by the womb, the atma is covered by different degrees of this lust. Consciousness is originally pure, but it becomes more and more covered by different gradations of false ego, desire, and anger. Thus the impuse to sin is born.

"In this way, Arjuna, the atma, shrouded in the shadows of desire, forgets his own self-interest. Fired by a false self-interest, he becomes an enemy to his own self. The lust and desire which binds one to this world is like a fire that can never be satiated. Lust and desire make their home in the mind, senses. In this way the intelligence becomes baffled. Desire covers real self-knowledge.

"Matter appears to be real to the soul ensconced in such ignorance. But reality is far subtler than it appears to be. Superior to the material energy of time and space, is nervous sensation, sensory awareness and the conscious senses. The mind itself is superior to the mere sensory awareness; conscious intelligence is superior to emotional mental power; and the atma is superior to intelligence. The atma is higher than nervous stimulation, conscious awareness, the emotions of the mind and body, and even intelligence.

"The knowledge of the soul that I have explained to you is important.

By this wisdom, one may realize one’s self to be transcendental to material senses, mind and intelligence. By recognizing a higher power, one should control the lower self by the higher self.

In this way, with the help of action-in-sacrifice, or karma-yoga, through spiritual strength one may conquer the insatiable enemy: Desire. And so, O Arjuna, through knowledge, self-control, and sacrifice, conquer desire--the enemy of knowledge--and become self-realized."

The end of Chapter Three: Karma-yoga, ethics and sacrifice

अर्जुन उवाच

अथ केन प्रयुक्तोयं पापं चरति पूरुषः

अनिच्छन्न् अपि वार्ष्णेय बलाद् इव नियोजितः ३.३६

श्रीभगवान् उवाच

काम एष क्रोध एष रजोगुणसमुद्भवः

महाशनो महापाप्मा विद्ध्य् एनम् इह वैरिणम् ३.३७

धूमेनाव्रियते वन्हिर् यथादर्शो मलेन च

यथोल्बेनावृतो गर्भस् तथा तेनेदम् आवृतम् ३.३८

आवृतं ज्ञानम् एतेन ज्ञानिनो नित्यवैरिणा

कामरुपेण कौन्तेय दुष्पूरेणानलेन च ३.३९

इन्द्रियाणि मनो बुद्धिर् अस्याधिष्ठानम् उच्यते

एतैर् विमोहयत्य् एष ज्ञानम् आवृत्य देहिनम् ३.४०

तस्मात् त्वम् इन्द्रियाण्य् आदौ नियम्य भरतर्षभ

पाप्मानं प्रजहि ह्य् एनं ज्ञानविज्ञाननाशनम् ३.४१

इन्द्रियाणि पराण्य् आहुर् इन्द्रियेभ्यः परं मनः

मनसस् तु परा बुद्धिर् यो बुद्धेः परतस् तु सः

३.४२

एवं बुद्धेः परं बुद्ध्वा संस्तभ्यात्मानम्

आत्मना

जहि शत्रुं महाबाहो कामरूपं दुरासदम् ३.४३

arjuna uvāca

atha kena prayuktoyaṃ pāpaṃ carati pūruṣaḥ

anicchann api vārṣṇeya balād iva niyojitaḥ 3.36

śrībhagavān uvāca

kāma eṣa krodha eṣa rajoguṇasamudbhavaḥ

mahāśano mahāpāpmā viddhy enam iha vairiṇam 3.37

dhūmenāvriyate vanhir yathādarśo malena ca

yatholbenāvṛto garbhas tathā tenedam āvṛtam 3.38

āvṛtaṃ jñānam etena jñānino nityavairiṇā

kāmarupeṇa kaunteya duṣpūreṇānalena ca 3.39

indriyāṇi mano buddhir asyādhiṣṭhānam ucyate

etair vimohayaty eṣa jñānam āvṛtya dehinam 3.40

tasmāt tvam indriyāṇy ādau niyamya bharatarṣabha

pāpmānaṃ prajahi hy enaṃ jñānavijñānanāśanam 3.41

indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṃ manaḥ

manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ

3.42

evaṃ buddheḥ paraṃ buddhvā

saṃstabhyātmānam ātmanā

jahi śatruṃ mahābāho

kāmarūpaṃ durāsadam

3.43