Bg 4.42

tasmad ajnana-sambhutam
hrt-stham jnanasinatmanah
chittvainam samsayam yogam
atisthottistha bharata

Word for word: 
tasmat — therefore; ajnana-sambhutam — born of ignorance; hrt-stham — situated in the heart; jnana — of knowledge; asina — by the weapon; atmanah — of the self; chittva — cutting off; enam — this; samsayam — doubt; yogam — in yoga; atistha — be situated; uttistha — stand up to fight; bharata — O descendant of Bharata.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Therefore the doubts which have arisen in your heart out of ignorance should be slashed by the weapon of knowledge. Armed with yoga, O Bharata, stand and fight.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The yoga system instructed in this chapter is called sanatana-yoga, or eternal activities performed by the living entity. This yoga has two divisions of sacrificial actions: one is called sacrifice of one’s material possessions, and the other is called knowledge of self, which is pure spiritual activity. If sacrifice of one’s material possessions is not dovetailed for spiritual realization, then such sacrifice becomes material. But one who performs such sacrifices with a spiritual objective, or in devotional service, makes a perfect sacrifice. When we come to spiritual activities, we find that these are also divided into two: namely, understanding of one’s own self (or one’s constitutional position), and the truth regarding the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One who follows the path of Bhagavad-gita as it is can very easily understand these two important divisions of spiritual knowledge. For him there is no difficulty in obtaining perfect knowledge of the self as part and parcel of the Lord. And such understanding is beneficial, for such a person can easily understand the transcendental activities of the Lord. In the beginning of this chapter, the transcendental activities of the Lord were discussed by the Supreme Lord Himself. One who does not understand the instructions of the Gita is faithless, and is to be considered to be misusing the fragmental independence awarded to him by the Lord. In spite of such instructions, one who does not understand the real nature of the Lord as the eternal, blissful, all-knowing Personality of Godhead is certainly fool number one. Ignorance can be removed by gradual acceptance of the principles of Krishna consciousness. Krishna consciousness is awakened by different types of sacrifices to the demigods, sacrifice to Brahman, sacrifice in celibacy, in household life, in controlling the senses, in practicing mystic yoga, in penance, in forgoing material possessions, in studying the Vedas and in partaking of the social institution called varnasrama-dharma. All of these are known as sacrifice, and all of them are based on regulated action. But within all these activities, the important factor is self-realization. One who seeks that objective is the real student of Bhagavad-gita, but one who doubts the authority of Krishna falls back. One is therefore advised to study Bhagavad-gita, or any other scripture, under a bona fide spiritual master, with service and surrender. A bona fide spiritual master is in the disciplic succession from time eternal, and he does not deviate at all from the instructions of the Supreme Lord as they were imparted millions of years ago to the sun-god, from whom the instructions of Bhagavad-gita have come down to the earthly kingdom. One should, therefore, follow the path of Bhagavad-gita as it is expressed in the Gita itself and beware of self-interested people after personal aggrandizement who deviate others from the actual path. The Lord is definitely the supreme person, and His activities are transcendental. One who understands this is a liberated person from the very beginning of his study of Bhagavad-gita.

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta Purports to the Fourth Chapter of the Srimad Bhagavad-gita in the matter of Transcendental Knowledge.

Bg 4.41

yoga-sannyasta-karmanam
jnana-sanchinna-samsayam
atmavantam na karmani
nibadhnanti dhanan-jaya

Word for word: 
yoga — by devotional service in karma-yoga; sannyasta — one who has renounced; karmanam — the fruits of actions; jnana — by knowledge; sanchinna — cut; samsayam — doubts; atma-vantam — situated in the self; na — never; karmani — works; nibadhnanti — do bind; dhanam-jaya — O conqueror of riches.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
One who acts in devotional service, renouncing the fruits of his actions, and whose doubts have been destroyed by transcendental knowledge, is situated factually in the self. Thus he is not bound by the reactions of work, O conqueror of riches.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
One who follows the instruction of the Bhagavad-gita, as it is imparted by the Lord, the Personality of Godhead Himself, becomes free from all doubts by the grace of transcendental knowledge. He, as a part and parcel of the Lord, in full Krishna consciousness, is already established in self-knowledge. As such, he is undoubtedly above bondage to action.

Bg 4.40

ajnas casraddadhanas ca
samsayatma vinasyati
nayam loko ’sti na paro
na sukham samsayatmanah

Word for word: 
ajnah — a fool who has no knowledge in standard scriptures; ca — and; asraddadhanah — without faith in revealed scriptures; ca — also; samsaya — of doubts; atma — a person; vinasyati — falls back; na — never; ayam — in this; lokah — world; asti — there is; na — nor; parah — in the next life; na — not; sukham — happiness; samsaya — doubtful; atmanah — of the person.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
But ignorant and faithless persons who doubt the revealed scriptures do not attain God consciousness; they fall down. For the doubting soul there is happiness neither in this world nor in the next.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Out of many standard and authoritative revealed scriptures, the Bhagavad-gita is the best. Persons who are almost like animals have no faith in, or knowledge of, the standard revealed scriptures; and some, even though they have knowledge of, or can cite passages from, the revealed scriptures, have actually no faith in these words. And even though others may have faith in scriptures like Bhagavad-gita, they do not believe in or worship the Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna. Such persons cannot have any standing in Krishna consciousness. They fall down. Out of all the above-mentioned persons, those who have no faith and are always doubtful make no progress at all. Men without faith in God and His revealed word find no good in this world, nor in the next. For them there is no happiness whatsoever. One should therefore follow the principles of revealed scriptures with faith and thereby be raised to the platform of knowledge. Only this knowledge will help one become promoted to the transcendental platform of spiritual understanding. In other words, doubtful persons have no status whatsoever in spiritual emancipation. One should therefore follow in the footsteps of great acaryas who are in the disciplic succession and thereby attain success.

Bg 4.39

sraddhaval labhate jnanam
tat-parah samyatendriyah
jnanam labdhva param santim
acirenadhigacchati

Word for word: 
sraddha-van — a faithful man; labhate — achieves; jnanam — knowledge; tat-parah — very much attached to it; samyata — controlled; indriyah — senses; jnanam — knowledge; labdhva — having achieved; param — transcendental; santim — peace; acirena — very soon; adhigacchati — attains.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
A faithful man who is dedicated to transcendental knowledge and who subdues his senses is eligible to achieve such knowledge, and having achieved it he quickly attains the supreme spiritual peace.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Such knowledge in Krishna consciousness can be achieved by a faithful person who believes firmly in Krishna. One is called a faithful man who thinks that simply by acting in Krishna consciousness he can attain the highest perfection. This faith is attained by the discharge of devotional service and by chanting Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, which cleanses one’s heart of all material dirt. Over and above this, one should control the senses. A person who is faithful to Krishna and who controls the senses can easily attain perfection in the knowledge of Krishna consciousness without delay.

Bg 4.38

na hi jnanena sadrsam
pavitram iha vidyate
tat svayam yoga-samsiddhah
kalenatmani vindati

Word for word: 
na — nothing; hi — certainly; jnanena — with knowledge; sadrsam — in comparison; pavitram — sanctified; iha — in this world; vidyate — exists; tat — that; svayam — himself; yoga — in devotion; samsiddhah — he who is mature; kalena — in course of time; atmani — in himself; vindati — enjoys.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
In this world, there is nothing so sublime and pure as transcendental knowledge. Such knowledge is the mature fruit of all mysticism. And one who has become accomplished in the practice of devotional service enjoys this knowledge within himself in due course of time.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
When we speak of transcendental knowledge, we do so in terms of spiritual understanding. As such, there is nothing so sublime and pure as transcendental knowledge. Ignorance is the cause of our bondage, and knowledge is the cause of our liberation. This knowledge is the mature fruit of devotional service, and when one is situated in transcendental knowledge, he need not search for peace elsewhere, for he enjoys peace within himself. In other words, this knowledge and peace culminate in Krishna consciousness. That is the last word in the Bhagavad-gita.

Bg 4.37

yathaidhamsi samiddho ’gnir
bhasma-sat kurute ’rjuna
jnanagnih sarva-karmani
bhasma-sat kurute tatha

Word for word: 
yatha — just as; edhamsi — firewood; samiddhah — blazing; agnih — fire; bhasma-sat — ashes; kurute — turns; arjuna — O Arjuna; jnana-agnih — the fire of knowledge; sarva-karmani — all reactions to material activities; bhasma-sat — to ashes; kurute — it turns; tatha — similarly.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
As a blazing fire turns firewood to ashes, O Arjuna, so does the fire of knowledge burn to ashes all reactions to material activities.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Perfect knowledge of self and Superself and of their relationship is compared herein to fire. This fire not only burns up all reactions to impious activities, but also all reactions to pious activities, turning them to ashes. There are many stages of reaction: reaction in the making, reaction fructifying, reaction already achieved, and reaction a priori. But knowledge of the constitutional position of the living entity burns everything to ashes. When one is in complete knowledge, all reactions, both a priori and a posteriori, are consumed. In the Vedas (Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad 4.4.22) it is stated, ubhe uhaivaisa ete taraty amrtah sadhv-asadhuni: “One overcomes both the pious and impious reactions of work.”

Bg 4.36

api ced asi papebhyah
sarvebhyah papa-krt-tamah
sarvam jnana-plavenaiva
vrjinam santarisyasi

Word for word: 
api — even; cet — if; asi — you are; papebhyah — of sinners; sarvebhyah — of all; papa-krt-tamah — the greatest sinner; sarvam — all such sinful reactions; jnana-plavena — by the boat of transcendental knowledge; eva — certainly; vrjinam — the ocean of miseries; santarisyasi — you will cross completely.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Even if you are considered to be the most sinful of all sinners, when you are situated in the boat of transcendental knowledge you will be able to cross over the ocean of miseries.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Proper understanding of one’s constitutional position in relationship to Krishna is so nice that it can at once lift one from the struggle for existence which goes on in the ocean of nescience. This material world is sometimes regarded as an ocean of nescience and sometimes as a blazing forest. In the ocean, however expert a swimmer one may be, the struggle for existence is very severe. If someone comes forward and lifts the struggling swimmer from the ocean, he is the greatest savior. Perfect knowledge, received from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the path of liberation. The boat of Krishna consciousness is very simple, but at the same time the most sublime.

Bg 4.35

yaj jnatva na punar moham
evam yasyasi pandava
yena bhutany asesani
draksyasy atmany atho mayi

Word for word: 
yat — which; jnatva — knowing; na — never; punah — again; moham — to illusion; evam — like this; yasyasi — you shall go; pandava — O son of Pandu; yena — by which; bhutani — living entities; asesani — all; draksyasi — you will see; atmani — in the Supreme Soul; atha u — or in other words; mayi — in Me.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Having obtained real knowledge from a self-realized soul, you will never fall again into such illusion, for by this knowledge you will see that all living beings are but part of the Supreme, or, in other words, that they are Mine.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The result of receiving knowledge from a self-realized soul, or one who knows things as they are, is learning that all living beings are parts and parcels of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna. The sense of an existence separate from Krishna is called maya (ma – not, ya – this). Some think that we have nothing to do with Krishna, that Krishna is only a great historical personality and that the Absolute is the impersonal Brahman. Factually, as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, this impersonal Brahman is the personal effulgence of Krishna. Krishna, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the cause of everything. In the Brahma-samhita it is clearly stated that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the cause of all causes. Even the millions of incarnations are only His different expansions. Similarly, the living entities are also expansions of Krishna. The Mayavadi philosophers wrongly think that Krishna loses His own separate existence in His many expansions. This thought is material in nature. We have experience in the material world that a thing, when fragmentally distributed, loses its own original identity. But the Mayavadi philosophers fail to understand that absolute means that one plus one is equal to one, and that one minus one is also equal to one. This is the case in the absolute world.

For want of sufficient knowledge in the absolute science, we are now covered with illusion, and therefore we think that we are separate from Krishna. Although we are separated parts of Krishna, we are nevertheless not different from Him. The bodily difference of the living entities is maya, or not actual fact. We are all meant to satisfy Krishna. By maya alone Arjuna thought that the temporary bodily relationship with his kinsmen was more important than his eternal spiritual relationship with Krishna. The whole teaching of the Gita is targeted toward this end: that a living being, as Krishna’s eternal servitor, cannot be separated from Krishna, and his sense of being an identity apart from Krishna is called maya. The living entities, as separate parts and parcels of the Supreme, have a purpose to fulfill. Having forgotten that purpose since time immemorial, they are situated in different bodies, as men, animals, demigods, etc. Such bodily differences arise from forgetfulness of the transcendental service of the Lord. But when one is engaged in transcendental service through Krishna consciousness, one becomes at once liberated from this illusion. One can acquire such pure knowledge only from the bona fide spiritual master and thereby avoid the delusion that the living entity is equal to Krishna. Perfect knowledge is that the Supreme Soul, Krishna, is the supreme shelter for all living entities, and giving up such shelter, the living entities are deluded by the material energy, imagining themselves to have a separate identity. Thus, under different standards of material identity, they become forgetful of Krishna. When, however, such deluded living entities become situated in Krishna consciousness, it is to be understood that they are on the path of liberation, as confirmed in the Bhagavatam (2.10.6): muktir hitvanyatha-rupam svarupena vyavasthitih. Liberation means to be situated in one’s constitutional position as an eternal servitor of Krishna (Krishna consciousness).

Bg 4.34

tad viddhi pranipatena
pariprasnena sevaya
upadeksyanti te jnanam
jnaninas tattva-darsinah

Word for word: 
tat — that knowledge of different sacrifices; viddhi — try to understand; pranipatena — by approaching a spiritual master; pariprasnena — by submissive inquiries; sevaya — by the rendering of service; upadeksyanti — they will initiate; te — you; jnanam — into knowledge; jnaninah — the self-realized; tattva — of the truth; darsinah — seers.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized souls can impart knowledge unto you because they have seen the truth.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The path of spiritual realization is undoubtedly difficult. The Lord therefore advises us to approach a bona fide spiritual master in the line of disciplic succession from the Lord Himself. No one can be a bona fide spiritual master without following this principle of disciplic succession. The Lord is the original spiritual master, and a person in the disciplic succession can convey the message of the Lord as it is to his disciple. No one can be spiritually realized by manufacturing his own process, as is the fashion of the foolish pretenders. The Bhagavatam (6.3.19) says, dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam: the path of religion is directly enunciated by the Lord. Therefore, mental speculation or dry arguments cannot help lead one to the right path. Nor by independent study of books of knowledge can one progress in spiritual life. One has to approach a bona fide spiritual master to receive the knowledge. Such a spiritual master should be accepted in full surrender, and one should serve the spiritual master like a menial servant, without false prestige. Satisfaction of the self-realized spiritual master is the secret of advancement in spiritual life. Inquiries and submission constitute the proper combination for spiritual understanding. Unless there is submission and service, inquiries from the learned spiritual master will not be effective. One must be able to pass the test of the spiritual master, and when he sees the genuine desire of the disciple, he automatically blesses the disciple with genuine spiritual understanding. In this verse, both blind following and absurd inquiries are condemned. Not only should one hear submissively from the spiritual master, but one must also get a clear understanding from him, in submission and service and inquiries. A bona fide spiritual master is by nature very kind toward the disciple. Therefore when the student is submissive and is always ready to render service, the reciprocation of knowledge and inquiries becomes perfect.

Bg 4.33

sreyan dravya-mayad yajnaj
jnana-yajnah paran-tapa
sarvam karmakhilam partha
jnane parisamapyate

Word for word: 
sreyan — greater; dravya-mayat — of material possessions; yajnat — than the sacrifice; jnana-yajnah — sacrifice in knowledge; param-tapa — O chastiser of the enemy; sarvam — all; karma — activities; akhilam — in totality; partha — O son of Prtha; jnane — in knowledge; parisamapyate — end.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
O chastiser of the enemy, the sacrifice performed in knowledge is better than the mere sacrifice of material possessions. After all, O son of Prtha, all sacrifices of work culminate in transcendental knowledge.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The purpose of all sacrifices is to arrive at the status of complete knowledge, then to gain release from material miseries and, ultimately, to engage in loving transcendental service to the Supreme Lord (Krishna consciousness). Nonetheless, there is a mystery about all these different activities of sacrifice, and one should know this mystery. Sacrifices sometimes take different forms according to the particular faith of the performer. When one’s faith reaches the stage of transcendental knowledge, the performer of sacrifices should be considered more advanced than those who simply sacrifice material possessions without such knowledge, for without attainment of knowledge, sacrifices remain on the material platform and bestow no spiritual benefit. Real knowledge culminates in Krishna consciousness, the highest stage of transcendental knowledge. Without the elevation of knowledge, sacrifices are simply material activities. When, however, they are elevated to the level of transcendental knowledge, all such activities enter onto the spiritual platform. Depending on differences in consciousness, sacrificial activities are sometimes called karma-kanda (fruitive activities) and sometimes jnana-kanda (knowledge in the pursuit of truth). It is better when the end is knowledge.

Bg 4.32

evam bahu-vidha yajna
vitata brahmano mukhe
karma-jan viddhi tan sarvan
evam jnatva vimoksyase

Word for word: 
evam — thus; bahu-vidhah — various kinds of; yajnah — sacrifices; vitatah — are spread; brahmanah — of the Vedas; mukhe — through the mouth; karma-jan — born of work; viddhi — you should know; tan — them; sarvan — all; evam — thus; jnatva — knowing; vimoksyase — you will be liberated.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
All these different types of sacrifice are approved by the Vedas, and all of them are born of different types of work. Knowing them as such, you will become liberated.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Different types of sacrifice, as discussed above, are mentioned in the Vedas to suit the different types of worker. Because men are so deeply absorbed in the bodily concept, these sacrifices are so arranged that one can work either with the body, with the mind or with the intelligence. But all of them are recommended for ultimately bringing about liberation from the body. This is confirmed by the Lord herewith from His own mouth.

Bg 4.31

nayam loko ’sty ayajnasya
kuto ’nyah kuru-sattama

Word for word: 
na — never; ayam — this; lokah — planet; asti — there is; ayajnasya — for one who performs no sacrifice; kutah — where is; anyah — the other; kuru-sat-tama — O best amongst the Kurus.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
O best of the Kuru dynasty, without sacrifice one can never live happily on this planet or in this life: what then of the next?

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Whatever form of material existence one is in, one is invariably ignorant of his real situation. In other words, existence in the material world is due to the multiple reactions to our sinful lives. Ignorance is the cause of sinful life, and sinful life is the cause of one’s dragging on in material existence. The human form of life is the only loophole by which one may get out of this entanglement. The Vedas, therefore, give us a chance for escape by pointing out the paths of religion, economic comfort, regulated sense gratification and, at last, the means to get out of the miserable condition entirely. The path of religion, or the different kinds of sacrifice recommended above, automatically solves our economic problems. By performance of yajna we can have enough food, enough milk, etc. – even if there is a so-called increase of population. When the body is fully supplied, naturally the next stage is to satisfy the senses. The Vedas prescribe, therefore, sacred marriage for regulated sense gratification. Thereby one is gradually elevated to the platform of release from material bondage, and the highest perfection of liberated life is to associate with the Supreme Lord. Perfection is achieved by performance of yajna (sacrifice), as described above. Now, if a person is not inclined to perform yajna according to the Vedas, how can he expect a happy life even in this body, and what to speak of another body on another planet? There are different grades of material comforts in different heavenly planets, and in all cases there is immense happiness for persons engaged in different kinds of yajna. But the highest kind of happiness that a man can achieve is to be promoted to the spiritual planets by practice of Krishna consciousness. A life of Krishna consciousness is therefore the solution to all the problems of material existence.

Bg 4.30

sarve ’py ete yajna-vido
yajna-ksapita-kalmasah
yajna-sistamrta-bhujo
yanti brahma sanatanam

Word for word: 
sarve — all; api — although apparently different; ete — these; yajna-vidah — conversant with the purpose of performing sacrifices; yajna-ksapita — being cleansed as the result of such performances; kalmasah — of sinful reactions; yajna-sista — of the result of such performances of yajna; amrta-bhujah — those who have tasted such nectar; yanti — do approach; brahma — the supreme; sanatanam — eternal atmosphere.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
All these performers who know the meaning of sacrifice become cleansed of sinful reactions, and, having tasted the nectar of the results of sacrifices, they advance toward the supreme eternal atmosphere.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
From the foregoing explanation of different types of sacrifice (namely sacrifice of one’s possessions, study of the Vedas or philosophical doctrines, and performance of the yoga system), it is found that the common aim of all is to control the senses. Sense gratification is the root cause of material existence; therefore, unless and until one is situated on a platform apart from sense gratification, there is no chance of being elevated to the eternal platform of full knowledge, full bliss and full life. This platform is in the eternal atmosphere, or Brahman atmosphere. All the above-mentioned sacrifices help one to become cleansed of the sinful reactions of material existence. By this advancement in life, not only does one become happy and opulent in this life, but also, at the end, he enters into the eternal kingdom of God, either merging into the impersonal Brahman or associating with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna.

Bg 4.29

apane juhvati pranam
prane ’panam tathapare
pranapana-gati ruddhva
pranayama-parayanah
apare niyataharah
pranan pranesu juhvati

Word for word: 
apane — in the air which acts downward; juhvati — offer; pranam — the air which acts outward; prane — in the air going outward; apanam — the air going downward; tatha — as also; apare — others; prana — of the air going outward; apana — and the air going downward; gati — the movement; ruddhva — checking; prana-ayama — trance induced by stopping all breathing; parayanah — so inclined; apare — others; niyata — having controlled; aharah — eating; pranan — the outgoing air; pranesu — in the outgoing air; juhvati — sacrifice.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Still others, who are inclined to the process of breath restraint to remain in trance, practice by offering the movement of the outgoing breath into the incoming, and the incoming breath into the outgoing, and thus at last remain in trance, stopping all breathing. Others, curtailing the eating process, offer the outgoing breath into itself as a sacrifice.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
This system of yoga for controlling the breathing process is called pranayama, and in the beginning it is practiced in the hatha-yoga system through different sitting postures. All of these processes are recommended for controlling the senses and for advancement in spiritual realization. This practice involves controlling the airs within the body so as to reverse the directions of their passage. The apana air goes downward, and the prana air goes up. The pranayama-yogi practices breathing the opposite way until the currents are neutralized into puraka, equilibrium. Offering the exhaled breath into the inhaled breath is called recaka. When both air currents are completely stopped, one is said to be in kumbhaka-yoga. By practice of kumbhaka-yoga, one can increase the duration of life for perfection in spiritual realization. The intelligent yogi is interested in attaining perfection in one life, without waiting for the next. For by practicing kumbhaka-yoga, the yogis increase the duration of life by many, many years. A Krishna conscious person, however, being always situated in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, automatically becomes the controller of the senses. His senses, being always engaged in the service of Krishna, have no chance of becoming otherwise engaged. So at the end of life, he is naturally transferred to the transcendental plane of Lord Krishna; consequently he makes no attempt to increase his longevity. He is at once raised to the platform of liberation, as stated in Bhagavad-gita (14.26):

mam ca yo ’vyabhicarena
bhakti-yogena sevate
sa gunan samatityaitan
brahma-bhuyaya kalpate

“One who engages in unalloyed devotional service to the Lord transcends the modes of material nature and is immediately elevated to the spiritual platform.” A Krishna conscious person begins from the transcendental stage, and he is constantly in that consciousness. Therefore, there is no falling down, and ultimately he enters into the abode of the Lord without delay. The practice of reduced eating is automatically done when one eats only Krishna-prasadam, or food which is offered first to the Lord. Reducing the eating process is very helpful in the matter of sense control. And without sense control there is no possibility of getting out of the material entanglement.

Bg 4.28

dravya-yajnas tapo-yajna
yoga-yajnas tathapare
svadhyaya-jnana-yajnas ca
yatayah samsita-vratah

Word for word: 
dravya-yajnah — sacrificing one’s possessions; tapah-yajnah — sacrifice in austerities; yoga-yajnah — sacrifice in eightfold mysticism; tatha — thus; apare — others; svadhyaya — sacrifice in the study of the Vedas; jnana-yajnah — sacrifice in advancement of transcendental knowledge; ca — also; yatayah — enlightened persons; samsita-vratah — taken to strict vows.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada: 
Having accepted strict vows, some become enlightened by sacrificing their possessions, and others by performing severe austerities, by practicing the yoga of eightfold mysticism, or by studying the Vedas to advance in transcendental knowledge.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
These sacrifices may be fitted into various divisions. There are persons who are sacrificing their possessions in the form of various kinds of charities. In India, the rich mercantile community or princely orders open various kinds of charitable institutions like dharma-sala, anna-ksetra, atithi-sala, anathalaya and vidya-pitha. In other countries, too, there are many hospitals, old age homes and similar charitable foundations meant for distributing food, education and medical treatment free to the poor. All these charitable activities are called dravyamaya-yajna. There are others who, for higher elevation in life or for promotion to higher planets within the universe, voluntarily accept many kinds of austerities such as candrayana and caturmasya. These processes entail severe vows for conducting life under certain rigid rules. For example, under the caturmasya vow the candidate does not shave for four months during the year (July to October), he does not eat certain foods, does not eat twice in a day or does not leave home. Such sacrifice of the comforts of life is called tapomaya-yajna. There are still others who engage themselves in different kinds of mystic yogas like the Patanjali system (for merging into the existence of the Absolute), or hatha-yoga or astanga-yoga (for particular perfections). And some travel to all the sanctified places of pilgrimage. All these practices are called yoga-yajna, sacrifice for a certain type of perfection in the material world. There are others who engage themselves in the studies of different Vedic literatures, specifically the Upanisads and Vedanta-sutras, or the Sankhya philosophy. All of these are called svadhyaya-yajna, or engagement in the sacrifice of studies. All these yogis are faithfully engaged in different types of sacrifice and are seeking a higher status of life. Krishna consciousness, however, is different from these because it is the direct service of the Supreme Lord. Krishna consciousness cannot be attained by any one of the above-mentioned types of sacrifice but can be attained only by the mercy of the Lord and His bona fide devotees. Therefore, Krishna consciousness is transcendental.

Bg 4.27

sarvanindriya-karmani
prana-karmani capare
atma-samyama-yogagnau
juhvati jnana-dipite

Word for word: 
sarvani — of all; indriya — the senses; karmani — functions; prana-karmani — functions of the life breath; ca — also; apare — others; atma-samyama — of controlling the mind; yoga — the linking process; agnau — in the fire of; juhvati — offer; jnana-dipite — because of the urge for self-realization.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Others, who are interested in achieving self-realization through control of the mind and senses, offer the functions of all the senses, and of the life breath, as oblations into the fire of the controlled mind.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The yoga system conceived by Patanjali is referred to herein. In the Yoga-sutra of Patanjali, the soul is called pratyag-atma and parag-atma. As long as the soul is attached to sense enjoyment it is called parag-atma, but as soon as the same soul becomes detached from such sense enjoyment it is called pratyag-atma. 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 Patanjali 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-atma is the ultimate goal. This pratyag-atma is withdrawn 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, and hand for touching, and all of them are thus engaged in activities outside the self. They are called the functions of the prana-vayu. The apana-vayu goes downwards, vyana-vayu acts to shrink and expand, samana-vayu adjusts equilibrium, udana-vayu goes upwards – and when one is enlightened, one engages all these in searching for self-realization.

Bg 4.26

srotradinindriyany anye
samyamagnisu juhvati
sabdadin visayan anya
indriyagnisu juhvati

Word for word: 
srotra-adini — such as the hearing process; indriyani — senses; anye — others; samyama — of restraint; agnisu — in the fires; juhvati — offer; sabda-adin — sound vibration, etc; visayan — objects of sense gratification; anye — others; indriya — of the sense organs; agnisu — in the fires; juhvati — they sacrifice.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Some [the unadulterated brahmacaris] sacrifice the hearing process and the senses in the fire of mental control, and others [the regulated householders] sacrifice the objects of the senses in the fire of the senses.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The members of the four divisions of human life, namely the brahmacari, the grhastha, the vanaprastha and the sannyasi, are all meant to become perfect yogis 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 brahmacaris, or students under the care of a bona fide spiritual master, control the mind by abstaining from sense gratification. A brahmacari hears only words concerning Krishna consciousness; hearing is the basic principle for understanding, and therefore the pure brahmacari engages fully in harer namanukirtanam – 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 Krishna, Hare Krishna. 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 gratification. Marriage on the 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 4.25

daivam evapare yajnam
yoginah paryupasate
brahmagnav apare yajnam
yajnenaivopajuhvati

Word for word: 
daivam — in worshiping the demigods; eva — like this; apare — some others; yajnam — sacrifices; yoginah — mystics; paryupasate — worship perfectly; brahma — of the Absolute Truth; agnau — in the fire; apare — others; yajnam — sacrifice; yajnena — by sacrifice; eva — thus; upajuhvati — offer.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Some yogis perfectly worship the demigods by offering different sacrifices to them, and some offer sacrifices in the fire of the Supreme Brahman.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
As described above, a person engaged in discharging duties in Krishna consciousness is also called a perfect yogi 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. Factually sacrifice means to satisfy the Supreme Lord, Visnu, who is also known as Yajna. 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 Krishna 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-isvara-vadi, 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 sacrifice 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 Krishna conscious person, like Arjuna, however, sacrifices everything for the satisfaction of Krishna, and thus all his material possessions as well as his own self – everything – is sacrificed for Krishna. Thus, he is the first-class yogi; but he does not lose his individual existence.

Bg 4.24

brahmarpanam brahma havir
brahmagnau brahmana hutam
brahmaiva tena gantavyam
brahma-karma-samadhina

Word for word: 
brahma — spiritual in nature; arpanam — contribution; brahma — the Supreme; havih — butter; brahma — spiritual; agnau — in the fire of consummation; brahmana — by the spirit soul; hutam — offered; brahma — spiritual kingdom; eva — certainly; tena — by him; gantavyam — to be reached; brahma — spiritual; karma — in activities; samadhina — by complete absorption.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
A person who is fully absorbed in Krishna 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 by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
How activities in Krishna consciousness can lead one ultimately to the spiritual goal is described here. There are various activities in Krishna consciousness, and all of them will be described in the following verses. But, for the present, just the principle of Krishna 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 Krishna 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 Krishna consciousness as set forth here in the Gita. This process is generally known as yajña, or activities (sacrifices) simply meant for the satisfaction of Visnu, or Krishna. The more the activities of the material world are performed in Krishna consciousness, or for Visnu only, the more the atmosphere becomes spiritualized by complete absorption. The word brahma (Brahman) means “spiritual.” The Lord is spiritual, and the rays of His transcendental body are called brahma-jyotir, His spiritual effulgence. Everything that exists is situated in that brahma-jyotir, but when the jyotir is covered by illusion (maya) or sense gratification, it is called material. This material veil can be removed at once by Krishna consciousness; thus the offering for the sake of Krishna 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 maya is called matter. Matter dovetailed for the cause of the Absolute Truth regains its spiritual quality. Krishna consciousness is the process of converting the illusory consciousness into Brahman, or the Supreme. When the mind is fully absorbed in Krishna consciousness, it is said to be in samadhi, 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 Krishna consciousness.

Bg 4.23

gata-sangasya muktasya
jnanavasthita-cetasah
yajnayacaratah karma
samagram praviliyate

Word for word: 
gata-sangasya — of one unattached to the modes of material nature; muktasya — of the liberated; jnana-avasthita — situated in transcendence; cetasah — whose wisdom; yajnaya — for the sake of Yajna (Krishna); acaratah — acting; karma — work; samagram — in total; praviliyate — merges entirely.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
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 by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Becoming fully Krishna 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 Krishna, and thus his mind cannot be drawn from Krishna consciousness. Consequently, whatever he does, he does for Krishna, who is the primeval Visnu. Therefore, all his works are technically sacrifices because sacrifice aims at satisfying the Supreme Person, Visnu, Krishna. The resultant reactions to all such work certainly merge into transcendence, and one does not suffer material effects.

Bg 4.22

yadrccha-labha-santusto
dvandvatito vimatsarah
samah siddhav asiddhau ca
krtvapi na nibadhyate

Word for word: 
yadrccha — out of its own accord; labha — with gain; santustah — satisfied; dvandva — duality; atitah — surpassed; vimatsarah — free from envy; samah — steady; siddhau — in success; asiddhau — failure; ca — also; krtva — doing; api — although; na — never; nibadhyate — becomes affected.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady in both success and failure, is never entangled, although performing actions.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
A Krishna 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 independent in his livelihood. He does not allow anyone’s service to hamper his own service in Krishna 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 Krishna conscious person is above duality because he does not hesitate to act in any way for the satisfaction of Krishna. Therefore he is steady both in success and in failure. These signs are visible when one is fully in transcendental knowledge.

Bg 4.21

nirasir yata-cittatma
tyakta-sarva-parigrahah
sariram kevalam karma
kurvan napnoti kilbisam

Word for word: 
nirasih — without desire for the result; yata — controlled; citta-atma — mind and intelligence; tyakta — giving up; sarva — all; parigrahah — sense of proprietorship over possessions; sariram — in keeping body and soul together; kevalam — only; karma — work; kurvan — doing; na — never; apnoti — does acquire; kilbisam — sinful reactions.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Such a man of understanding acts with mind and intelligence perfectly controlled, gives up all sense of proprietorship over his possessions and acts only for the bare necessities of life. Thus working, he is not affected by sinful reactions.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
A Krishna conscious person does not expect good or bad results in his activities. His mind and intelligence are fully controlled. He knows that because he is part and parcel of the Supreme, the part played by him, as a part and parcel of the whole, is not his own activity but is only being done through him by the Supreme. When the hand moves, it does not move out of its own accord, but by the endeavor of the whole body. A Krishna conscious person is always dovetailed with the supreme desire, for he has no desire for personal sense gratification. He moves exactly like a part of a machine. As a machine part requires oiling and cleaning for maintenance, so a Krishna conscious man maintains himself by his work just to remain fit for action in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. He is therefore immune to all the reactions of his endeavors. Like an animal, he has no proprietorship even over his own body. A cruel proprietor of an animal sometimes kills the animal in his possession, yet the animal does not protest. Nor does it have any real independence. A Krishna conscious person, fully engaged in self-realization, has very little time to falsely possess any material object. For maintaining body and soul, he does not require unfair means of accumulating money. He does not, therefore, become contaminated by such material sins. He is free from all reactions to his actions.

Bg 4.20

tyaktva karma-phalasangam
nitya-trpto nirasrayah
karmany abhipravrtto ’pi
naiva kiñcit karoti sah

Word for word: 
tyaktva — having given up; karma-phala-asangam — attachment for fruitive results; nitya — always; trptah — being satisfied; nirasrayah — without any shelter; karmani — in activity; abhipravrttah — being fully engaged; api — in spite of; na — does not; eva — certainly; kiñcit — anything; karoti — do; sah — he.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Abandoning all attachment to the results of his activities, ever satisfied and independent, he performs no fruitive action, although engaged in all kinds of undertakings.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
This freedom from the bondage of actions is possible only in Krishna consciousness, when one is doing everything for Krishna. A Krishna conscious person acts out of pure love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore he has no attraction for the results of the action. He is not even attached to his personal maintenance, for everything is left to Krishna. Nor is he anxious to secure things, nor to protect things already in his possession. He does his duty to the best of his ability and leaves everything to Krishna. Such an unattached person is always free from the resultant reactions of good and bad; it is as though he were not doing anything. This is the sign of akarma, or actions without fruitive reactions. Any other action, therefore, devoid of Krishna consciousness, is binding upon the worker, and that is the real aspect of vikarma, as explained hereinbefore.

Bg 4.19

yasya sarve samarambhah
kama-sankalpa-varjitah
jñanagni-dagdha-karmanam
tam ahuh panditam budhah

Word for word: 
yasya — one whose; sarve — all sorts of; samarambhah — attempts; kama — based on desire for sense gratification; sankalpa — determination; varjitah — are devoid of; jñana — of perfect knowledge; agni — by the fire; dagdha — burned; karmanam — whose work; tam — him; ahuh — declare; panditam — learned; budhah — those who know.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
One is understood to be in full knowledge whose every endeavor is devoid of desire for sense gratification. He is said by sages to be a worker for whom the reactions of work have been burned up by the fire of perfect knowledge.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Only a person in full knowledge can understand the activities of a person in Krishna consciousness. Because the person in Krishna consciousness is devoid of all kinds of sense-gratificatory propensities, it is to be understood that he has burned up the reactions of his work by perfect knowledge of his constitutional position as the eternal servitor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is actually learned who has attained to such perfection of knowledge. Development of this knowledge of eternal servitorship to the Lord is compared to fire. Such a fire, once kindled, can burn up all kinds of reactions to work.

Bg 4.18

karmany akarma yah pasyed
akarmani ca karma yah
sa buddhiman manusyesu
sa yuktah krtsna-karma-krt

Word for word: 
karmani — in action; akarma — inaction; yah — one who; pasyet — observes; akarmani — in inaction; ca — also; karma —  fruitive action; yah — one who; sah — he; buddhi-man — is intelligent; manusyesu — in human society; sah — he; yuktah — is in the transcendental position; krtsna-karma-krt — although engaged in all activities.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
One who sees inaction in action and action in inaction is intelligent among men, and he is in the transcendental position, although engaged in all sorts of activities.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
A person acting in Krishna consciousness is naturally free from the bonds of karma. His activities are all performed for Krishna; therefore he does not enjoy or suffer any of the effects of work. Consequently he is intelligent in human society, even though he is engaged in all sorts of activities for Krishna. Akarma means without reaction to work. The impersonalist ceases fruitive activities out of fear, so that the resultant action may not be a stumbling block on the path of self-realization, but the personalist knows rightly his position as the eternal servitor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore he engages himself in the activities of Krishna consciousness. Because everything is done for Krishna, he enjoys only transcendental happiness in the discharge of this service. Those who are engaged in this process are known to be without desire for personal sense gratification. The sense of eternal servitorship to Krishna makes one immune to all sorts of reactionary elements of work.

Bg 4.17

karmano hy api boddhavyam
boddhavyam ca vikarmanah
akarmanas ca boddhavyam
gahana karmano gatih

Word for word: 
karmanah — of work; hi — certainly; api — also; boddhavyam — should be understood; boddhavyam — should be understood; ca — also; vikarmanah — of forbidden work; akarmanah — of inaction; ca — also; boddhavyam — should be understood; gahana — very difficult; karmanah — of work; gatih — entrance.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The intricacies of action are very hard to understand. Therefore one should know properly what action is, what forbidden action is and what inaction is.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
If one is serious about liberation from material bondage, one has to understand the distinctions between action, inaction and unauthorized actions. One has to apply oneself to such an analysis of action, reaction and perverted actions because it is a very difficult subject matter. To understand Krishna consciousness and action according to its modes, one has to learn one’s relationship with the Supreme; i.e., one who has learned perfectly knows that every living entity is an eternal servitor of the Lord and that consequently one has to act in Krishna consciousness. The entire Bhagavad-gita is directed toward this conclusion. Any other conclusions against this consciousness and its attendant actions are vikarmas, or prohibited actions. To understand all this one has to associate with authorities in Krishna consciousness and learn the secret from them; this is as good as learning from the Lord directly. Otherwise, even the most intelligent persons will be bewildered.

Bg 4.16

kim karma kim akarmeti
kavayo ’py atra mohitah
tat te karma pravaksyami
yaj jnatva moksyase ’subhat

Word for word: 
kim — what is; karma — action; kim — what is; akarma — inaction; iti — thus; kavayah — the intelligent; api — also; atra — in this matter; mohitah — are bewildered; tat — that; te — unto you; karma — work; pravaksyami — I shall explain; yat — which; jnatva — knowing; moksyase — you will be liberated; asubhat — from ill fortune.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Even the intelligent are bewildered in determining what is action and what is inaction. Now I shall explain to you what action is, knowing which you shall be liberated from all misfortune.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Action in Krishna consciousness has to be executed in accord with the examples of previous bona fide devotees. This is recommended in the fifteenth verse. Why such action should not be independent will be explained in the text to follow.

To act in Krishna consciousness, one has to follow the leadership of authorized persons who are in a line of disciplic succession as explained in the beginning of this chapter. The system of Krishna consciousness was first narrated to the sun-god, the sun-god explained it to his son Manu, Manu explained it to his son Iksvaku, and the system is current on this earth from that very remote time. Therefore, one has to follow in the footsteps of previous authorities in the line of disciplic succession. Otherwise even the most intelligent men will be bewildered regarding the standard actions of Krishna consciousness. For this reason, the Lord decided to instruct Arjuna in Krishna consciousness directly. Because of the direct instruction of the Lord to Arjuna, anyone who follows in the footsteps of Arjuna is certainly not bewildered.

It is said that one cannot ascertain the ways of religion simply by imperfect experimental knowledge. Actually, the principles of religion can only be laid down by the Lord Himself. Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam (Bhag. 6.3.19). No one can manufacture a religious principle by imperfect speculation. One must follow in the footsteps of great authorities like Brahma, Siva, Narada, Manu, the Kumaras, Kapila, Prahlada, Bhisma, Sukadeva Gosvami, Yamaraja, Janaka and Bali Maharaja. By mental speculation one cannot ascertain what is religion or self-realization. Therefore, out of causeless mercy to His devotees, the Lord explains directly to Arjuna what action is and what inaction is. Only action performed in Krishna consciousness can deliver a person from the entanglement of material existence.

Bg 4.15

evam jnatva krtam karma
purvair api mumuksubhih
kuru karmaiva tasmat tvam
purvaih purva-taram krtam

Word for word: 
evam — thus; jnatva — knowing well; krtam — was performed; karma — work; purvaih — by past authorities; api — indeed; mumuksubhih — who attained liberation; kuru — just perform; karma — prescribed duty; eva — certainly; tasmat — therefore; tvam — you; purvaih — by the predecessors; purva-taram — in ancient times; krtam — as performed.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
All the liberated souls in ancient times acted with this understanding of My transcendental nature. Therefore you should perform your duty, following in their footsteps.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
There are two classes of men. Some of them are full of polluted material things within their hearts, and some of them are materially free. Krishna consciousness is equally beneficial for both of these persons. Those who are full of dirty things can take to the line of Krishna consciousness for a gradual cleansing process, following the regulative principles of devotional service. Those who are already cleansed of the impurities may continue to act in the same Krishna consciousness so that others may follow their exemplary activities and thereby be benefited. Foolish persons or neophytes in Krishna consciousness often want to retire from activities without having knowledge of Krishna consciousness. Arjuna’s desire to retire from activities on the battlefield was not approved by the Lord. One need only know how to act. To retire from the activities of Krishna consciousness and to sit aloof making a show of Krishna consciousness is less important than actually engaging in the field of activities for the sake of Krishna. Arjuna is here advised to act in Krishna consciousness, following in the footsteps of the Lord’s previous disciples, such as the sun-god Vivasvan, as mentioned hereinbefore. The Supreme Lord knows all His past activities, as well as those of persons who acted in Krishna consciousness in the past. Therefore He recommends the acts of the sun-god, who learned this art from the Lord some millions of years before. All such students of Lord Krishna are mentioned here as past liberated persons, engaged in the discharge of duties allotted by Krishna.

Bg 4.14

na mam karmani limpanti
na me karma-phale sprha
iti mam yo ’bhijanati
karmabhir na sa badhyate

Word for word: 
na — never; mam — Me; karmani — all kinds of work; limpanti — do affect; na — nor; me — My; karma-phale — in fruitive action; sprha — aspiration; iti — thus; mam — Me; yah — one who; abhijanati — does know; karmabhih — by the reaction of such work; na — never; sah — he; badhyate — becomes entangled.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
There is no work that affects Me; nor do I aspire for the fruits of action. One who understands this truth about Me also does not become entangled in the fruitive reactions of work.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
As there are constitutional laws in the material world stating that the king can do no wrong, or that the king is not subject to the state laws, similarly the Lord, although He is the creator of this material world, is not affected by the activities of the material world. He creates and remains aloof from the creation, whereas the living entities are entangled in the fruitive results of material activities because of their propensity for lording it over material resources. The proprietor of an establishment is not responsible for the right and wrong activities of the workers, but the workers are themselves responsible. The living entities are engaged in their respective activities of sense gratification, and these activities are not ordained by the Lord. For advancement of sense gratification, the living entities are engaged in the work of this world, and they aspire to heavenly happiness after death. The Lord, being full in Himself, has no attraction for so-called heavenly happiness. The heavenly demigods are only His engaged servants. The proprietor never desires the low-grade happiness such as the workers may desire. He is aloof from the material actions and reactions. For example, the rains are not responsible for different types of vegetation that appear on the earth, although without such rains there is no possibility of vegetative growth. Vedic smrti confirms this fact as follows:

nimitta-matram evasau
srjyanam sarga-karmani
pradhana-karani-bhuta
yato vai srjya-saktayah

“In the material creations, the Lord is only the supreme cause. The immediate cause is material nature, by which the cosmic manifestation is made visible.” The created beings are of many varieties, such as the demigods, human beings and lower animals, and all of them are subject to the reactions of their past good or bad activities. The Lord only gives them the proper facilities for such activities and the regulations of the modes of nature, but He is never responsible for their past and present activities. In the Vedanta-sutra (2.1.34) it is confirmed, vaisamya-nairghrnye na sapeksatvat: the Lord is never partial to any living entity. The living entity is responsible for his own acts. The Lord only gives him facilities, through the agency of material nature, the external energy. Anyone who is fully conversant with all the intricacies of this law of karma, or fruitive activities, does not become affected by the results of his activities. In other words, the person who understands this transcendental nature of the Lord is an experienced man in Krishna consciousness, and thus he is never subjected to the laws of karma. One who does not know the transcendental nature of the Lord and who thinks that the activities of the Lord are aimed at fruitive results, as are the activities of the ordinary living entities, certainly becomes entangled himself in fruitive reactions. But one who knows the Supreme Truth is a liberated soul fixed in Krishna consciousness.

Bg 4.13

catur-varnyam maya srstam
guna-karma-vibhagasah
tasya kartaram api mam
viddhy akartaram avyayam

Word for word: 
catuh-varnyam — the four divisions of human society; maya — by Me; srstam — created; guna — of quality; karma — and work; vibhagasah — in terms of division; tasya — of that; kartaram — the father; api — although; mam — Me; viddhi — you may know; akartaram — as the nondoer; avyayam — unchangeable.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
According to the three modes of material nature and the work associated with them, the four divisions of human society are created by Me. And although I am the creator of this system, you should know that I am yet the nondoer, being unchangeable.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The Lord is the creator of everything. Everything is born of Him, everything is sustained by Him, and everything, after annihilation, rests in Him. He is therefore the creator of the four divisions of the social order, beginning with the intelligent class of men, technically called brahmanas due to their being situated in the mode of goodness. Next is the administrative class, technically called the ksatriyas due to their being situated in the mode of passion. The mercantile men, called the vaisyas, are situated in the mixed modes of passion and ignorance, and the sudras, or laborer class, are situated in the ignorant mode of material nature. In spite of His creating the four divisions of human society, Lord Krishna does not belong to any of these divisions, because He is not one of the conditioned souls, a section of whom form human society. Human society is similar to any other animal society, but to elevate men from the animal status, the above-mentioned divisions are created by the Lord for the systematic development of Krishna consciousness. The tendency of a particular man toward work is determined by the modes of material nature which he has acquired. Such symptoms of life, according to the different modes of material nature, are described in the Eighteenth Chapter of this book. A person in Krishna consciousness, however, is above even the brahmanas. Although brahmanas by quality are supposed to know about Brahman, the Supreme Absolute Truth, most of them approach only the impersonal Brahman manifestation of Lord Krishna. But a man who transcends the limited knowledge of a brahmana and reaches the knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna, becomes a person in Krishna consciousness – or, in other words, a Vaisnava. Krishna consciousness includes knowledge of all different plenary expansions of Krishna, namely Rama, Nrsimha, Varaha, etc. And as Krishna is transcendental to this system of the four divisions of human society, a person in Krishna consciousness is also transcendental to all divisions of human society, whether we consider the divisions of community, nation or species.

Bg 4.12

kanksantah karmanam siddhim
yajanta iha devatah
ksipram hi manuse loke
siddhir bhavati karma-ja

Word for word: 
kanksantah — desiring; karmanam — of fruitive activities; siddhim — perfection; yajante — they worship by sacrifices; iha — in the material world; devatah — the demigods; ksipram — very quickly; hi — certainly; manuse — in human society; loke — within this world; siddhih — success; bhavati — comes; karma-ja — from fruitive work.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Men in this world desire success in fruitive activities, and therefore they worship the demigods. Quickly, of course, men get results from fruitive work in this world.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
There is a great misconception about the gods or demigods of this material world, and men of less intelligence, although passing as great scholars, take these demigods to be various forms of the Supreme Lord. Actually, the demigods are not different forms of God, but they are God’s different parts and parcels. God is one, and the parts and parcels are many. The Vedas say, nityo nityanam: God is one. Isvarah paramah Krishnah. The Supreme God is one – Krishna – and the demigods are delegated with powers to manage this material world. These demigods are all living entities (nityanam) with different grades of material power. They cannot be equal to the Supreme God – Narayana, Visnu, or Krishna. Anyone who thinks that God and the demigods are on the same level is called an atheist, or pasandi. Even the great demigods like Brahma and Siva cannot be compared to the Supreme Lord. In fact, the Lord is worshiped by demigods such as Brahma and Siva (siva-viriñci-nutam). Yet curiously enough there are many human leaders who are worshiped by foolish men under the misunderstanding of anthropomorphism or zoomorphism. Iha devatah denotes a powerful man or demigod of this material world. But Narayana, Visnu, or Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, does not belong to this world. He is above, or transcendental to, material creation. Even Sripada Sankaracarya, the leader of the impersonalists, maintains that Narayana, or Krishna, is beyond this material creation. However, foolish people (hrta-jñana) worship the demigods because they want immediate results. They get the results, but do not know that results so obtained are temporary and are meant for less intelligent persons. The intelligent person is in Krishna consciousness, and he has no need to worship the paltry demigods for some immediate, temporary benefit. The demigods of this material world, as well as their worshipers, will vanish with the annihilation of this material world. The boons of the demigods are material and temporary. Both the material worlds and their inhabitants, including the demigods and their worshipers, are bubbles in the cosmic ocean. In this world, however, human society is mad after temporary things such as the material opulence of possessing land, family and enjoyable paraphernalia. To achieve such temporary things, people worship the demigods or powerful men in human society. If a man gets some ministership in the government by worshiping a political leader, he considers that he has achieved a great boon. All of them are therefore kowtowing to the so-called leaders or “big guns” in order to achieve temporary boons, and they indeed achieve such things. Such foolish men are not interested in Krishna consciousness for the permanent solution to the hardships of material existence. They are all after sense enjoyment, and to get a little facility for sense enjoyment they are attracted to worshiping empowered living entities known as demigods. This verse indicates that people are rarely interested in Krishna consciousness. They are mostly interested in material enjoyment, and therefore they worship some powerful living entity.

Bg 4.11

ye yatha mam prapadyante
tams tathaiva bhajamy aham
mama vartmanuvartante
manusyah partha sarvasah

Word for word: 
ye — all who; yatha — as; mam — unto Me; prapadyante — surrender; tan — them; tatha — so; eva — certainly; bhajami — reward; aham — I; mama — My; vartma — path; anuvartante — follow; manusyah — all men; partha — O son of Prtha; sarvasah — in all respects.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Prtha.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Everyone is searching for Krishna in the different aspects of His manifestations. Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is partially realized in His impersonal brahma-jyotir effulgence and as the all-pervading Supersoul dwelling within everything, including the particles of atoms. But Krishna is fully realized only by His pure devotees. Consequently, Krishna is the object of everyone’s realization, and thus anyone and everyone is satisfied according to one’s desire to have Him. In the transcendental world also, Krishna reciprocates with His pure devotees in the transcendental attitude, just as the devotee wants Him. One devotee may want Krishna as supreme master, another as his personal friend, another as his son and still another as his lover. Krishna rewards all the devotees equally, according to their different intensities of love for Him. In the material world, the same reciprocations of feelings are there, and they are equally exchanged by the Lord with the different types of worshipers. The pure devotees both here and in the transcendental abode associate with Him in person and are able to render personal service to the Lord and thus derive transcendental bliss in His loving service. As for those who are impersonalists and who want to commit spiritual suicide by annihilating the individual existence of the living entity, Krishna helps also by absorbing them into His effulgence. Such impersonalists do not agree to accept the eternal, blissful Personality of Godhead; consequently they cannot relish the bliss of transcendental personal service to the Lord, having extinguished their individuality. Some of them, who are not firmly situated even in the impersonal existence, return to this material field to exhibit their dormant desires for activities. They are not admitted into the spiritual planets, but they are again given a chance to act on the material planets. For those who are fruitive workers, the Lord awards the desired results of their prescribed duties, as the yajñesvara; and those who are yogis seeking mystic powers are awarded such powers. In other words, everyone is dependent for success upon His mercy alone, and all kinds of spiritual processes are but different degrees of success on the same path. Unless, therefore, one comes to the highest perfection of Krishna consciousness, all attempts remain imperfect, as is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.3.10):

akamah sarva-kamo va
moksa-kama udara-dhih
tivrena bhakti-yogena
yajeta purusam param

“Whether one is without desire [the condition of the devotees], or is desirous of all fruitive results or is after liberation, one should with all efforts try to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead for complete perfection, culminating in Krishna consciousness.”

Bg 4.10

vita-raga-bhaya-krodha
man-maya mam upasritah
bahavo jnana-tapasa
puta mad-bhavam agatah

Word for word: 
vita — freed from; raga — attachment; bhaya — fear; krodhah — and anger; mat-mayah — fully in Me; mam — in Me; upasritah — being fully situated; bahavah — many; jnana — of knowledge; tapasa — by the penance; putah — being purified; mat-bhavam — transcendental love for Me; agatah — attained.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Being freed from attachment, fear and anger, being fully absorbed in Me and taking refuge in Me, many, many persons in the past became purified by knowledge of Me – and thus they all attained transcendental love for Me.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
As described above, it is very difficult for a person who is too materially affected to understand the personal nature of the Supreme Absolute Truth. Generally, people who are attached to the bodily conception of life are so absorbed in materialism that it is almost impossible for them to understand how the Supreme can be a person. Such materialists cannot even imagine that there is a transcendental body which is imperishable, full of knowledge and eternally blissful. In the materialistic concept, the body is perishable, full of ignorance and completely miserable. Therefore, people in general keep this same bodily idea in mind when they are informed of the personal form of the Lord. For such materialistic men, the form of the gigantic material manifestation is supreme. Consequently they consider the Supreme to be impersonal. And because they are too materially absorbed, the conception of retaining the personality after liberation from matter frightens them. When they are informed that spiritual life is also individual and personal, they become afraid of becoming persons again, and so they naturally prefer a kind of merging into the impersonal void. Generally, they compare the living entities to the bubbles of the ocean, which merge into the ocean. That is the highest perfection of spiritual existence attainable without individual personality. This is a kind of fearful stage of life, devoid of perfect knowledge of spiritual existence. Furthermore there are many persons who cannot understand spiritual existence at all. Being embarrassed by so many theories and by contradictions of various types of philosophical speculation, they become disgusted or angry and foolishly conclude that there is no supreme cause and that everything is ultimately void. Such people are in a diseased condition of life. Some people are too materially attached and therefore do not give attention to spiritual life, some of them want to merge into the supreme spiritual cause, and some of them disbelieve in everything, being angry at all sorts of spiritual speculation out of hopelessness. This last class of men take to the shelter of some kind of intoxication, and their affective hallucinations are sometimes accepted as spiritual vision. One has to get rid of all three stages of material consciousness: attachment to material life, fear of a spiritual personal identity, and the conception of void that arises from frustration in life. To get free from these three stages of the material concept of life, one has to take complete shelter of the Lord, guided by the bona fide spiritual master, and follow the disciplines and regulative principles of devotional life. The last stage of the devotional life is called bhava, or transcendental love of Godhead.

According to Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu (1.4.15–16), the science of devotional service:

adau sraddha tatah sadhu-
sango ’tha bhajana-kriya
tato ’nartha-nivrttih syat
tato nistha rucis tatah

athasaktis tato bhavas
tatah premabhyudancati
sadhakanam ayam premnah
pradurbhave bhavet kramah

“In the beginning one must have a preliminary desire for self-realization. This will bring one to the stage of trying to associate with persons who are spiritually elevated. In the next stage one becomes initiated by an elevated spiritual master, and under his instruction the neophyte devotee begins the process of devotional service. By execution of devotional service under the guidance of the spiritual master, one becomes free from all material attachment, attains steadiness in self-realization, and acquires a taste for hearing about the Absolute Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna. This taste leads one further forward to attachment for Krishna consciousness, which is matured in bhava, or the preliminary stage of transcendental love of God. Real love for God is called prema, the highest perfectional stage of life.” In the prema stage there is constant engagement in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. So, by the slow process of devotional service, under the guidance of the bona fide spiritual master, one can attain the highest stage, being freed from all material attachment, from the fearfulness of one’s individual spiritual personality, and from the frustrations that result in void philosophy. Then one can ultimately attain to the abode of the Supreme Lord.

Bg 4.9

janma karma ca me divyam
evam yo vetti tattvatah
tyaktva deham punar janma
naiti mam eti so ’rjuna

Word for word: 
janma — birth; karma — work; ca — also; me — of Mine; divyam — transcendental; evam — like this; yah — anyone who; vetti — knows; tattvatah — in reality; tyaktva — leaving aside; deham — this body; punah — again; janma — birth; na — never; eti — does attain; mam — unto Me; eti — does attain; sah — he; arjuna — O Arjuna.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The Lord’s descent from His transcendental abode is already explained in the sixth verse. One who can understand the truth of the appearance of the Personality of Godhead is already liberated from material bondage, and therefore he returns to the kingdom of God immediately after quitting this present material body. Such liberation of the living entity from material bondage is not at all easy. The impersonalists and the yogis attain liberation only after much trouble and many, many births. Even then, the liberation they achieve – merging into the impersonal brahma-jyotir of the Lord – is only partial, and there is the risk of returning to this material world. But the devotee, simply by understanding the transcendental nature of the body and activities of the Lord, attains the abode of the Lord after ending this body and does not run the risk of returning to this material world. In the Brahma-samhita (5.33) it is stated that the Lord has many, many forms and incarnations: advaitam acyutam anadim ananta-rupam. Although there are many transcendental forms of the Lord, they are still one and the same Supreme Personality of Godhead. One has to understand this fact with conviction, although it is incomprehensible to mundane scholars and empiric philosophers. As stated in the Vedas (Purusa-bodhini Upanisad):

eko devo nitya-lilanurakto
bhakta-vyapi hrdy antar-atma

“The one Supreme Personality of Godhead is eternally engaged in many, many transcendental forms in relationships with His unalloyed devotees.” This Vedic version is confirmed in this verse of the Gita personally by the Lord. He who accepts this truth on the strength of the authority of the Vedas and of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and who does not waste time in philosophical speculations attains the highest perfectional stage of liberation. Simply by accepting this truth on faith, one can, without a doubt, attain liberation. The Vedic version tat tvam asi is actually applied in this case. Anyone who understands Lord Krishna to be the Supreme, or who says unto the Lord, “You are the same Supreme Brahman, the Personality of Godhead,” is certainly liberated instantly, and consequently his entrance into the transcendental association of the Lord is guaranteed. In other words, such a faithful devotee of the Lord attains perfection, and this is confirmed by the following Vedic assertion:

tam eva viditvati mrtyum eti
nanyah pantha vidyate ’yanaya

“One can attain the perfect stage of liberation from birth and death simply by knowing the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and there is no other way to achieve this perfection.” (Svetasvatara Upanisad 3.8) That there is no alternative means that anyone who does not understand Lord Krishna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead is surely in the mode of ignorance and consequently he will not attain salvation simply, so to speak, by licking the outer surface of the bottle of honey, or by interpreting the Bhagavad-gita according to mundane scholarship. Such empiric philosophers may assume very important roles in the material world, but they are not necessarily eligible for liberation. Such puffed-up mundane scholars have to wait for the causeless mercy of the devotee of the Lord. One should therefore cultivate Krishna consciousness with faith and knowledge, and in this way attain perfection.

Bg 4.8

paritranaya sadhunam
vinasaya ca duskrtam
dharma-samsthapanarthaya
sambhavami yuge yuge

Word for word: 
paritranaya — for the deliverance; sadhunam — of the devotees; vinasaya — for the annihilation; ca — and; duskrtam — of the miscreants; dharma — principles of religion; samsthapana-arthaya — to reestablish; sambhavami — I do appear; yuge — millennium; yuge — after millennium.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I Myself appear, millennium after millennium.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
According to Bhagavad-gita, a sadhu (holy man) is a man in Krishna consciousness. A person may appear to be irreligious, but if he has the qualifications of Krishna consciousness wholly and fully, he is to be understood to be a sadhu. And duskrtam applies to those who do not care for Krishna consciousness. Such miscreants, or duskrtam, are described as foolish and the lowest of mankind, even though they may be decorated with mundane education, whereas a person who is one hundred percent engaged in Krishna consciousness is accepted as a sadhu, even though such a person may be neither learned nor well cultured. As far as the atheistic are concerned, it is not necessary for the Supreme Lord to appear as He is to destroy them, as He did with the demons Ravana and Kamsa. The Lord has many agents who are quite competent to vanquish demons. But the Lord especially descends to appease His unalloyed devotees, who are always harassed by the demoniac. The demon harasses the devotee, even though the latter may happen to be his kin. Although Prahlada Maharaja was the son of Hiranyakasipu, he was nonetheless persecuted by his father; although Devaki, the mother of Krishna, was the sister of Kamsa, she and her husband Vasudeva were persecuted only because Krishna was to be born of them. So Lord Krishna appeared primarily to deliver Devaki rather than kill Kamsa, but both were performed simultaneously. Therefore it is said here that to deliver the devotee and vanquish the demon miscreants, the Lord appears in different incarnations.

In the Caitanya-caritamrta of Krishnadasa Kaviraja, the following verses (Madhya 20.263–264) summarize these principles of incarnation:

srsti-hetu yei murti prapañce avatare
sei isvara-murti ‘avatara’ nama dhare

mayatita paravyome sabara avasthana
visve avatari’ dhare ‘avatara’ nama

“The avatara, or incarnation of Godhead, descends from the kingdom of God for material manifestation. And the particular form of the Personality of Godhead who so descends is called an incarnation, or avatara. Such incarnations are situated in the spiritual world, the kingdom of God. When they descend to the material creation, they assume the name avatara.”

There are various kinds of avataras, such as purusavataras, gunavataras, lilavataras, sakty-avesa avataras, manvantara-avataras and yugavataras – all appearing on schedule all over the universe. But Lord Krishna is the primeval Lord, the fountainhead of all avataras. Lord Sri Krishna descends for the specific purpose of mitigating the anxieties of the pure devotees, who are very anxious to see Him in His original Vrndavana pastimes. Therefore, the prime purpose of the Krishna avatara is to satisfy His unalloyed devotees.

The Lord says that He incarnates Himself in every millennium. This indicates that He incarnates also in the Age of Kali. As stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, the incarnation in the Age of Kali is Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who spread the worship of Krishna by the sankirtana movement (congregational chanting of the holy names) and spread Krishna consciousness throughout India. He predicted that this culture of sankirtana would be broadcast all over the world, from town to town and village to village. Lord Caitanya as the incarnation of Krishna, the Personality of Godhead, is described secretly but not directly in the confidential parts of the revealed scriptures, such as the Upanisads, Mahabharata and Bhagavatam. The devotees of Lord Krishna are very much attracted by the sankirtana movement of Lord Caitanya. This avatara of the Lord does not kill the miscreants, but delivers them by His causeless mercy.

Bg 4.7

yada yada hi dharmasya
glanir bhavati bharata
abhyutthanam adharmasya
tadatmanam srjamy aham

Word for word: 
yada yada — whenever and wherever; hi — certainly; dharmasya — of religion; glanih — discrepancies; bhavati — become manifested; bharata — O descendant of Bharata; abhyutthanam — predominance; adharmasya — of irreligion; tada — at that time; atmanam — self; srjami — manifest; aham — I.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion – at that time I descend Myself.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The word srjami is significant herein. Srjami cannot be used in the sense of creation, because, according to the previous verse, there is no creation of the Lord’s form or body, since all of the forms are eternally existent. Therefore, srjami means that the Lord manifests Himself as He is. Although the Lord appears on schedule, namely at the end of the Dvapara-yuga of the twenty-eighth millennium of the seventh Manu in one day of Brahma, He has no obligation to adhere to such rules and regulations, because He is completely free to act in many ways at His will. He therefore appears by His own will whenever there is a predominance of irreligiosity and a disappearance of true religion. Principles of religion are laid down in the Vedas, and any discrepancy in the matter of properly executing the rules of the Vedas makes one irreligious. In the Bhagavatam it is stated that such principles are the laws of the Lord. Only the Lord can manufacture a system of religion. The Vedas are also accepted as originally spoken by the Lord Himself to Brahma, from within his heart. Therefore, the principles of dharma, or religion, are the direct orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam). These principles are clearly indicated throughout the Bhagavad-gita. The purpose of the Vedas is to establish such principles under the order of the Supreme Lord, and the Lord directly orders, at the end of the Gita, that the highest principle of religion is to surrender unto Him only, and nothing more. The Vedic principles push one towards complete surrender unto Him; and whenever such principles are disturbed by the demoniac, the Lord appears. From the Bhagavatam we understand that Lord Buddha is the incarnation of Krishna who appeared when materialism was rampant and materialists were using the pretext of the authority of the Vedas. Although there are certain restrictive rules and regulations regarding animal sacrifice for particular purposes in the Vedas, people of demonic tendency still took to animal sacrifice without reference to the Vedic principles. Lord Buddha appeared in order to stop this nonsense and to establish the Vedic principles of nonviolence. Therefore each and every avatara, or incarnation of the Lord, has a particular mission, and they are all described in the revealed scriptures. No one should be accepted as an avatara unless he is referred to by scriptures. It is not a fact that the Lord appears only on Indian soil. He can manifest Himself anywhere and everywhere, and whenever He desires to appear. In each and every incarnation, He speaks as much about religion as can be understood by the particular people under their particular circumstances. But the mission is the same – to lead people to God consciousness and obedience to the principles of religion. Sometimes He descends personally, and sometimes He sends His bona fide representative in the form of His son, or servant, or Himself in some disguised form.

The principles of the Bhagavad-gita were spoken to Arjuna, and, for that matter, to other highly elevated persons, because he was highly advanced compared to ordinary persons in other parts of the world. Two plus two equals four is a mathematical principle that is true in the beginner’s arithmetic class and in the advanced class as well. Still, there are higher and lower mathematics. In all incarnations of the Lord, therefore, the same principles are taught, but they appear to be higher and lower in varied circumstances. The higher principles of religion begin with the acceptance of the four orders and the four statuses of social life, as will be explained later. The whole purpose of the mission of incarnations is to arouse Krishna consciousness everywhere. Such consciousness is manifest and nonmanifest only under different circumstances.

Bg 4.6

ajo ’pi sann avyayatma
bhutanam isvaro ’pi san
prakrtim svam adhisthaya
sambhavamy atma-mayaya

Word for word: 
ajah — unborn; api — although; san — being so; avyaya — without deterioration; atma — body; bhutanam — of all those who are born; isvarah — the Supreme Lord; api — although; san — being so; prakrtim — in the transcendental form; svam — of Myself; adhisthaya — being so situated; sambhavami — I do incarnate; atma-mayaya — by My internal energy.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Although I am unborn and My transcendental body never deteriorates, and although I am the Lord of all living entities, I still appear in every millennium in My original transcendental form.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The Lord has spoken about the peculiarity of His birth: although He may appear like an ordinary person, He remembers everything of His many, many past “births,” whereas a common man cannot remember what he has done even a few hours before. If someone is asked what he did exactly at the same time one day earlier, it would be very difficult for a common man to answer immediately. He would surely have to dredge his memory to recall what he was doing exactly at the same time one day before. And yet, men often dare claim to be God, or Krishna. One should not be misled by such meaningless claims. Then again, the Lord explains His prakrti, or His form. Prakrti means “nature,” as well as svarupa, or “one’s own form.” The Lord says that He appears in His own body. He does not change His body, as the common living entity changes from one body to another. The conditioned soul may have one kind of body in the present birth, but he has a different body in the next birth. In the material world, the living entity has no fixed body but transmigrates from one body to another. The Lord, however, does not do so. Whenever He appears, He does so in the same original body, by His internal potency. In other words, Krishna appears in this material world in His original eternal form, with two hands, holding a flute. He appears exactly in His eternal body, uncontaminated by this material world. Although He appears in the same transcendental body and is Lord of the universe, it still appears that He takes His birth like an ordinary living entity. And although His body does not deteriorate like a material body, it still appears that Lord Krishna grows from childhood to boyhood and from boyhood to youth. But astonishingly enough He never ages beyond youth. At the time of the Battle of Kuruksetra, He had many grandchildren at home; or, in other words, He had sufficiently aged by material calculations. Still He looked just like a young man twenty or twenty-five years old. We never see a picture of Krishna in old age because He never grows old like us, although He is the oldest person in the whole creation – past, present and future. Neither His body nor His intelligence ever deteriorates or changes. Therefore, it is clear that in spite of His being in the material world, He is the same unborn, eternal form of bliss and knowledge, changeless in His transcendental body and intelligence. Factually, His appearance and disappearance are like the sun’s rising, moving before us and then disappearing from our eyesight. When the sun is out of sight, we think that the sun has set, and when the sun is before our eyes, we think that the sun is on the horizon. Actually, the sun is always in its fixed position, but owing to our defective, insufficient senses, we calculate the appearance and disappearance of the sun in the sky. And because Lord Krishna’s appearance and disappearance are completely different from that of any ordinary, common living entity, it is evident that He is eternal, blissful knowledge by His internal potency – and He is never contaminated by material nature. The Vedas also confirm that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is unborn yet He still appears to take His birth in multimanifestations. The Vedic supplementary literatures also confirm that even though the Lord appears to be taking His birth, He is still without change of body. In the Bhagavatam, He appears before His mother as Narayana, with four hands and the decorations of the six kinds of full opulences. His appearance in His original eternal form is His causeless mercy, bestowed upon the living entities so that they can concentrate on the Supreme Lord as He is, and not on mental concoctions or imaginations, which the impersonalist wrongly thinks the Lord’s forms to be. The word maya, or atma-maya, refers to the Lord’s causeless mercy, according to the Visva-kosa dictionary. The Lord is conscious of all of His previous appearances and disappearances, but a common living entity forgets everything about his past body as soon as he gets another body. He is the Lord of all living entities because He performs wonderful and superhuman activities while He is on this earth. Therefore, the Lord is always the same Absolute Truth and is without differentiation between His form and self, or between His quality and body. A question may now be raised as to why the Lord appears and disappears in this world. This is explained in the next verse.

Bg 4.5

sri-bhagavan uvaca
bahuni me vyatitani
janmani tava carjuna
tany aham veda sarvani
na tvam vettha paran-tapa

Word for word: 
sri-bhagavan uvaca — the Personality of Godhead said; bahuni — many; me — of Mine; vyatitani — have passed; janmani — births; tava — of yours; ca — and also; arjuna — O Arjuna; tani — those; aham — I; veda — do know; sarvani — all; na — not; tvam — you; vettha — know; param-tapa — O subduer of the enemy.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The Personality of Godhead said: Many, many births both you and I have passed. I can remember all of them, but you cannot, O subduer of the enemy!

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
In the Brahma-samhita (5.33) we have information of many, many incarnations of the Lord. It is stated there:

advaitam acyutam anadim ananta-rupam
adyam purana-purusam nava-yauvanam ca
vedesu durlabham adurlabham atma-bhaktau
govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

“I worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda [Krishna], who is the original person – absolute, infallible, without beginning. Although expanded into unlimited forms, He is still the same original, the oldest, and the person always appearing as a fresh youth. Such eternal, blissful, all-knowing forms of the Lord are usually not understood by even the best Vedic scholars, but they are always manifest to pure, unalloyed devotees.”

It is also stated in Brahma-samhita (5.39):

ramadi-murtisu kala-niyamena tisthan
nanavataram akarod bhuvanesu kintu
Krishnah svayam samabhavat paramah puman yo
govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

“I worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda [Krishna], who is always situated in various incarnations such as Rama, Nrsimha and many subincarnations as well, but who is the original Personality of Godhead known as Krishna, and who incarnates personally also.”

In the Vedas also it is said that the Lord, although one without a second, manifests Himself in innumerable forms. He is like the vaidurya stone, which changes color yet still remains one. All those multiforms are understood by the pure, unalloyed devotees, but not by a simple study of the Vedas (vedesu durlabham adurlabham atma-bhaktau). Devotees like Arjuna are constant companions of the Lord, and whenever the Lord incarnates, the associate devotees also incarnate in order to serve the Lord in different capacities. Arjuna is one of these devotees, and in this verse it is understood that some millions of years ago when Lord Krishna spoke the Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god Vivasvan, Arjuna, in a different capacity, was also present. But the difference between the Lord and Arjuna is that the Lord remembered the incident whereas Arjuna could not remember. That is the difference between the part-and-parcel living entity and the Supreme Lord. Although Arjuna is addressed herein as the mighty hero who could subdue the enemies, he is unable to recall what had happened in his various past births. Therefore, a living entity, however great he may be in the material estimation, can never equal the Supreme Lord. Anyone who is a constant companion of the Lord is certainly a liberated person, but he cannot be equal to the Lord. The Lord is described in the Brahma-samhita as infallible (acyuta), which means that He never forgets Himself, even though He is in material contact. Therefore, the Lord and the living entity can never be equal in all respects, even if the living entity is as liberated as Arjuna. Although Arjuna is a devotee of the Lord, he sometimes forgets the nature of the Lord, but by the divine grace a devotee can at once understand the infallible condition of the Lord, whereas a nondevotee or a demon cannot understand this transcendental nature. Consequently these descriptions in the Gita cannot be understood by demonic brains. Krishna remembered acts which were performed by Him millions of years before, but Arjuna could not, despite the fact that both Krishna and Arjuna are eternal in nature. We may also note herein that a living entity forgets everything due to his change of body, but the Lord remembers because He does not change His sac-cid-ananda body. He is advaita, which means there is no distinction between His body and Himself. Everything in relation to Him is spirit – whereas the conditioned soul is different from his material body. And because the Lord’s body and self are identical, His position is always different from that of the ordinary living entity, even when He descends to the material platform. The demons cannot adjust themselves to this transcendental nature of the Lord, which the Lord Himself explains in the following verse.

Bg 4.4

arjuna uvaca
aparam bhavato janma
param janma vivasvatah
katham etad vijaniyam
tvam adau proktavan iti

Word for word: 
arjunah uvaca — Arjuna said; aparam — junior; bhavatah — Your; janma — birth; param — superior; janma — birth; vivasvatah — of the sun-god; katham — how; etat — this; vijaniyam — shall I understand; tvam — You; adau — in the beginning; proktavan — instructed; iti — thus.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Arjuna said: The sun-god Vivasvan is senior by birth to You. How am I to understand that in the beginning You instructed this science to him?

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Arjuna is an accepted devotee of the Lord, so how could he not believe Krishna’s words? The fact is that Arjuna is not inquiring for himself but for those who do not believe in the Supreme Personality of Godhead or for the demons who do not like the idea that Krishna should be accepted as the Supreme Personality of Godhead; for them only Arjuna inquires on this point, as if he were himself not aware of the Personality of Godhead, or Krishna. As it will be evident from the Tenth Chapter, Arjuna knew perfectly well that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the fountainhead of everything and the last word in transcendence. Of course, Krishna also appeared as the son of Devaki on this earth. How Krishna remained the same Supreme Personality of Godhead, the eternal original person, is very difficult for an ordinary man to understand. Therefore, to clarify this point, Arjuna put this question before Krishna so that He Himself could speak authoritatively. That Krishna is the supreme authority is accepted by the whole world, not only at present but from time immemorial, and the demons alone reject Him. Anyway, since Krishna is the authority accepted by all, Arjuna put this question before Him in order that Krishna would describe Himself without being depicted by the demons, who always try to distort Him in a way understandable to the demons and their followers. It is necessary that everyone, for his own interest, know the science of Krishna. Therefore, when Krishna Himself speaks about Himself, it is auspicious for all the worlds. To the demons, such explanations by Krishna Himself may appear to be strange because the demons always study Krishna from their own standpoint, but those who are devotees heartily welcome the statements of Krishna when they are spoken by Krishna Himself. The devotees will always worship such authoritative statements of Krishna because they are always eager to know more and more about Him. The atheists, who consider Krishna an ordinary man, may in this way come to know that Krishna is superhuman, that He is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha – the eternal form of bliss and knowledge – that He is transcendental, and that He is above the domination of the modes of material nature and above the influence of time and space. A devotee of Krishna, like Arjuna, is undoubtedly above any misunderstanding of the transcendental position of Krishna. Arjuna’s putting this question before the Lord is simply an attempt by the devotee to defy the atheistic attitude of persons who consider Krishna to be an ordinary human being, subject to the modes of material nature.

Bg 4.2

evam parampara-praptam
imam rajarsayo viduh
sa kaleneha mahata
yogo nastah paran-tapa

Word for word: 
evam — thus; parampara — by disciplic succession; praptam — received; imam — this science; raja-rsayah — the saintly kings; viduh — understood; sah — that knowledge; kalena — in the course of time; iha — in this world; mahata — great; yogah — the science of one’s relationship with the Supreme; nastah — scattered; param-tapa — O Arjuna, subduer of the enemies.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
It is clearly stated that the Gita was especially meant for the saintly kings because they were to execute its purpose in ruling over the citizens. Certainly Bhagavad-gita was never meant for the demonic persons, who would dissipate its value for no one’s benefit and would devise all types of interpretations according to personal whims. As soon as the original purpose was scattered by the motives of the unscrupulous commentators, there arose the need to reestablish the disciplic succession. Five thousand years ago it was detected by the Lord Himself that the disciplic succession was broken, and therefore He declared that the purpose of the Gita appeared to be lost. In the same way, at the present moment also there are so many editions of the Gita (especially in English), but almost all of them are not according to authorized disciplic succession. There are innumerable interpretations rendered by different mundane scholars, but almost all of them do not accept the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, although they make a good business on the words of Sri Krishna. This spirit is demonic, because demons do not believe in God but simply enjoy the property of the Supreme. Since there is a great need of an edition of the Gita in English, as it is received by the parampara (disciplic succession) system, an attempt is made herewith to fulfill this great want. Bhagavad-gita – accepted as it is – is a great boon to humanity; but if it is accepted as a treatise of philosophical speculations, it is simply a waste of time.

Bg 4.1

sri-bhagavan uvaca
imam vivasvate yogam
proktavan aham avyayam
vivasvan manave praha
manur iksvakave ’bravit

Word for word: 
sri-bhagavan uvaca — the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; imam — this; vivasvate — unto the sun-god; yogam — the science of one’s relationship to the Supreme; proktavan — instructed; aham — I; avyayam — imperishable; vivasvan — Vivasvan (the sun-god’s name); manave — unto the father of mankind (of the name Vaivasvata); praha — told; manuh — the father of mankind; iksvakave — unto King Iksvaku; abravit — said.

Translation by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
The Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krishna, said: I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvan, and Vivasvan instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Iksvaku.

Purport by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada:
Herein we find the history of the Bhagavad-gita traced from a remote time when it was delivered to the royal order of all planets, beginning from the sun planet. The kings of all planets are especially meant for the protection of the inhabitants, and therefore the royal order should understand the science of Bhagavad-gita in order to be able to rule the citizens and protect them from material bondage to lust. Human life is meant for cultivation of spiritual knowledge, in eternal relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the executive heads of all states and all planets are obliged to impart this lesson to the citizens by education, culture and devotion. In other words, the executive heads of all states are intended to spread the science of Krishna consciousness so that the people may take advantage of this great science and pursue a successful path, utilizing the opportunity of the human form of life.

In this millennium, the sun-god is known as Vivasvan, the king of the sun, which is the origin of all planets within the solar system. In the Brahma-samhita (5.52) it is stated:

yac-caksur esa savita sakala-grahanam
raja samasta-sura-murtir asesa-tejah
yasyajñaya bhramati sambhrta-kala-cakro
govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

“Let me worship,” Lord Brahma said, “the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda [Krishna], who is the original person and under whose order the sun, which is the king of all planets, is assuming immense power and heat. The sun represents the eye of the Lord and traverses its orbit in obedience to His order.”

The sun is the king of the planets, and the sun-god (at present of the name Vivasvan) rules the sun planet, which is controlling all other planets by supplying heat and light. He is rotating under the order of Krishna, and Lord Krishna originally made Vivasvan His first disciple to understand the science of Bhagavad-gita. The Gita is not, therefore, a speculative treatise for the insignificant mundane scholar but is a standard book of knowledge coming down from time immemorial.

In the Mahabharata (Santi-parva 348.51–52) we can trace out the history of the Gita as follows:

treta-yugadau ca tato
vivasvan manave dadau
manus ca loka-bhrty-artham
sutayeksvakave dadau
iksvakuna ca kathito
vyapya lokan avasthitah

“In the beginning of the millennium known as Treta-yuga this science of the relationship with the Supreme was delivered by Vivasvan to Manu. Manu, being the father of mankind, gave it to his son Maharaja Iksvaku, the king of this earth planet and forefather of the Raghu dynasty, in which Lord Ramacandra appeared.” Therefore, Bhagavad-gita existed in human society from the time of Maharaja Iksvaku.

At the present moment we have just passed through five thousand years of the Kali-yuga, which lasts 432,000 years. Before this there was Dvapara-yuga (800,000 years), and before that there was Treta-yuga (1,200,000 years). Thus, some 2,005,000 years ago, Manu spoke the Bhagavad-gita to his disciple and son Maharaja Iksvaku, the king of this planet earth. The age of the current Manu is calculated to last some 305,300,000 years, of which 120,400,000 have passed. Accepting that before the birth of Manu the Gita was spoken by the Lord to His disciple the sun-god Vivasvan, a rough estimate is that the Gita was spoken at least 120,400,000 years ago; and in human society it has been extant for two million years. It was respoken by the Lord again to Arjuna about five thousand years ago. That is the rough estimate of the history of the Gita, according to the Gita itself and according to the version of the speaker, Lord Sri Krishna. It was spoken to the sun-god Vivasvan because he is also a ksatriya and is the father of all ksatriyas who are descendants of the sun-god, or the surya-vamsa ksatriyas. Because Bhagavad-gita is as good as the Vedas, being spoken by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, this knowledge is apauruseya, superhuman. Since the Vedic instructions are accepted as they are, without human interpretation, the Gita must therefore be accepted without mundane interpretation. The mundane wranglers may speculate on the Gita in their own ways, but that is not Bhagavad-gita as it is. Therefore, Bhagavad-gita has to be accepted as it is, from the disciplic succession, and it is described herein that the Lord spoke to the sun-god, the sun-god spoke to his son Manu, and Manu spoke to his son Iksvaku.