Chapter 4 is called Jnana Karma Sannyasa Yoga, which can be read as the yoga of knowledge, action and renunciation. It has 42 verses. Chapter 3 ended with a call to act without desire and anger. This chapter widens the picture in three steps. First Krishna says where the teaching comes from and why he comes into the world. Then he asks what action really is. Finally he shows that every kind of offering and effort reaches its completion in knowledge.
How the chapter moves
- Verses 1 to 3: Krishna says he taught this yoga at the very beginning, to Vivasvat the sun, who told Manu, who told Ikshvaku. It was passed down among royal sages and then lost over time. Krishna is now giving it again to Arjuna because Arjuna is his devotee and friend.
- Verses 4 to 9: Arjuna asks the natural question: how can Krishna have taught the sun, who lived long before? Krishna replies that he has had many births and remembers them all, while Arjuna does not. Though unborn, he comes into being by his own power whenever dharma declines (4.7 and 4.8). Those who know this are not born again (4.9).
- Verses 10 to 15: Many have reached him through knowledge and austerity, free of attachment, fear and anger. He responds to people in the way they approach him (4.11). Actions do not stain him and he has no longing for their fruit (4.14), and the people of old also acted with that understanding, so Arjuna should act as they did (4.15).
- Verses 16 to 24: What is action and what is inaction? Even the wise are confused. Krishna says one must understand action, wrong action and inaction (4.17), and that the one who sees inaction in action and action in inaction is wise (4.18). He then describes the person who acts without craving, contented and unbound (4.19 to 4.23), and gives the verse brahmarpanam brahma havir (4.24).
- Verses 25 to 32: A list of sacrifices: to the gods, of the senses, of the breath, of wealth, of austerity, of study. Each is a way of turning effort into an offering, and all of them are said to be born of action.
- Verses 33 to 42: The sacrifice of knowledge is better than any sacrifice of material things (4.33). Knowledge is to be learned from those who have seen the truth, by respect, questions and service (4.34). It purifies like fire (4.37 and 4.38), it needs faith (4.39), and it cuts doubt (4.42). Arjuna is told to take his stand in yoga and rise.
Three ideas to hold on to
The teaching has a lineage. Verses 1 to 3 say the yoga was handed down, lost and given again. For readers inside the tradition this is the idea of the guru parampara, the line of teachers. For a general reader it is a reminder that the Gita does not claim to be new. It says it is restating something very old.
Action is judged by the mind behind it. Verse 4.18 says the wise see inaction in action and action in inaction. Teachers read this as follows: a person may be busy in the world and inwardly free from craving, and another may sit still while inwardly restless. The chapter describes the first kind of person in several verses, as one who is content with what comes, free from envy and the same in success and failure.
Knowledge completes action. Verse 4.33 says the sacrifice of knowledge is better than any sacrifice of goods, and that all action ends in knowledge. This does not say action is useless. It says action done with understanding leads somewhere, and action done only from habit or craving does not.
Two notes before the verses
Verses 7 and 8 are among the most quoted in the Gita. In the Vaishnava tradition they are the textual basis for the idea of the Lord’s descent (avatara). The verses do not list the descents or say how many there are. This page gives the verses as they stand.
Verse 13 mentions the fourfold order, the four varnas. It says the order is divided according to guna (quality) and karma (work), and it does not mention birth. In later centuries the system became hereditary, and scholars, reformers and commentators have argued about the verse ever since. This page records what the verse says and does not take a side.
The text, transliteration and meaning
All 42 verses follow. The speaker is shown on each card, and a verse list above the text lets you jump to any verse.
इमं विवस्वते योगं प्रोक्तवानहमव्ययम्
विवस्वान्मनवे प्राह मनुरिक्ष्वाकवेऽब्रवीत् ॥ ४.१ ॥
Imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham avyayam
Vivasvan manave praha manur ikshvakave 'bravit
MeaningThe Blessed Lord says: I taught this unfailing yoga first to Vivasvat, the sun. Vivasvat passed it to Manu, and Manu told it to Ikshvaku.
NoteThe tradition of teaching handed from one generation to the next is called the guru parampara. Vivasvat is the sun, Manu is the first lawgiver of the present age, and Ikshvaku is the founder of the solar dynasty to which Rama later belongs. The Gita is placing its teaching inside an old line of transmission rather than presenting it as new.
एवं परंपराप्राप्तमिमं राजर्षयो विदुः
स कालेनेह महता योगो नष्टः परंतप ॥ ४.२ ॥
Evam paramparapraptam imam rajarshayo viduh
Sa kaleneha mahata yogo nashtah parantapa
MeaningHanded down in this way from one to the next, the royal sages knew it. But over a long span of time, scorcher of foes, this yoga was lost to the world.
स एवायं मया तेऽद्य योगः प्रोक्तः पुरातनः
भक्तोऽसि मे सखा चेति रहस्यं ह्येतदुत्तमम् ॥ ४.३ ॥
Sa evayam maya te 'dya yogah proktah puratanah
Bhakto 'si me sakha cheti rahasyam hy etad uttamam
MeaningIt is that same ancient yoga which I have told you today, because you are my devotee and my friend. It is a deep and supreme secret.
अपरं भवतो जन्म परं जन्म विवस्वतः
कथमेतद्विजानीयां त्वमादौ प्रोक्तवानिति ॥ ४.४ ॥
Aparam bhavato janma param janma vivasvatah
Katham etad vijaniyam tvam adau proktavan iti
MeaningArjuna says: Your birth is recent and the birth of Vivasvat was long ago. How am I to understand that you taught it at the beginning?
NoteArjuna's question is natural. Krishna is standing in front of him, yet he seems to be claiming a very long past. The answer is the teaching on birth in the next few verses.
बहूनि मे व्यतीतानि जन्मानि तव चार्जुन
तान्यहं वेद सर्वाणि न त्वं वेत्थ परंतप ॥ ४.५ ॥
Bahuni me vyatitani janmani tava charjuna
Tany aham veda sarvani na tvam vettha parantapa
MeaningThe Blessed Lord says: Many births of mine have gone by, and of yours too, Arjuna. I know them all. You do not know them, scorcher of foes.
अजोऽपि सन्नव्ययात्मा भूतानामीश्वरोऽपि सन्
प्रकृतिं स्वामधिष्ठाय संभवाम्यात्ममायया ॥ ४.६ ॥
Ajo 'pi sann avyayatma bhutanam ishvaro 'pi san
Prakritim svam adhishthaya sambhavamy atmamayaya
MeaningThough I am unborn and my being never wastes away, and though I am the lord of all beings, I take hold of my own nature and come into being through my own power.
NoteThis verse sets out the idea of avatara, the descent of the Lord into the world. Krishna says he is not subject to birth as other beings are, and that he comes by his own power. How to read this is a matter on which schools differ: some take the birth to be real, others take it to be an appearance taken on by the Lord.
यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत
अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम् ॥ ४.७ ॥
Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata
Abhyutthanam adharmasya tadatmanam srijamy aham
MeaningWhenever, Arjuna, dharma declines and adharma rises, then I send myself forth.
NoteVerses 7 and 8 are among the most quoted in the Gita. In the Vaishnava tradition they are the textual basis for the belief that the Lord descends again and again. The Gita itself gives no list of descents and no count.
परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम्
धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय संभवामि युगे युगे ॥ ४.८ ॥
Paritranaya sadhunam vinashaya cha dushkritam
Dharmasamsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge
MeaningTo protect the good, to put an end to those who do wrong, and to set dharma on firm ground again, I come into being in age after age.
NoteThe words yuge yuge are usually read as age after age. Some commentators take them as in every yuga, and others as time after time.
जन्म कर्म च मे दिव्यमेवं यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः
त्यक्त्वा देहं पुनर्जन्म नैति मामेति सोऽर्जुन ॥ ४.९ ॥
Janma karma cha me divyam evam yo vetti tattvatah
Tyaktva deham punarjanma naiti mam eti so 'rjuna
MeaningWhoever truly knows my birth and my works in this divine way does not take birth again after leaving the body. That person comes to me, Arjuna.
वीतरागभयक्रोधा मन्मया मामुपाश्रिताः
बहवो ज्ञानतपसा पूता मद्भावमागताः ॥ ४.१० ॥
Vitaragabhayakrodha manmaya mam upashritah
Bahavo jnanatapasa puta madbhavam agatah
MeaningMany have become free of attachment, fear and anger, have been absorbed in me and have taken refuge in me. Purified by the fire of knowledge and austerity, they have come to my own state of being.
ये यथा मां प्रपद्यन्ते तांस्तथैव भजाम्यहम्
मम वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते मनुष्याः पार्थ सर्वशः ॥ ४.११ ॥
Ye yatha mam prapadyante tams tathaiva bhajamy aham
Mama vartmanuvartante manushyah partha sarvashah
MeaningIn whatever way people turn to me, I respond to them in that same way. Everywhere, Partha, people follow my path.
NoteThis is a statement of response, not of reward: the Lord meets each seeker in the way the seeker approaches. Many teachers read it as an assurance that every sincere path is heard.
काङ्क्षन्तः कर्मणां सिद्धिं यजन्त इह देवताः
क्षिप्रं हि मानुषे लोके सिद्धिर्भवति कर्मजा ॥ ४.१२ ॥
Kankshantah karmanam siddhim yajanta iha devatah
Kshipram hi manushe loke siddhir bhavati karmaja
MeaningThose who long for success in their actions worship the gods here, because in the human world success that comes from action arrives quickly.
चातुर्वर्ण्यं मया सृष्टं गुणकर्मविभागशः
तस्य कर्तारमपि मां विद्ध्यकर्तारमव्ययम् ॥ ४.१३ ॥
Chaturvarnyam maya srishtam gunakarmavibhagashah
Tasya kartaram api mam viddhy akartaram avyayam
MeaningThe fourfold order was made by me, divided according to qualities and kinds of work. Though I am its maker, know me as one who does not act and who does not change.
NoteThis is the verse on which the Gita's mention of the four varnas rests. It says the order is divided by guna (quality) and karma (work), and it does not mention birth. Later Indian society made the system hereditary, and commentators, reformers and scholars have argued about the verse for centuries. This page records what the verse says and does not take a side in the social debate.
न मां कर्माणि लिम्पन्ति न मे कर्मफले स्पृहा
इति मां योऽभिजानाति कर्मभिर्न स बध्यते ॥ ४.१४ ॥
Na mam karmani limpanti na me karmaphale spriha
Iti mam yo 'bhijanati karmabhir na sa badhyate
MeaningActions do not stain me, and I have no craving for their fruit. One who knows me in this way is not bound by actions either.
एवं ज्ञात्वा कृतं कर्म पूर्वैरपि मुमुक्षुभिः
कुरु कर्मैव तस्मात्त्वं पूर्वैः पूर्वतरं कृतम् ॥ ४.१५ ॥
Evam jnatva kritam karma purvair api mumukshubhih
Kuru karmaiva tasmat tvam purvaih purvataram kritam
MeaningKnowing this, even the people of old who longed for freedom acted. So you too should act, as those before you did in earlier times.
किं कर्म किमकर्मेति कवयोऽप्यत्र मोहिताः
तत्ते कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात् ॥ ४.१६ ॥
Kim karma kim akarmeti kavayo 'py atra mohitah
Tat te karma pravakshyami yaj jnatva mokshyase 'shubhat
MeaningWhat is action and what is inaction? Even the wise are confused about this. I will tell you what action is, and when you know it you will be freed from what is harmful.
NoteKrishna opens the question of what action really is. The next verses show that it is not only a matter of what one does, but of the state of mind behind it.
कर्मणो ह्यपि बोद्धव्यं बोद्धव्यं च विकर्मणः
अकर्मणश्च बोद्धव्यं गहना कर्मणो गतिः ॥ ४.१७ ॥
Karmano hy api boddhavyam boddhavyam cha vikarmanah
Akarmanash cha boddhavyam gahana karmano gatih
MeaningOne needs to understand action, and also wrong action, and also inaction. The way of action is hard to see into.
कर्मण्यकर्म यः पश्येदकर्मणि च कर्म यः
स बुद्धिमान्मनुष्येषु स युक्तः कृत्स्नकर्मकृत् ॥ ४.१८ ॥
Karmany akarma yah pashyed akarmani cha karma yah
Sa buddhiman manushyeshu sa yuktah kritsnakarmakrit
MeaningThe one who sees inaction within action and action within inaction is the wise one among people. That person is a yogi, and is doing all that needs to be done.
NoteA short, dense verse. Teachers read it in two ways: that the wise see the stillness of the self behind the busyness of action, and that a person can be outwardly still while inwardly busy. Both readings point to the same lesson, that the inner state decides what an outer act really is.
यस्य सर्वे समारम्भाः कामसंकल्पवर्जिताः
ज्ञानाग्निदग्धकर्माणं तमाहुः पण्डितं बुधाः ॥ ४.१९ ॥
Yasya sarve samarambhah kamasankalpavarjitah
Jnanagnidagdhakarmanam tam ahuh panditam budhah
MeaningA person whose every undertaking is free from craving and from the planning that comes out of craving, and whose actions have been burnt up in the fire of knowledge, is called wise by those who know.
त्यक्त्वा कर्मफलासङ्गं नित्यतृप्तो निराश्रयः
कर्मण्यभिप्रवृत्तोऽपि नैव किं चित्करोति सः ॥ ४.२० ॥
Tyaktva karmaphalasangam nityatripto nirashrayah
Karmany abhipravritto 'pi naiva kim chit karoti sah
MeaningHaving given up attachment to the results of action, always content, relying on nothing outside, that person does nothing at all even though fully engaged in action.
निराशीर्यतचित्तात्मा त्यक्तसर्वपरिग्रहः
शारीरं केवलं कर्म कुर्वन्नाप्नोति किल्बिषम् ॥ ४.२१ ॥
Nirashir yatachittatma tyaktasarvaparigrahah
Shariram kevalam karma kurvan napnoti kilbisham
MeaningWithout hope of reward, with mind and self under control and every possession given up, doing only the action the body needs, such a person incurs no fault.
यदृच्छालाभसंतुष्टो द्वंद्वातीतो विमत्सरः
समः सिद्धावसिद्धौ च कृत्वापि न निबध्यते ॥ ४.२२ ॥
Yadrichchhalabhasantushto dvandvatito vimatsarah
Samah siddhav asiddhau cha kritvapi na nibadhyate
MeaningContent with whatever comes without being sought, beyond the pairs of opposites, free from envy, the same in success and failure, such a person is not bound even when acting.
गतसङ्गस्य मुक्तस्य ज्ञानावस्थितचेतसः
यज्ञायाचरतः कर्म समग्रं प्रविलीयते ॥ ४.२३ ॥
Gatasangasya muktasya jnanavasthitachetasah
Yajnayacharatah karma samagram praviliyate
MeaningFor someone who has let go of attachment, who is free, whose mind is settled in knowledge and who acts only as a sacrifice, the whole of the action melts away.
ब्रह्मार्पणं ब्रह्महविर्ब्रह्माग्नौ ब्रह्मणा हुतम्
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना ॥ ४.२४ ॥
Brahmarpanam brahmahavir brahmagnau brahmana hutam
Brahmaiva tena gantavyam brahmakarmasamadhina
MeaningThe offering is Brahman. The oblation is Brahman. It is poured by Brahman into the fire that is Brahman. One who sees Brahman in the very act of offering reaches Brahman alone.
NoteThis verse is recited before meals in many homes and ashrams. It says that the offering, the fire, the one who offers and the act are all Brahman, so that the person who sees this in the act reaches Brahman. It is a statement about how to see, not about ritual detail.
दैवमेवापरे यज्ञं योगिनः पर्युपासते
ब्रह्माग्नावपरे यज्ञं यज्ञेनैवोपजुह्वति ॥ ४.२५ ॥
Daivam evapare yajnam yoginah paryupasate
Brahmagnav apare yajnam yajnenaivopajuhvati
MeaningSome yogis make an offering to the gods. Others offer sacrifice itself, through sacrifice, into the fire of Brahman.
श्रोत्रादीनीन्द्रियाण्यन्ये संयमाग्निषु जुह्वति
शब्दादीन्विषयानन्य इन्द्रियाग्निषु जुह्वति ॥ ४.२६ ॥
Shrotradinindriyany anye samyamagnishu juhvati
Shabdadin vishayan anya indriyagnishu juhvati
MeaningSome offer hearing and the other senses into the fires of self-restraint. Others offer sound and the other objects of the senses into the fires of the senses.
सर्वाणीन्द्रियकर्माणि प्राणकर्माणि चापरे
आत्मसंयमयोगाग्नौ जुह्वति ज्ञानदीपिते ॥ ४.२७ ॥
Sarvanindriyakarmani pranakarmani chapare
Atmasamyamayogagnau juhvati jnanadipite
MeaningOthers offer all the actions of the senses and the actions of the life-breath into the fire of the yoga of self-control, lit by knowledge.
द्रव्ययज्ञास्तपोयज्ञा योगयज्ञास्तथापरे
स्वाध्यायज्ञानयज्ञाश्च यतयः संशितव्रताः ॥ ४.२८ ॥
Dravyayajnas tapoyajna yogayajnas tathapare
Svadhyayajnanayajnash cha yatayah samshitavratah
MeaningSo there are sacrifices of wealth and goods, sacrifices of austerity, and sacrifices of yoga. There are others, ascetics of strict vows, whose sacrifice is study and knowledge.
NoteThe last few verses list ways that effort can be turned into an offering, from giving goods to study and breath practice. The point is not to rank them but to show that the principle of sacrifice can be lived in many kinds of life.
अपाने जुह्वति प्राणं प्राणेऽपानं तथापरे
प्राणापानगती रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणाः ॥ ४.२९ ॥
Apane juhvati pranam prane 'panam tathapare
Pranapanagati ruddhva pranayamaparayanah
MeaningOthers offer the in-breath into the out-breath and the out-breath into the in-breath, holding the course of both, and devote themselves to the control of breath.
अपरे नियताहाराः प्राणान्प्राणेषु जुह्वति
सर्वेऽप्येते यज्ञविदो यज्ञक्षपितकल्मषाः ॥ ४.३० ॥
Apare niyataharah pranan praneshu juhvati
Sarve 'py ete yajnavido yajnakshapitakalmashah
MeaningOthers, who keep their food measured, offer breaths into breaths. All of these understand sacrifice, and their faults are worn away by sacrifice.
यज्ञशिष्टामृतभुजो यान्ति ब्रह्म सनातनम्
नायं लोकोऽस्त्ययज्ञस्य कुतोऽन्यः कुरुसत्तम ॥ ४.३१ ॥
Yajnashishtamritabhujo yanti brahma sanatanam
Nayam loko 'sty ayajnasya kuto 'nyah kurusattama
MeaningThose who eat the nectar left over from sacrifice go to the eternal Brahman. For one who offers no sacrifice even this world is not secure, so how could another be, best of the Kurus?
एवं बहुविधा यज्ञा वितता ब्रह्मणो मुखे
कर्मजान्विद्धि तान्सर्वानेवं ज्ञात्वा विमोक्ष्यसे ॥ ४.३२ ॥
Evam bahuvidha yajna vitata brahmano mukhe
Karmajan viddhi tan sarvan evam jnatva vimokshyase
MeaningIn this way many kinds of sacrifice are laid out in the mouth of Brahman. Know that all of them are born of action. Knowing this, you will be freed.
श्रेयान्द्रव्यमयाद्यज्ञाज्ज्ञानयज्ञः परंतप
सर्वं कर्माखिलं पार्थ ज्ञाने परिसमाप्यते ॥ ४.३३ ॥
Shreyan dravyamayad yajnaj jnanayajnah parantapa
Sarvam karmakhilam partha jnane parisamapyate
MeaningA sacrifice of knowledge is better than a sacrifice made of material things, scorcher of foes. All action, without exception, comes to its completion in knowledge, Partha.
NoteThe verse does not dismiss ritual or giving. It says that knowledge is the fulfilment towards which they point.
तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया
उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ॥ ४.३४ ॥
Tad viddhi pranipatena pariprashnena sevaya
Upadekshyanti te jnanam jnaninas tattvadarshinah
MeaningLearn it by bowing in respect, by asking questions, and by service. The knowers who have seen the truth will teach you this knowledge.
NoteA teacher is to be approached with respect, with honest questions and with service. The verse describes the traditional way of learning in India. The word used for those who have seen the truth is tattvadarshin.
यज्ज्ञात्वा न पुनर्मोहमेवं यास्यसि पाण्डव
येन भूतान्यशेषेण द्रक्ष्यस्यात्मन्यथो मयि ॥ ४.३५ ॥
Yaj jnatva na punar moham evam yasyasi pandava
Yena bhutany asheshena drakshyasy atmany atho mayi
MeaningWhen you know it, Arjuna, you will not fall into this confusion again. Through it you will see all beings without exception in yourself, and then in me.
अपि चेदसि पापेभ्यः सर्वेभ्यः पापकृत्तमः
सर्वं ज्ञानप्लवेनैव वृजिनं संतरिष्यसि ॥ ४.३६ ॥
Api ched asi papebhyah sarvebhyah papakrittamah
Sarvam jnanaplavenaiva vrijinam santarishyasi
MeaningEven if you were the worst wrongdoer among all wrongdoers, you would cross over all wrong by the boat of knowledge alone.
NoteThe boat of knowledge is a vivid image: knowledge does not remove the past, but carries a person across it.
यथैधांसि समिद्धोऽग्निर्भस्मसात्कुरुतेऽर्जुन
ज्ञानाग्निः सर्वकर्माणि भस्मसात्कुरुते तथा ॥ ४.३७ ॥
Yathaidhamsi samiddho 'gnir bhasmasat kurute 'rjuna
Jnanagnih sarvakarmani bhasmasat kurute tatha
MeaningAs a blazing fire turns firewood to ash, Arjuna, so the fire of knowledge turns all actions to ash.
न हि ज्ञानेन सदृशं पवित्रमिह विद्यते
तत्स्वयं योगसंसिद्धः कालेनात्मनि विन्दति ॥ ४.३८ ॥
Na hi jnanena sadrisham pavitram iha vidyate
Tat svayam yogasamsiddhah kalenatmani vindati
MeaningThere is nothing in this world as purifying as knowledge. The one who is perfected in yoga finds it within the self in due time.
NoteKnowledge is called the greatest purifier, and it is found in the self in time, not handed over from outside. This is why verse 34 asks for a teacher and verse 38 says realisation comes from within.
श्रद्धावांल्लभते ज्ञानं तत्परः संयतेन्द्रियः
ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति ॥ ४.३९ ॥
Shraddhavaml labhate jnanam tatparah samyatendriyah
Jnanam labdhva param shantim achirenadhigachchhati
MeaningThe person who has faith, who is devoted to it and who has the senses under control gains knowledge. Having gained knowledge, such a person soon reaches supreme peace.
अज्ञश्चाश्रद्दधानश्च संशयात्मा विनश्यति
नायं लोकोऽस्ति न परो न सुखं संशयात्मनः ॥ ४.४० ॥
Ajnash chashraddadhanash cha samshayatma vinashyati
Nayam loko 'sti na paro na sukham samshayatmanah
MeaningThe person who is ignorant, who has no faith and who is full of doubt is lost. For one who doubts there is no happiness in this world, in the next, or anywhere.
NoteThe doubter described here is not an honest questioner. The word samshayatma means one whose whole being is made of doubt and who refuses every step. Honest questioning is praised in verse 34.
योगसंन्यस्तकर्माणं ज्ञानसंछिन्नसंशयम्
आत्मवन्तं न कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनंजय ॥ ४.४१ ॥
Yogasannyastakarmanam jnanasanchhinnasamshayam
Atmavantam na karmani nibadhnanti dhananjaya
MeaningActions do not bind the person who has given up action through yoga, whose doubts have been cut by knowledge, and who is established in the self, Dhananjaya.
तस्मादज्ञानसंभूतं हृत्स्थं ज्ञानासिनात्मनः
छित्त्वैनं संशयं योगमातिष्ठोत्तिष्ठ भारत ॥ ४.४२ ॥
Tasmad ajnanasambhutam hritstham jnanasinatmanah
Chhittvainam samshayam yogam atishthottishtha bharata
MeaningSo cut through this doubt in your heart, born of ignorance, with the sword of knowledge. Take your stand in yoga and rise up, Bharata.
NoteThe chapter closes as chapter 3 did, with a direct call to Arjuna to rise. Doubt is named as the thing to be cut, and yoga as the place to stand.
Chapter summary
Chapter 4 gives the Gita’s teaching a past and a purpose. The past is a line of teachers going back to the sun. The purpose is the restoring of dharma, which is the reason the Lord says he comes into the world. Arjuna’s question about it, in verse 4, is the only interruption in the chapter, and it gives the Gita some of its best known verses.
The centre of the chapter is the question of action. Krishna does not answer it by saying what to do. He says that the same outward act can bind one person and leave another free, and that what decides it is craving and the sense of being the only doer. The person who acts with no craving, who is content with what comes, and who sees the act as an offering is described as unbound. The long list of sacrifices in verses 25 to 30 shows how widely this idea is meant to apply, from giving goods to study and from breath practice to restraint of the senses.
The last third of the chapter turns to knowledge. It is called the best of sacrifices, the best purifier and the thing that cuts doubt. It is to be learned from a teacher with respect and honest questions, and it ripens in the one who practises yoga. The chapter ends as chapter 3 did, with a call to action: cut the doubt, stand in yoga, and rise. Chapter 5 takes up the question this raises, whether to renounce action or to act, and gives its answer.
Where the two source texts differ
We compared the critical edition text held at GRETIL with the Sanskrit Wikisource text, verse by verse. All 42 verses are present in both, and after setting aside differences only in spacing, in the way a nasal sound is written and in how words are joined, the two texts agree word for word in every verse. There is nothing to list for this chapter.
Source of the text on this page. The Sanskrit is the critical edition text of the Bhagavad Gita held at GRETIL, based on the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute edition of the Mahabharata, where this chapter is chapter 26 of the Bhishma Parva. It is in Roman script, and we converted it to Devanagari ourselves. We checked every verse against Sanskrit Wikisource. The transliteration is a simple guide to sound and the meanings are our own wording. See the Bhagavad Gita hub for the full note on sources.