4.7 Discipline of Action

31. The secret of sacrifice, as mentioned previously, is the understanding that it should be performed for the pleasure of God, and then the remnants can be taken as his prasād (grace). For example, devotees of the Lord partake of food after offering it to him. After cooking the food, they place it on the altar and pray to God to accept their offering. In their mind, they meditate on the sentiment that God is actually eating from the plate. At the end of the offering, the remnants on the plate are accepted as prasād, or the grace of God. Partaking of such nectar-like prasād leads to illumination, purification, and spiritual advancement.

In the same mood, devotees offer clothes to God and then wear them as his prasād. They install his deity in their house, and then live in it with the attitude that their home is the temple of God. When objects or activities are offered as sacrifice to God, then the remnants, or prasād, are a nectar-like blessing for the soul. The great devotee Uddhav told Shree Krishna:

"I will only eat, smell, wear, live in, and talk about objects that have first been offered to you. In this way, by accepting the remnants as your prasād, I will easily conquer Maya." Those who do not perform sacrifice remain entangled in the fruitive reactions of work and continue to experience the torments of Maya.

32. One of the beautiful features of the Vedas is that they recognize and cater to the wide variety of human natures. Different kinds of sacrifice have thus been described for different kinds of performers. The common thread running through them is that they are to be done with devotion, as an offering to God. With this understanding, one is not bewildered by the multifarious instructions in the Vedas, and by pursuing the particular yajña suitable to one's nature, one can be released from material bondage.

33. Shree Krishna now puts the previously described sacrifices in proper perspective. He tells Arjun that it is good to do physical acts of devotion, but not good enough. Ritualistic ceremonies, fasts, mantra chants, holy pilgrimages, are all fine, but if they are not performed with knowledge, they remain mere physical activities. Such mechanical activities are better than not doing anything at all, but they are not sufficient to purify the mind.

Many people chant God's name on rosary beads, sit in recitations of the scriptures, visit holy places, and perform worship ceremonies, with the belief that the physical act itself is sufficient for liberating them from material bondage. However, Saint Kabir rejects this idea very eloquently:

"O spiritual aspirant, you have been rotating the chanting beads for many ages, but the mischief of the mind has not ceased. Now put those beads down, and rotate the beads of the mind." Jagadguru Shree Kripaluji Maharaj says:

"The cause of bondage and liberation is the mind. Whatever form of devotion you do, engage your mind in meditating upon God."

Devotional sentiments are nourished by the cultivation of knowledge. For example, let us say that it is your birthday party, and people are coming and handing you gifts. Someone comes and gives you a ragged bag. You look at it disdainfully, thinking it is insignificant in comparison to the other wonderful gifts you have received. That person requests you to look inside the bag. You open it and find a stack of one hundred notes of $100 denomination. You immediately hug the bag to your chest, and say, "This is the best gift I have received." Knowledge of its contents developed love for the object. Similarly, cultivating knowledge of God and our relationship with him nurtures devotional sentiments. Hence, Shree Krishna explains to Arjun that sacrifices performed in knowledge are superior to the sacrifice of material things. He now explains the process of acquiring knowledge.

34. On hearing that sacrifice should be performed in knowledge, the natural question that follows is, how can we obtain spiritual knowledge? Shree Krishna gives the answer in this verse. He says: 1) Approach a spiritual master. 2) Inquire from him submissively. 3) Render service to him.

The Absolute Truth cannot be understood merely by our own contemplation. The Bhāgavatam states:

"The intellect of the soul is clouded by ignorance from endless lifetimes. Covered with nescience, the intellect cannot overcome its ignorance simply by its own effort. One needs to receive knowledge from a God-realized Saint who knows the Absolute Truth."

The Vedic scriptures advise us repeatedly on the importance of the Guru on the spiritual path.

"Serve the Guru with a pure mind, giving up doubts. He will then bring you great happiness by bestowing knowledge of the scriptures and discrimination." Jagadguru Shankaracharya stated: yāvat gururna kartavyo tāvanmuktirna labhyate "Until you surrender to a Guru you cannot be liberated from the material energy."

One of the most magnanimous graces of God is when he brings the soul in contact with a true Guru. But the process of transfer of spiritual knowledge from the teacher to the student is very different from that of material knowledge. Secular education does not require deep respect for the teacher. The transmission of knowledge can be purchased simply by paying the teacher's fees. However, spiritual edification is not imparted to the student by a mechanical teaching process, nor is it purchased for a price. It is revealed in the heart of the disciple by the Guru's grace, when the disciple develops humility, and the Guru is pleased with the service attitude of the disciple. That is why Prahlad Maharaj said:

"Until we bathe ourselves in the dust of the lotus feet of a Saint, we can never have an experience of the transcendental platform." Hence, in this verse Shree Krishna mentions the need for approaching a Guru with reverence, inquiring about the Truth from him with humility, and pleasing him by rendering service.