Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan

Bg 18.1

arjuna uvāca
sannyāsasya mahā-bāho
tattvam icchāmi veditum
tyāgasya ca hṛṣīkeśa
pṛthak keśi-niṣūdana

Synonyms: 

arjunaḥ uvāca — Arjuna said; sannyāsasya — of renunciation; mahā–bāho — O mighty-armed one; tattvam — the truth; icchāmi — I wish; veditum — to understand; tyāgasya — of renunciation; ca — also; hṛṣīkeśa — O master of the senses; pṛthak — differently; keśi–niṣūdana — O killer of the Keśī demon.

Translation: 

Arjuna said: O mighty-armed one, I wish to understand the purpose of renunciation [tyāga] and of the renounced order of life [sannyāsa], O killer of the Keśī demon, master of the senses.

sannyāsasya mahā-bāho
tattvam icchāmi veditum

I wanted to understand the truth of renunciation 

tyāgasya ca hṛṣīkeśa
pṛthak keśi-niṣūdana

Srila Prabhupada translated as purpose of renunciation and the renounced order of life.

In this verse three name of Lord is used which described as Lord’s capacity to destroy the demon of doubt. So the Lord is mahā-bāho, He is having very powerful arms, then He is keśi-niṣūdana, He is the killer of Kesi and hṛṣīkeśa, He is the lord of the senses. Senses are very formidable and the senses needs to be controlled. 

So what is the question and how it is related with what has been talked earlier

In 17th chapter Krishna recommended sacrifice according to scripture and if one is not doing sacrifice according to the scripture then gradually by chanting OM TAT SAT, the name of the Lord one can spiritualize the sacrifices. So there is no immediate connection with Krishna’s concluding verses in 17th chapter and 18th chapter first verse. Arjuna’s question is generic in the sense it is not related to what has happened earlier, but Arjuna wanted conceptual clarification on what is the ultimate goal of his action. 

In 10th chapter when Arjuna glorifies Supreme Lord Acharyas explained that time Arjuna’s illusion is gone, Param Brahma Param Dhama Pavitram Paramam Param…Here Arjuna understood the essential message of Gita and he himself is expressing that, but then the subsequent questions are as SB mentions Loka Hitam Nripa, for the benefit of other people, or the BG uses Loka Sangraha, for the maintenance of the world, how? By providing insight how a person can live in a proper way, as per scriptural guidance that is talked about in subsequent chapter based on questions asked by Arjuna 

So Arjuna is asking broad contexts that is known in Vedic context, but that is not understood holistically always, so here Arjuna is asking in terms of holistic understanding what is Tyaga and what is Sanyasa.

Arjuna’s essential question is should I fight should I not fight. So should I renounce in spirit or should I renounce indeed also, that is the question.

End of transcription.