Gita 04.23 – Sacrifice is not just an activity, but a mood that pervades all activity
gata-saṅgasya muktasya
jñānāvasthita-cetasaḥ
yajñāyācarataḥ karma
samagraṁ pravilīyate (Bg 4.23)
Word-for-word:
gata-saṅgasya — of one unattached to the modes of material nature; muktasya — of the liberated; jñāna-avasthita — situated in transcendence; cetasaḥ — whose wisdom; yajñāya — for the sake of Yajña (Kṛṣṇa); ācarataḥ — acting; karma — work; samagram — in total; pravilīyate — merges entirely.
Translation:
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.
Explanation:
gata-saṅgasya muktasya: One who is free from material attachments and liberated
jñānāvasthita-cetasaḥ: whose consciousness is firmly situated in knowledge
yajñāyācarataḥ karma: performing actions for the purpose of yajña (sacrifice)
samagraṁ pravilīyate: all such work merges into transcendence; the actions become fully spiritualized.
This principle will be further elaborated in the next verse, where the word ‘brahma’ is used six times to emphasize the point.
Let us focus on this verse (Bg 4.23) for now. This is a section on karma-yoga where Krishna repeatedly emphasizes to Arjuna how one can remain free from bondage even while performing work. Krishna analytically explains how this can be achieved.
Here, He speaks about the inner state of consciousness that enables a person to stay free from bondage — gata-saṅgasya muktasya — one who is free from attachments and thus liberated.
In this world, we are all in contact with material nature, and as a result, we become implicated and bound by it. Krishna explains this in Bhagavad-gītā 13.22, a verse often referred to as the bīja-vākya—the seed verse—of the final six chapters:
puruṣaḥ prakṛti-stho hi bhuṅkte prakṛti-jān guṇān kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo’sya sad-asad-yoni-janmasu
The living being (puruṣa) becomes situated within material nature (prakṛti) because of the desire to enjoy the products born of the three modes of nature. It is this association with the modes that causes contamination, and this contamination becomes the basis (kāraṇam) for one’s repeated births in favorable and unfavorable species of life (sad-asad-yoni-janmasu). Thus, it is contact with the modes through attachment that leads to bondage within material existence.
Krishna is explaining here: if one does not harbor the desire to enjoy the fruits of action, then one will not be bound.
How can one remain detached or stay on the liberated platform? By knowledge—jñānāvasthita-cetasaḥ. By understanding that “I am a spiritual being.” Although situated in a material body and living within the material world, through knowledge, one realizes, “I am distinct from this body; I am the soul.” With this understanding—that I am the soul—one moves forward and performs one’s duties.
Knowledge is not merely theoretical; it must be translated into action. Here, situation refers more to one’s internal conception—one is situated in knowledge. That inner situation of understanding is then expressed through action, specifically through action performed as an offering for the sake of sacrifice—yajñāyācarataḥ karma—one works with the purpose of yajña.
It is interesting that Krishna had already introduced the concept of yajña earlier, in Chapter 3, verse 9. There, He explained how one should work for the sake of yajña:
yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ tad-arthaṁ karma kaunteya mukta-saṅgaḥ samācara
Krishna emphasizes that by working for yajña, one remains free from bondage.
The phrase ‘yajñāyācarataḥ karma’ at one level could be understood to mean performing sacrifices. However, Krishna’s statement here is much broader and more inclusive. It does not merely imply performing the specific ritual of a yajña. Rather, it means to perform all one’s activities in the mood of sacrifice.
There is the act of sacrifice, where one sits in front of a yajña-kunda and lights the fire, which is important and is normally performed by brāhmaṇas. If kṣatriyas want to perform it, then brāhmaṇa priests do it on their behalf. However, the principle of sacrifice is not limited to the specific act of a fire sacrifice performed in a particular location. The principle of sacrifice is meant to pervade our whole life. All the activities that one performs—yajñāyācarataḥ karma—should be done in a spirit of sacrifice.
At this stage in the Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa has not yet specified to whom one should offer sacrifice, or rather, who is the object of sacrifice. That will be revealed later in the Bhagavad-gītā to be Kṛṣṇa Himself. The word ‘sacrifice’ actually comes from the same root as ‘sacralise’—to make sacred. Sacred refers to that which is holy. Sacralise means to make something sacred. And how can something be made sacred? By using it for a sacred purpose.
There are rituals that are meant to sanctify, and these are called sacraments. In this sense, the word ‘sacred’ has various related forms—sacred, sacrament, sacrifice. We also have the word ‘desecrate’—that is, when something holy is defiled, it is said to be desecrated.
When the mood of sacrifice pervades one’s activities, then the work completely merges into transcendence—samagraṁ pravilīyate. This means the work is no longer considered material. It is material work that produces material reactions. But when the work itself becomes spiritual, it will not produce any material reactions. Instead, it will produce a spiritual effect by purifying the person—the performer who offers the sacrifice—and by elevating their consciousness towards deeper realization.
Krishna will elaborate on this point towards the end of the section on sacrifice. This section on sacrifice begins from this verse. The general principle will be presented in verse 24. In verses 25 through 29, Krishna gives various examples of sacrifices. Then, in verses 30 to 33, He once again outlines the underlying principles that are to be understood and followed—those principles which operate in the performance of sacrifices.
By using the terminology and imagery of yajña, Krishna is raising Arjuna’s consciousness. Through this, Arjuna — and others like him, who are situated in material consciousness and tend to see their worldly activities as material and therefore karmically entangling — are guided to perceive their activities differently. Krishna is helping them understand that it is the mood of sacrifice that transforms actions from being binding to being liberating. Such actions are no longer binding but, on the contrary, become liberating. How this transformation takes place will be described in the next verse.
Thank you.
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