Continuing his description of how the wise act without being bound, Krishna states that they give up worldly desires, discipline their mind, step away from the possessive mentality and act solely to maintain their body (04.21). While working, they are content with whatever results come to them; they rise above duality and competitive mentality, and stay equipoised amid success and failure (04.22). Being free from selfish attachments, with their consciousness situated in knowledge, they act in a mood of selfless service — and their karma is completely dissolved (04.23). They see spiritual reality (brahman) in all their actions: the process of offering their work is brahman and the work itself is brahman. Indeed, it is brahman that is offered in the fire of sacrifice which too is brahman — those acting with such a vision attain brahman (04.24).

Illustrating how this vision can be applied to various activities (04.25-29), Krishna states that some perform sacrifices to worship the gods, whereas others see the ultimate spiritual reality as the fire into which they offer their sacrifices (04.25). Some offer their senses in the fire of self-restraint, thus giving up all sensory enjoyment; whereas others offer particular sense objects in the fire of their senses, thus regulating their enjoyment (04.26). Others, being illumined by knowledge, offer all their sensory activities and even their life-air in the fire of yogic practices for self-restraint (04.27). Others, committing themselves with resolute vows, offer wealth or austerity or meditation or knowledge through the study of scripture (04.28). Explaining how the process of pranayama (disciplining one’s breath) can be seen as a sacrifice, Krishna states that the incoming breath can be offered to the outgoing and the outgoing to the incoming, thus bringing both into a state of harmony. Others, by regulating their diet, offer breath into itself (04.29). All these seekers, knowing how sacrifice works and being cleansed of their impurities, relish the fruits of their sacrifices and attain brahman, the eternal spiritual destination (04.30).  In contrast, those who don’t perform sacrifices don’t get any good in this world, what to speak of the next (04.31). All these varieties of sacrifices are approved by the Vedas and they all are born from dutifulness — understanding them and learning to perform them dutifully, one can attain liberation (04.32). Concluding his explanation of sacrifice, Krishna highlights the importance of knowledge: sacrifice performed with knowledge is better than sacrifice of worldly things such as wealth because all sacrifices culminate in the manifestation of knowledge within the sacrificer (04.33).