Bhagavad Gita 2.48

[Paramananda das]

 

yoga-sthah kuru karmani sangam tyaktva  dhananjaya siddhy-asiddhyoh samo bhutva samatvam yoga  ucyate

SYNONYMS

yoga-sthah--steadfast in yoga; kuru--perform; karmani--your duties; sangam--attachment; tyaktva--having abandoned; dhananjaya--O Dhananjaya; siddhi-asiddhyoh--success and failure; samah--the same; bhutva--having become; samatvam--evenness  of mind; yogah--yoga; ucyate--is called.

TRANSLATION

Be steadfast in yoga, O  Arjuna. Perform your duty and abandon all attachment to success or failure. Such  evenness of mind is called yoga.

PURPORT

Krsna tells Arjuna that he should act in yoga. And what is that yoga? Yoga means to concentrate the  mind upon the Supreme by controlling the ever-disturbing senses. And who is the  Supreme? The Supreme is the Lord. And because He Himself is telling Arjuna to  fight, Arjuna has nothing to do with the results of the fight. Gain or victory  are Krsna's concern; Arjuna is simply advised to act according to the dictation  of Krsna. The following of Krsna's dictation is real yoga, and this is  practiced in the process called Krsna consciousness. By Krsna consciousness only  can one give up the sense of proprietorship. One has to become the servant of  Krsna, or the servant of the servant of Krsna. That is the right way to  discharge duty in Krsna consciousness, which alone can help one to act in yoga. Arjuna is a ksatriya, and as such he is participating in the varnasrama-dharma  institution. It is said in the Visnu Purana that in the varnasrama-dharma, the whole aim is to satisfy Visnu. No one should  satisfy himself, as is the rule in the material world, but one should satisfy  Krsna. So, unless one satisfies Krsna, one cannot correctly observe the  principles of varnasrama-dharma. Indirectly, Arjuna was advised to act as  Krsna told him.

Commentary by Sri Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakur

With this verse, Krishna starts teaching the subject of niskama karma. Acting in this way, seeing victory and defeat as equal, O Arjuna, you should perform your duty of fighting. This performance of niskama karma yoga transforms into jnana yoga. Jnana yoga should be understood from the previous and latter portions of the work.

Rudra Vaisnava Sampradaya: Visnuswami Sridhara Swami's Commentary The fundamental question which might be raised is what then is factually to  be done? This is now being answered in this verse. Established in the science of yoga perform all activities. Yoga is the science of the individual  consciousness attaining communion with the Ultimate Consciousness. Being  established by this yoga perform actions relinquishing attachment,  motivation for rewards and depend solely upon the mercy of the Supreme Lord in  all one's activities. Totally unconcerned about success or failure, attainment  or non-attainment resultant surrender in righteousness all actions as an  offering unto the Supreme Lord. This is the eternal path called yoga by  the wise as it consists of fixed concentration of the mind.

Brahma Vaisnava Sampradaya: Madhvacarya Madhvacarya's Commentary The previous verse 47 is further clarified here. Yoga, equanimity is the  methodology encouraged. Relinquishing desire and attachment to the rewards of  actions while steadfastly remaining equipoised in either success or failure.  This verily is what is meant by equanimity. Now begins the summation. The meaning of the word sangam is attachment. Attachment to what? The rewards  of one's fruitive actions.

Sri Vaisnava Sampradaya: Ramanuja Ramanuja's Commentary Ramanuja. Bhagavad-Gita: chapter 2, verse 49 Actions performed with fruitive motivations are far inferior to actions  performed as a matter of duty. The mind of those whose actions are performed as  a matter of duty are not disturbed or unbalanced by delusions of rewards gained  or lost. The activities performed in spiritual intelligence removes all  suffering in the world and leads to liberation from the material existence.  Contrarily activities performed for the acquisition of rewards assuredly results  in suffering and affliction in the material existence. Phala-hetavah are  those who sole motivation is dictated be the prospects of reward. It should be  understood that such living entities are krpanah or pitiable due to the  fact but acting in this way they are imprisoned in the material existence unable  to attain their spiritual nature.

Kumara Vaisnava Sampradaya: Nimbaditya Kesava Kasmiri's Commentary What should one do? Lord Krishna states here to remain balanced and  equipoised. Discard the mentality of being attached. Be balanced in either  victory or defeat and perform your duties. Karmani refers to duties the plural  usage of duties indicates various obligatory and occasional duties; but the  optional duty is not to be included among these as they are not required.  Otherwise there would be contradiction between the former and the latter  statements. Yoga is explained by Lord Krishna Himself as being in the state of  equanimity