Bhagavad Gita 3.26

[Paramananda das]

Chapter 3: Karma-yoga

Bg 3.26

TEXT 26

na buddhi-bhedam janayed
ajnanam karma-sanginam
josayet sarva-karmani
vidvan yuktah samacaran

SYNONYMS

na—do not; buddhi-bhedam—disrupt the intelligence; janayet—do; ajnanam—of the foolish; karma-sanginam—attached to fruitive work; josayet—dovetailed; sarva—all; karmani—work; vidvan—learned; yuktah—all engaged; samacaran—practicing.

TRANSLATION

Let not the wise disrupt the minds of the ignorant who are attached to fruitive action. They should not be encouraged to refrain from work, but to engage in work in the spirit of devotion.

PURPORT

Vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyah: that is the end of all Vedic rituals. All rituals, all performances of sacrifices, and everything that is put into the Vedas, including all directions for material activities, are meant for understanding Krsna, who is the ultimate goal of life. But because the conditioned souls do not know anything beyond sense gratification, they study the Vedas to that end. Through sense regulations, however, one is gradually elevated to Krsna consciousness. Therefore a realized soul in Krsna consciousness should not disturb others in their activities or understanding, but he should act by showing how the results of all work can be dedicated to the service of Krsna. The learned Krsna conscious person may act in such a way that the ignorant person working for sense gratification may learn how to act and how to behave. Although the ignorant man is not to be disturbed in his activities, still, a slightly developed Krsna conscious person may directly be engaged in the service of the Lord without waiting for other Vedic formulas. For this fortunate man there is no need to follow the Vedic rituals, because in direct Krsna consciousness one can have all the results simply by following the prescribed duties of a particular person.

Commentary by Sri Vishvanatha Chakravarthi Thakur of Gaudiya Sampradaya:

You should not disturb the minds of those attached to action; because their impure hearts by saying “This karma is despicable! Give up action and become successful like me by the practice of jnana.” Instead one should engage them in action (josayet) by saying “Perform action without desire and become successful.” Doing those actions, you set an example for others.

“But according  to  the  Bhagavatam,  this  is  contrary  to  the statement of the Lord:

svayam nihsreyasam vidvan na vakty ajnaya karma hi
na rati rogino ‘pathyam vanchato ‘pi bhisaktamah

A pure devotee who is fully accomplished in the science of devotional service will never instruct a foolish person to engage in fruitive activities for material enjoyment, not to speak of helping him in such activities. Such a devotee is like an experienced physician, who never encourages a patient to eat food injurious to his health, even if the patient desires it.” SB 6.9.50

True, but this is in relation to instructions given about bhakti. It is not contradictory to giving instructions about jnana. Jnana is-dependent on purity of the heart, and purity of the heart is dependent on action without desire. But bhakti is by nature very: strong, and is not dependent even on the purity of the heart. If it is possible for you to produce faith in bhakti, then you may disturb the minds of those attached to action, for those who have faith in bhakti have no obligation for performing karma. should be understood from such statements as the following:

tavat karmani kurvita na nirvidyeta yavata
mat-katha-sravanadau va sraddha yavan na jayate

One should continue to perform the Vedic ritualistic activitie until one actually becomes detached from material sense gratification and develops faith for hearing and chanting about Me. SB 11.20.9

dharman santyajya yah sarvan mam bhajet sa tu sattamah

Having taken complete shelter at My lotus feet, however, a saintly person ultimately renounces such ordinary religious duties and worships Me alone. He is thus considered to be the best among all living entities. SB 11.11.32

sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekaih saranarh vraja

Give up all dharmas and surrender to me alone. Gita 18.66

tyaktva sva-dharmam caranambujam harer
bhajann apakvo ‘tha patet tato yadi

If someone gives up his occupational duties and works in Krishna consciousness and then falls down on account of not completing his work, what loss is there on his part? And what can one gain if one performs his material activities perfectly? SB 1.5.17

Commentary by Sri Ramanuja of Sri Sampradaya:

3.26 Do not bewilder the minds of ignorant aspirants by saying that there is, besides Karma Yoga, another way to the vision of the self. They cannot practise Jnana Yoga on account of their incomplete knowledge of the self, and attachment to action. They are qualified for Karma Yoga because of their being fit only for activity on account of the subtle impressions of their beginningless Karma. What then follows from this? It is this: Even though one is qualified for Jnana Yoga because of the complete knowledge of the self, one should do work, holding the view as said previously, that Karma Yoga by itself without Jnana Yoga is an independent means for the vision of the self. He should thus generate love for all types of activity among those who do not know the complete truth. Sri Krsna declares (in the verses 27 to 30) the way in which the self is to be contemplated on as not being an agent as required by Karma Yoga, after demonstrating the difference between the enlightened and unenlightened among those practising Karma Yoga.

Commentary by Sri Sridhara Swami of Rudra Sampradaya:

Thus it has been stated by authoritative testimony that because the soul is neither subject to birth or death there is no need to lament. Now it is being stated that even if one erroneously believes that the eternal soul is perpetually born when the body is born and perpetually dies with the death of the body then and still there is no need for lamentation. Since both virtue and sin with their resultant reactions of birth and death are also attached to the soul perpetually there is still no need to lament.

Commentary by Sri Madhvacharya of Brahma Sampradaya:

Even though the immortal soul is eternal, because of its constant connection and disconnection with the physical body from time immemorial it believes it is experiencing birth and death.

Now begins the summation.

Thus exists this expansive samsara known as the endless cycle of birth and death in the material existence. Until and unless the living entity has attained liberation from the material existence, one is subject to the stringent laws of endless births and deaths in different physical bodies as ordained by the material nature and so are following natural order. Therefore by possessing even this small amount of knowledge there is no need to worry.

In the Shabda Nirnaya it is stated:

Eternal and permanent the immortal soul is known to be and also the immortal soul is eternally in accordance with the cosmic order.

Understanding in the knowledge that there is a cosmic order to existence one should not grieve.

Commentary by Sri Keshava Kashmiri of Kumara Sampradaya:

In this way after establishing the eternal reality of the souls immortality according to the authority of Vedic scripture, the Supreme Lord Krishna describes that it is not intelligent to lament about it, even if one accepts the hypothesis of the Digambaras who believe that the soul is the same size as the body and is born and experiences death along with the body. This is referred to by the particle atha meaning if however, indicating according to another view. Accepting even this other view that the soul is constantly being born and constantly dying there is still no reason to lament about it and the reason why Lord Krishna reveals in the next verse.