Title: Yajna, Dana and Tapah Should Not be Given Up

18th Chapter: verse 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

3rd verse: “According to Samkhya philosophy, all actions should be given up. According to Mimamsa philosophy, performance of Yajna, dana and tapah should not be given up.”
According to Kapila and Samkhya philosophy, every action is mixed with some imperfection and, therefore, it should be given up. Mimamsa philosophy upholds the views of the vedas and says that Yajna, dana and tapah – activities which serve the good of others – should not be given up.

Yajna refers to any noble, unselfish deed that is done with a sense of sanctity and sacredness, for the good of others, and as an offering to God. Dana refers to any act of compassion, kindness and charity meant to help others. Tapah means austerity, activities that we do with the mind and senses focused on a single purpose.

The 4th verse is a response from Lord Krishna to a request that Arjuna makes in the 7th verse of the 2nd chapter. There Arjuna expresses his helplessness and asks Lord Krishna to tell him what he should do. He surrenders himself to the will of the Lord (prapannam).

If a glass is half full of water and we pour milk in it, it will only have 50% milk. However, if we empty the glass and then pour milk, it will have 100% milk. Similarly, when we empty our mind and surrender to God, the mind can then be filled with the pure milk of God’s grace.

Those who have completely surrendered to God or who have reached the highest spiritual enlightenment, they live in constant communion with God and do not have to worry about dos and don’ts. It is impossible for them to do anything wrong. They are like a pencil which does not assert its independence and only operates as a tool in the master’s hands.

Those who have not reached the highest level have to be reminded of moral values such as truthfulness, non-stealing, practicing unselfishness, and so on. According to Shankaracharya, whenever scriptures describe characteristics of an enlightened person, these characteristics constitute the road by which we should travel to reach the goal that the enlightened person has reached.

5th verse: “The three virtues of Yajna, dana and tapah should not be given up. These three virtues become natural to the enlightened and become the means to those aspiring to be enlightened.”

The panchamahayajna should be performed by everyone. These five yajnas are:

Brahma Yajna – We perform this yajna when we discuss great ideas and spread the noble idea of spiritual universalism. This is the way we pay back to ancient sages.

Pitri Yajna – We perform this yajna when we do rituals to preserve the sacred memory of our ancestors. When we are grateful to our ancestors, we will be able to transmit their values to the next generation. This is the way we pay back to our ancestors.

Deva yajna – We perform this yajna when we preserve the memory of divine beings (devas).

Bhuta yajna – We perform this yajna when we take care of other living beings (such as animals), nature and earth. We should look upon ourselves as guests of earth, not masters of earth. We should be kind and compassionate to other beings.

Nara Yajna - We perform this yajna when we show hospitality to fellow human beings.

The panchamahayajna should be practiced by everyone. They are natural to the enlightened. For others, it is a means to get enlightenment.

In the Vishnu Purana, there is a verse, which says: “Those who give up their own Swakarma and Swadharma, who do not take care of their parents and elders, who are cruel to other beings, who treat ancient tradition with a sense of indifference, who break the principles of panchamahayajna, such people are fools as their prayers won’t be taken seriously by God.”

6th verse: “Yajna, dana and tapah should be performed giving up our attachment to the results and our selfish desire to enjoy the results of the work.”

Those who cannot practice total detachment, they should start by performing these activities with attachment. Slowly, they will evolve to naturally be good human beings and will be able to perform these activities without selfish motives.

4th and 7th verse: “4th verse: Relinquishment is of three types – sattvik, rajasik and tamasik.” The 7th verse explains tamasik relinquishment. “Those who imagine that they can live in peace and meditative mood by running away from their duties and obligations, they are deluded. Their relinquishment is tamasik.”

We can never run away from our core duties and responsibilities. They will follow us. Even if we are physically lazy, the mind will not stay inactive. In fact, people may feel more tired sitting quiet. The best way is to change our perspective towards work, as a sattvik person does. Then work won’t bother us.