It is indeed impossible for an embodied being to completely abandon all activities. But he who abandons the fruits of his actions is called a true abandoner. Because embodied beings cannot completely abandon actions. Therefore, he who abandons the fruits of action is called a true abandoner. Do not have attachment to performing actions, and do not have aversion to abandoning them. What is the need to get into all such trouble? Why not completely abandon actions altogether? To dispel that doubt, Bhagwan shows in this shloka: "na hi dehabhṛtā śakyaṁ tyaktuṁ karmāṇyaśeṣataḥ" Here, those who are tyagis should memorize these three shlokas thoroughly. Which ones? The first two and this one. For one who wants to become a true tyagi. For one who wants to be a false tyagi. Yesterday, I heard a nice video. How to identify fake people. Meaning, fake tyagis. How to identify fake tyagis. To identify dummy tyagis. And if one wants to become true, then one should act according to this. "Na hi dehabhṛtā"—here, the term "dehabhṛtā" is to be understood as referring only to ordinary human beings who are attached to the body, meaning those who identify themselves with the body. In reality, it is not like that. Any embodied being, whether true or false, cannot completely abandon actions. "dehabhṛtā śakyaṁ tyaktuṁ karmāṇyaśeṣataḥ." To completely abandon actions is not possible even for a liberated soul, nor is it possible for one attached to the body. Here, the term "dehabhṛtā" is to be understood as referring only to ordinary human beings who are attached to the body, meaning those who identify themselves with the body. But they are to be targeted because they are the ones who need to practice abandonment; those who are already liberated do not have much need for it. This person needs to practice abandonment. Gunatit great souls are also embodied beings, and they too continue to perform actions through the body. However, because they do not identify with the body, meaning they lack body-consciousness, they have no connection with those actions. Despite performing those actions, they do not become the doers. But even if one is liberated, one cannot remain without action, can they? Bhagwan has stated that such is the law of this realm of Prakriti. "Na hi dehabhṛtā śakyaṁ tyaktuṁ karmāṇyaśeṣataḥ." Whoever comes into this realm of Prakriti, this law applies to them. Whether they are liberated or ignorant, it applies to all of them. So, for one who wants to be a tyagi, what should they do to become a tyagi? Bhagwan has explained that in the second line. "Yastu karma karma Action. Deed. Any thought, word, or deed that will sooner or later reap its consequences. Karmas of a person are linked to their rewards (cause and effect). Bhagvãn is the giver of the rewards of the karmas; good deeds reap pleasant rewards, and bad deeds reap painful fruits. Karmas remain with a jeev until it has received its rewards. Tap to open in glossary → For one who wants to become a real tyagi, a true one in the eyes of Bhagwan. The world knows nothing, so if one wants to deceive the world, one creates a lot of commotion. And deceive everyone, right? But Bhagwan is not one who can be deceived. So, if we want our abandonment to be recognized by Bhagwan, then He has spoken these three shlokas. Those three are worth memorizing. And then they are worth putting into practice. Not for the sake of criticizing someone else. Here, the term "dehabhṛtā" is to be understood as referring only to ordinary human beings who are attached to the body, meaning those who identify themselves with the body. Action is its food, isn't that what was said over there? In that other shloka, in the second chapter, it is mentioned, right? "Na hi kaścit kṣaṇam api jātu tiṣṭhaty akarma-kṛt." "Yogo bhavati duḥkha-hā." So, "Yuktāhāra-vihārasya yukta-ceṣṭasya karmasu." "Yukta-svapnāvabodhasya yogo bhavati duḥkha-hā." Meaning, "yukta-ceṣṭasya karmasu." Appropriate effort is also Necessary. Necessary. That is one's livelihood. Without it, one cannot survive. The very constitution of the body is such that it must do something or other. Gunatit great souls are also embodied beings, and they too continue to perform actions through the body. However, because they do not identify with the body, meaning they lack body-consciousness, they have no connection with those actions. Despite performing those actions, they do not become the doers. By identifying with the body, it is impossible for humans to completely abandon action. The body belongs to Prakriti, and Prakriti remains constantly active. Then, how can one who considers the body as oneself and identifies with it remain free from action? Perhaps a person may give up yajna, charity, penance, pilgrimage, or good deeds, but how can they give up essential bodily activities like eating, drinking, coming, going, sleeping, waking, etc.? Another point is that abandoning the connection to action from within is what truly constitutes the abandonment of action. Merely giving up actions externally does not sever the connection. To abandon the connection to action from within means to abandon the connection to its fruits. And the connection to its fruits also means abandoning the connection to worldly fruits. When one abandons the connection to fruits that cause birth and death, then the connection to action is said to be severed. Actions performed with body-consciousness all cause birth and death. Therefore, it is only when one abandons the connection to the body that the connection to action is severed. But Bhagwan has approached it from above: "Yastu karma karma Action. Deed. Any thought, word, or deed that will sooner or later reap its consequences. Karmas of a person are linked to their rewards (cause and effect). Bhagvãn is the giver of the rewards of the karmas; good deeds reap pleasant rewards, and bad deeds reap painful fruits. Karmas remain with a jeev until it has received its rewards. Tap to open in glossary → Another point is that abandoning the connection to action from within is what truly constitutes the abandonment of action. Merely giving up actions externally does not sever the connection. If someone sits in samadhi, at that time the connection to external activities is severed. However, samadhi itself is an activity, an action. That is why one enters into it and emerges, meaning comes out of it. No embodied human being can completely sever the connection to actions in their very form. "Na hi kaścit kṣaṇam api jātu tiṣṭhaty akarma-kṛt, kāryate hy avaśaḥ karma karma Action. Deed. Any thought, word, or deed that will sooner or later reap its consequences. Karmas of a person are linked to their rewards (cause and effect). Bhagvãn is the giver of the rewards of the karmas; good deeds reap pleasant rewards, and bad deeds reap painful fruits. Karmas remain with a jeev until it has received its rewards. Tap to open in glossary → is precisely why it is called Prakriti. As long as the Purusha continues to identify with the body, which is the product of Prakriti, he can never completely abandon actions. Because of the sense of 'I' and 'mine' in the body, a person considers every activity performed by the body as their own. Therefore, they can never, under any circumstances, remain free from action. Another point is that only the Purusha has established a connection with Prakriti. Prakriti has not established a connection with the Purusha. Objects are not clinging to us. Action is not clinging to us. If we leave that action, does that action remember us and say, "Why hasn't Swami come yet?" "I am lying here." Swami is the one who remembers it. So, another point is that only the Purusha has established a connection with Prakriti. Prakriti has not established a connection with the Purusha. Where discrimination exists, the Purusha, ignoring that discrimination, has assumed a positive relationship with Prakriti. In other words, he has accepted the connection as real. It is only by accepting the connection as real that bondage has occurred. That belief is of two kinds: considering oneself as the body, and considering the body as one's own. Considering oneself as the body leads to 'I-ness' (ahanta), and considering the body as one's own leads to 'my-ness' (mamata). The intense consolidation of this 'I-ness' and 'my-ness' is what constitutes body-consciousness. Humans with such body-consciousness can never completely abandon actions. Look at how everyone has had to sit at home lately, yet they have become restless. Opening the doors, everyone is peeking out. They cannot sit still; they cannot give up action. Some actions are fine, but they cannot give up all these worldly activities. And if they were to worship God, that would be fine, but they cannot do that either. So, this has become so deeply ingrained, that abandoning it is very difficult. Therefore, Bhagwan has also made the path easy, saying there is no need to abandon it. You may do even more of it. But "Yastu karma karma Action. Deed. Any thought, word, or deed that will sooner or later reap its consequences. Karmas of a person are linked to their rewards (cause and effect). Bhagvãn is the giver of the rewards of the karmas; good deeds reap pleasant rewards, and bad deeds reap painful fruits. Karmas remain with a jeev until it has received its rewards. Tap to open in glossary → And if possible, learn to offer the fruits to Bhagwan. That is the best of all. To offer means to act for His sake. To do something for Him, for His benefit. Then, one is quickly freed from action. "Yastu karma karma Action. Deed. Any thought, word, or deed that will sooner or later reap its consequences. Karmas of a person are linked to their rewards (cause and effect). Bhagvãn is the giver of the rewards of the karmas; good deeds reap pleasant rewards, and bad deeds reap painful fruits. Karmas remain with a jeev until it has received its rewards. Tap to open in glossary → Here, the purpose of using the particle 'tu' (but) is to show that, compared to ordinary worldly men, the person who abandons the fruits of action is superior and distinct. And since it cannot be achieved quickly, 'tu' is written. "Yastu"— only a rare one can abandon the fruits of action. Many can abandon action itself. But only a rare one can abandon the fruits of action. Here, the purpose of using the particle 'tu' (but) is to show that, compared to ordinary worldly men, the person who abandons the fruits of action is superior and distinct. AI translation of the Gujarati transcript above, produced in the same pass that transcribed the audio, one English segment per Gujarati segment. Devotional and technical terms with no precise English equivalent (kirtan, satsang, vasana, samskara, and similar) are kept as their plain transliteration rather than force-translated. Not human-proofread., AI-translated, unverified · Source details