Verses 3–8 have hinted at niṣkāma-karma, work with both knowledge and detachment. Niṣkāma-
karma, in other words, combines karma and jñāna. Niṣkāma-karma allows a soul to be active, but in
a detached way, so that he is protected from material entanglement. Higher still, as stated in text 9,
is when one’s knowledge increases to include knowledge of Viṣṇu, and the detached activities one
then performs are offered to Him with devotion. Niṣkāma-karma is meant to lead to bhakti.
The question arises: “What if a person is overly attached to material life and cannot perform ni-
ṣkāma-karma-yoga?” To explain this, Kṛṣṇa now describes the yoga ladder, beginning with the low-
est rung and gradually moving higher. The next seven verses (10–16) describe the progressive
stages of the yoga ladder from karma-kāṇḥa to karma-yoga.
Every soul in the material world attempts (either subtly or grossly) to position himself—not Kṛṣṇa—
as the enjoyer and controller. This is true regardless of the body the soul inhabits. The striving of
ignorant animals for pleasure, according to their limited capacity, is the same as that of spiritually
undeveloped humans, who, in their attempt to taste sensual pleasure, act in ignorance.
The Vedas and their supplements contain 100,000 lakhs of verses (one lakh equals 100,000); of
these, a great majority discuss fruitive activities, and only a small percentage discuss jñāna-kāṇḥa,
which leads the living entity toward transcendental knowledge and ultimately to an understanding
of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Vedic culture provides a system by which the materi-
Bhagavad Gita Notes
ally attached person can satisfy his material desires yet gradually become purified. Therefore such a
high percentage of Vedic information centers on karma-kāṇḥa, the performance of sacrifices to
reach higher planets and to satisfy superior beings, the demigods.
To become situated under the protection of such a system, one must agree to regulate his enjoy-
ment by the descending authority of Vedic formulas. One following that system does not act sim-
ply as he desires. His mood of subservience to God’s order in the form of the Vedas—even though
his purpose is to attain sense pleasures—is purifying, for he is following Kṛṣṇa’s system. By follow-
ing this Vedic system of sacrifice, one also implicitly accepts the principle that he is not independ-
ent; rather, his enjoyment depends upon the satisfaction of higher authorities. Śrīla Prabhupāda
confirms this in his purport to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.7.32: “Sacrifices recommended in the Vedic
literature for satisfaction of the demigods are a sort of inducement to the sacrificers to realize the
existence of higher authorities.” Such followers of the Vedas are called karma-kāṇḥīs.
Gradually, by following the Vedic system, one may accept an eternal, transcendental objective to
replace his temporary, fruitive goals. With that acceptance, one abandons the designation of
karma-kāṇḥī and becomes a karma-yogī. By properly performing his appropriate duties, the karma-
yogī will gradually move from sakāma-karma-yoga (attached work) to niṣkāma-karma-yoga (de-
tached work on the platform of jñāna, knowledge). He can then follow the yoga ladder upward
toward liberation, Paramātmā realization and finally devotional service to Kṛṣṇa. His association and
desires will dictate how far he actually climbs on his step-by-step ascension of the yoga ladder. The
Bhagavad-gītā describes this gradual ascension in Chapters Three through Six.
In addition to the step-by-step process, Kṛṣṇa explains what takes place when, either from the be-
ginning of one’s practices or on any rung of the ladder, one attains the association of a devotee and
comes to accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead and oneself as Kṛṣṇa’s servant.
Śrīla Prabhupāda describes this in relationship to Mahārāja Parīkṣīt’s meeting with Śukadeva Gos-
vāmī, in his purport to Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 2.4.3–4:
The three activities of religion, economic development and sense gratification are generally attrac-
tive for conditioned souls struggling for existence in the material world. Such regulated activities
prescribed in the Vedas are called the karma-kāṇḥīya conception of life, and householders are gen-
erally recommended to follow the rules just to enjoy material prosperity both in this life and in the
next. Most people are attracted by such activities. As a great emperor of the world, Mahārāja
Parīkṣit had to observe such regulations of the Vedic karma-kāṇḥīya section, but by his slight asso-
ciation with Śukadeva Gosvāmī he could perfectly understand that Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Per-
sonality of Godhead (Vāsudeva), for whom he had a natural love since his birth, is everything, and
thus he fixed his mind firmly upon Him, renouncing all modes of Vedic karma-kāṇḥīya activities.
This perfectional stage is attained by a jñānī after many, many births. The jñānīs, or the empiric phi-
losophers endeavoring for liberation, are thousands of times better than the fruitive workers, and
out of hundreds of thousands of such jñānīs one is liberated factually. And out of hundreds of thou-
sands of such liberated persons, even one person is rarely found who can firmly fix his mind unto
the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
As soon as a person accepts his position as a servant of Kṛṣṇa, though he may be practicing either
sakāma-karma-yoga or niṣkāma-karma-yoga, he is no longer on the same step-by-step path as
other practitioners. Although he may not be fully realized and may still have material attachments,
nevertheless, he is more fortunate because he has acknowledged the ultimate goal and will, by
Bhagavad Gita Notes
steady and appropriate practice, gradually advance in a way that appears parallel to other practitio-
ners but in fact is not.
A devotee who practices sakāma-karma-yoga, for example, will gradually have his material attach-
ments loosened by his performance of appropriate practices. This is also true of the nondevotee
sakāma-karma-yogī. The devotee sakāma-karma-yogī, however, is far superior because he has al-
ready begun to aspire for the highest goal. The nondevotee sakāma-karma-yogī is on the transcen-
dental path but may never reach an understanding of the highest goal. Therefore he may never
reach the highest rung of the yoga ladder.
Additionally, when one proceeds in a step-by-step fashion, his advancement is limited by his own
capabilities, but one who sets Kṛṣṇa’s service as his goal attains the mercy of Kṛṣṇa and the Vai-
ṣṇavas. They act as his supports throughout his spiritual journey. The nondevotee faces these two
difficulties: He may never understand that the highest rung of the yoga ladder is to attain Kṛṣṇa’s
service, and he is limited by his own detachment, purity and power to advance. He does not gain
the assistance of Kṛṣṇa’s descending mercy.
Actually, as Śrīla Prabhupāda explains in his purport to Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 19.149,
only a devotee can become niṣkāma, desireless:
If one understands Kṛṣṇa, he immediately becomes desireless (niṣkāma) because a kṛṣṇa-bhakta
knows that his friend and protector in all respects is Kṛṣṇa, who is able to do anything for His devo-
tee. Kṛṣṇa says, kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaù praṇaśyati: “O son of Kuntī, declare it boldly
that My devotee never perishes.” Since Kṛṣṇa gives this assurance, the devotee lives in Kṛṣṇa and
has no desire for personal benefit. The background for the devotee is the all-good Himself. Why
should the devotee aspire for something good for himself? His only business is to please the Su-
preme by rendering service as much as possible. A kṛṣṇa-bhakta has no desire for his own personal
benefit. He is completely protected by the Supreme. Avaśya rakṣibe kṛṣṇa viśvāsa pālana. Bhaktivi-
noda Ṭhākura says that he is desireless because Kṛṣṇa will give him protection in all circumstances.
It is not that he expects any assistance from Kṛṣṇa; he simply depends on Kṛṣṇa just as a child de-
pends on his parents. The child does not know how to expect service from his parents, but he is
always protected nevertheless. This is called niṣkāma (desirelessness).
Although karmīs, jñānīs and yogīs fulfill their desires by performing various activities, they are never
satisfied. A karmī may work very hard to acquire a million dollars, but as soon as he gets a million
dollars he desires another million. For the karmīs, there is no end of desire. The more the karmī
gets, the more he desires. The jñānīs cannot be desireless because their intelligence is unsound.
They want to merge into the Brahman effulgence, but even though they may be raised to that plat-
form, they cannot be satisfied there. There are many jñānīs or sannyāsīs who give up the world as
false, but after taking sannyāsa they return to the world to engage in politics or philanthropy or to
open schools and hospitals. This means that they could not attain the real Brahman (brahma sat-
yam). They have to come down to the material platform to engage in philanthropic activity. Thus
they again cultivate desires, and when these desires are exhausted, they desire something different.
Therefore the jñānī cannot be niṣkāma, desireless. Nor can the yogīs be desireless, for they desire
yogic perfections in order to exhibit some magical feats and gain popularity. People gather around
these yogīs, and the yogīs desire more and more adulation. Because they misuse their mystic
power, they fall down again onto the material platform. It is not possible for them to become ni-
ṣkāma, desireless.
Bhagavad Gita Notes
The conclusion is that only the devotees who are simply satisfied in serving the Lord can actually
become desireless. Therefore it is written: kṛṣṇa-bhakta niṣkāma. Since the kṛṣṇa-bhakta, the devo-
tee of Kṛṣṇa, is satisfied with Kṛṣṇa, there is no possibility of falldown.
Thus by studying Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, no one can become bewildered and
mistake a rung on the yoga ladder as the goal. Śrīla Prabhupāda mercifully reveals Kṛṣṇa’s ultimate
desire for the conditioned soul—sarva-dharmān parityajya: that he abandon all forms of religion and
surrender to Him. Why should we remain incomplete, fixed at one level of the elaborate Vedic sys-
tem, when we can achieve the system’s full purpose by the simple, easy step of surrender to
Kṛṣṇa? By writing Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, Śrīla Prabhupāda clearly proved that the Lord’s devotee is
even more merciful than the Lord.