Gita Chapter Five

Chapter Five explained the concepts of action with detachment and renunciation in actions. It emphasized that since an individual is forced to act under the influence of the Gunas and the circumstances of the situation, worrying about the future consequences and the desirability of such forced action was meaningless. The best approach would be to act with detachment to the consequences of forced actions even if they can be anticipated. This chapter explained how salvation is attained by the pursuance of the two paths of performing desire-free Action and of pursuing Renunciation of the ego and imbibing equanimity.
Verse 5.1 – 5.11
The path of renunciation of ego from action and the path of work in devotion are both good for liberation. Of the two, work in devotional service is superior to renunciation of activities. A person in renounced state neither hates nor desires the fruits of his activities and is fully liberated from all dualities and material bondage. Only the ignorant does not perceive the equivalence of karma-yoga of devotional service and the analytical knowledge of the material world (Sankhya Yoga). The truly learned knows that through proper practice of either of these paths, one can achieves the results of both. Unless one is engaged in the desire-free, ego-free devotional service, mere renunciation of activities cannot make one happy. The sages, purified by their devotional service activity achieve God without delay. By engaged in devotional actions without getting entangled and attached to the outcomes, a pure soul in full control of mind and senses, becomes dear to everyone, while loving everyone. Such a person in the divine consciousness and engaged in seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, moving about, sleeping and breathing, always knows within that the person is not the real doer or performers of these activities. While speaking, evacuating, receiving, opening or closing the eyes, the person is all the time aware that only the material senses are engaged with their objects but the person is unattached and detached from these activities. Such a person performs duty without attachment, surrendering the results unto the Supreme God and hence not affected by the actions just as the lotus leaf in water never gets wet by the water. The yogis, abandoning attachment, act with body, mind, intelligence, and even with the senses, only for the purpose of attaining Knowledge and Godhood that are beyond material existence and sensual enjoyment.
Verse 5.12- 5.22
The soul steadfast in activities in true spirit of devotion and sacrifice attains undistorted, impurity-free peace by submitting the results of all activities to God: the person who performs actions through senses attracted and driven by greed, lust and fear is not in union with the Divine and becomes entangled in the chain of pleasure and pain. Only the embodied living being in full control of his intellect, mind and senses, renounces ownership of actions and enjoys peace and bliss of divine existence while residing in the material body; such a person does not really perform work or cause work to be performed but witnesses work being performed continuously working. The embodied spirit, master dweller of the material body, does not create activities or induces actions or reactions or derive any fruits of action. All this is enacted by the Guna properties of material nature. This knowledge however is not available to the ignorant because the veil created by the Gunas of material nature. When the veil is removed one is enlightened with the knowledge that reveals everything, as the sun light up everything in the day. When one's intelligence, mind, faith and refuge are all fixed in the God, the knowledge reveals itself and the person gets liberated.
The humble sage to whom the knowledge reveals itself due to the removal of the veil of Maya created and sustained by the Gunas of material nature, envisions the equality of a learned and gentle person, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater. The mind that is established in equanimity or inherent sameness has succeeded in liberating itself from the bondage of the conditions of birth and death.
A person with such a mind with transcendental knowledge neither rejoices upon achieving something pleasant nor laments upon obtaining something unpleasant. Such a liberated person is not attracted to material sense pleasure or external objects but is always in trance, enjoying the pleasure within. The self-realized person enjoys unlimited happiness by concentrating on God.
Such an intelligent person does not take part in the sources of misery arising out of in transient sensual pleasure from the contact of the material senses and their objects.
Even if moments before death, one is able to overcome the urges of the material senses and eliminate the force of desire and anger, one becomes a yogi who realizes bliss. The person who has perfectly practiced Astang Yoga derives happiness from within, remains active within, rejoices within and is illumined within, Such a person is liberated in Godhood. One who is beyond duality and dilemmas, whose mind is engaged within, who is always busy working for the welfare of all sentient beings, and who is free from desire, ego and anger, achieves liberation in and merges with God. Such persons are free from anger and all material desires, remain in self-realized state. Detaching from all external sensual objects, keeping the eyes and vision concentrated between the two eyebrows, suspending the inward and outward breaths within the nostrils to keep the mind, senses and intellect under reins, the transcendentalist Astang Yogi becomes free from desire, fear and anger and certainly gets liberated from the pangs of worldly miseries and transient sensual pleasures. The sages know God as the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices and austerities, and worship God as the Creator of all that we find and do not find in this entire universe and see God as the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities.