MEANING OF EACH CHAPTER OF THE GITA – CHAPTER 3 AND 4

Third Chapter

Every human being, learned or ignorant, even if he is an incarnation of God should perform his duty promptly without having a desire for its fruit. The reason is that the wheel of this Universe revolves only when everyone performs his duty. Man does not attain actionlessness, by abstaining from action, nor does he reach perfection, by mere renunciation of actions. At the time of creation, Brahma, the creator said to mankind, ‘by performing your duty, you should help and foster one another, thus by fostering one another, you will attain the highest good.’ He who does not follow the wheel, thus revolving, lives in vain.

Though there is no duty to be performed for God in His manifest human form, yet He performs His duty promptly, in the public interest, for the guidance of men i.e. He sets an example to them. The spiritually enlightened souls should also perform their duty promptly, in order to set an example for other persons. While performing his duty, without expecting its fruit, if a person even dies, then too he attains salvation.

Fourth Chapter

There are two methods to dissolve all actions and to be free from their bondage. They are 1) knowledge of truth about actions, and 2) attainment of knowledge. God creates the Universe, but He is not bound by actions. Because He is attached neither to the action, nor its fruit, nor He has the sense of doer-ship. The action of those who have no desires, and who have no attachment to their fruit, melt away. Such persons by performing actions being free from attachment to the action and their fruit, are not bound. Those who perform actions only to maintain their body, and remain equanimous in success and failure, are not bound. All the actions of those persons, who perform them in order to safeguard the tradition of the performance of duty, melt away. Thus by properly knowing the truth about actions, men become free from the bondage of actions.

Knowledge consists in the total detachment of the insentient (inert). This knowledge is superior to the sacrifices which are performed with materials. All actions melt away in this knowledge. Having acquired this knowledge, a man is never deluded. Even the most sinful of all sinners, crosses over all sins by this knowledge. As the blazing fires reduces the fuel to ashes, so does the fire of knowledge, reduce all actions to ashes.

‒ From the book in Hindi ‘Gita Darpan’ by Swami Ramsukhdasji Maharaj