How are the 6 components of action in Gita 18.18 reduced to 3 in Gita 18.19?

Transcript

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Question from Govindji Prabhu. In Gita 16, 18.18 Krishna refers to six elements and he reduces these elements to three in the 19th verse. So how exactly are the six reduced to three and why? Answer the 18.18 states यानं येयं परिज्ञाता त्रिविधा कर्म चोदन कर्णं कर्म कर्तेति त्रिविधा कर्म संग्रह So it talks about three elements within the process of acquiring knowledge and three elements in the process of implementing action.
Now the whole 18th chapter is talking about how we should act in a way which will keep us free from karmic bondage and for that purpose it helps us to analyze action within the three modes so that we will be able to choose our action in a way that it will not cause bondage. So how do we act in a proper way? So for that we analyze the components of action and each of the components can be situated in goodness then our action will automatically become in goodness. So when we act first we acquire knowledge and then we implement.
So in the process of acquiring knowledge there are three elements. यानं is the process or the act of acquiring knowledge. यानं गेयं is the object about which we acquire knowledge.
परिज्ञाता that is the person who is acquiring knowledge. So for example if I am working on a computer and at that time I find that the battery has become low. It’s almost getting discharged.
So what happens? परिज्ञाता I am the person. I am the knower who is operating the computer and then गेयं गेयं, the object to be known is the level of charge on the computer and then ज्यान is okay while I am working on the computer maybe some alert comes up over there on the computer or somehow I look down and I see oh it’s really discharging. So that means there is the object to be known, how much is the charge on the computer.
There is a person who will know it, गेयं and there is the process of, there is the act of acquiring that knowledge. That is by looking at it and recognizing it. Then what will I do? Then okay, I will take the power cord put it in a socket and I will turn on the switch.
Then the computer will start charging. So now in this process there is करनम् कर्म करते थी करनम् refers to senses. So in this case I have to use my hands to lift up the power socket and then insert it and then turn on the button.
करनम् कर्म So the action is what? The action is taking up the socket. So करनम् is the hand that is used and करता is the person. So now I can do this action in goodness, passion, ignorance.
Isn’t it? So that means how? Now in this case if I look at the charge in the computer that is not something which is in my control. So we have got the six elements now. Now the simple act of turning on the of inserting the computer in a inserting the power cord in the socket and turning it on.
This can be done in passion. Oh no! My computer is getting discharged. Where is the power? I just get agitated, run around and turn it on.
That will be in passion. As I notice it, I calmly turn it on. That will be in goodness.
And then, oh the power is getting discharged. I just, how will I even do work? And I just get frustrated. I just don’t think about charging it.
Somehow I am so paralyzed. Oh there is one more thing that is going wrong. So I don’t do anything.
That will be in ignorance. So now, this simple action can be done in goodness, passion, ignorance. So now, if you look at these six elements, if we want to act in goodness, we can change certain things by which we want to act in goodness.
So among these six elements, the parijnata and the karta, the knower and the doer are one and the same person. I am that person. That’s how the six elements get reduced to five.
Then after that, now jnanam jnana parijnata. Now jnana, the object to be known, that is what it is. I can’t change it.
Okay, the computer is getting discharged. That’s how it is. There is nothing intrinsically within it which is in passion, ignorance, goodness.
So, there may be certain activities in passion. There may be certain things in goodness, passion, ignorance. But with respect to my specific action, I can’t change those.
If I am working on a computer in a peaceful place, the environment will be in goodness. If I am working in a crowded place, it will be in passion. But that’s how it is.
So those are not in my control. We are just considering in terms of how we can bring things under control. So that we can act in an appropriate way.
So that the object to be known is not something which I can change very easily. That’s why that is also left aside. Because that’s not relevant with respect to changing.
Now jnana, the process of knowing, that is something which can be in goodness, passion, ignorance. A person who is in passion, a person maybe every half a minute dies looking here and there. Can’t focus on anything.
Negruro is a person who is trying to work on the computer, going to sleep. The computer gets discharged, doesn’t trickle eyes on me. So the jnana can be in goodness, passion, ignorance.
That means the act of acquiring knowledge that can be done. Okay, I am working and while working I have a habit. While I am working on one thing, I also regularly keep myself aware of other things.
So when I am working on the computer, reading something or writing something, then I calmly while looking around, I glance. Okay, that will be in goodness. So then that is one element.
The jnana is not changeable. That’s why these two are removed. So now six have become reduced to four.
Now we look at karanam karma karteti. So karanam are the senses. So now my hands are what they are.
Okay, the way I handle my hand, that may be different. But largely, I cannot change my hands. I cannot change my senses so much.
So they are whatever they are. So if I want to act in goodness, I can’t suddenly expect to change my senses. If a person is if there is a creature called snail which moves very slowly and there is a creature called cheetah which moves very fast.
Now their senses are different. Now you cannot change those senses. A snail cannot become like a cheetah.
So the senses are not relevant with respect to our discussion over here. Then what remains is karma and karta. So karma means when I want to pick up the power cord and put it in socket, I might just pick it up, throw it, push it forcefully, bang the button.
I may do it in that particular action and passion. And apart from doing that particular action and passion, I might myself be a passionate person or I might be a sattvic person or I might be a tamasic person. So karma and karta in that sense are different.
Sometimes the person overall might be in goodness but in some situation that person becomes so irritated and agitated that person acts in passion. Or sometimes the person overall might be in passion but might sometimes act in ignorance. So that’s how jnanam, karma and karta.
These six elements in the analysis of action are reduced to three so that by analyzing them we can come to a proper understanding of how we should act in our lives so that we can act in goodness properly and not in the lower modes.