Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4, Verse 42

Chapter 4 – Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

तस्मादज्ञानसम्भूतं हृत्स्थं ज्ञानासिनात्मनः ।
छित्त्वैनं संशयं योगमातिष्ठोत्तिष्ठ भारत ॥

Transliteration

tasmādajñānasambhūtaṃ hṛtsthaṃ jñānāsinātmanaḥ .
chittvainaṃ saṃśayaṃ yogamātiṣṭhottiṣṭha bhārata ॥

Meaning

Therefore, O Bharata, cut asunder with the sword of knowledge this doubt in your heart, born of ignorance; take your stand in yoga, and arise!

Word meanings

तस्मात् – therefore
अज्ञानसम्भूतम् – born of ignorance
हृत्स्थम् – lodged in the heart
ज्ञानासिना – with the sword of knowledge
आत्मनः – your own (or, concerning the Self)
छित्त्वा – having cut asunder
एनम् – this
संशयम् – doubt
योगम् – yoga (Karma Yoga)
आतिष्ठ – take refuge in, be established in
उत्तिष्ठ – arise, stand up
भारत – O descendant of Bharata (Arjuna)

Anvaya (word order)

तस्मात् (हे) भारत, अज्ञानसम्भूतं हृत्स्थम् आत्मनः एनं संशयं ज्ञानासिना छित्त्वा योगम् आतिष्ठ, उत्तिष्ठ ।

Explanation

This is the last verse of the fourth chapter, and in it the whole chapter's teaching turns into a stirring command. ‘Tasmat’ — therefore — gathers up all that has gone before: because knowledge is the supreme purifier, because it burns all actions to ashes, because the doubter perishes while the one free of doubt is not bound by action — therefore, Arjuna, it is now clear what you must do.

First Krishna diagnoses Arjuna's problem: ‘ajnana-sambhutam hritstham samshayam’ — this doubt is born of ignorance and lodged in the heart. Arjuna's confusion is not an external problem; it is a tangle within himself — about the nature of the Self, about dharma and duty. Shankara explains that this doubt is born of lack of discrimination, resides in the intellect, and is the most destructive thing for a human being.

Then comes the remedy: ‘jnanasina chhittva’ — cutting it with the sword of knowledge. The metaphor is perfectly suited to a warrior. Arjuna has wielded the sword in many battles; now Krishna gives him an inner sword to cut down an inner enemy. A sword does not slowly untie a knot; it cuts through it in a single stroke. Likewise, true knowledge does not wear doubt down gradually through argument; it severs it at the root. Shankara calls this right vision, which destroys grief, delusion and similar faults.

Finally the command: ‘yogam atishthottishtha bharata’ — take your stand in yoga and arise. It is deeply significant that a teaching on knowledge ends with a call to action. Krishna does not tell Arjuna to retire to the forest; with ‘uttishtha’, arise, He tells him to fulfil his duty. For Shankara, ‘yoga’ here is Karma Yoga, the means to right vision; Ramanuja too takes it as Karma Yoga informed by knowledge. This is the essence of the chapter: knowledge and action are not opposed but complementary; action illumined by knowledge is true yoga.

By calling Arjuna ‘Bharata’, Krishna reminds him of the great tradition of the Bharata line. With this the fourth chapter, ‘Jnana-Karma-Sannyasa Yoga’, comes to a close. But one question still remains in Arjuna's mind — Krishna sometimes praises the renunciation of action and sometimes Karma Yoga; which of the two is better? With that question the fifth chapter, ‘Karma-Sannyasa Yoga’, begins.

Context

In 4.41 Krishna said that actions do not bind the self-possessed person who has renounced actions through yoga and cut his doubts with knowledge. This is the closing verse of Chapter 4, in which Krishna commands Arjuna to cut his doubt with the sword of knowledge, take his stand in yoga and arise. Chapter 5 (Karma-Sannyasa Yoga) follows, opening with Arjuna's question as to which is better — renunciation of action or Karma Yoga.

Life lesson

Most of our crises arise not from outside but from doubt and confusion within. Cut through your doubts with right understanding, and then do not sit idle — rise and carry out your duty with full courage and dedication.

Key terms

Jnanasi: the sword of knowledge, which cuts doubt at the root
Hritstha samshaya: doubt born of ignorance, lodged in the heart and intellect
Uttishtha: arise — the call to stand up and do one's duty
Jnana-Karma-Sannyasa Yoga: the title of Chapter 4 — the yoga of knowledge, action and renunciation