🪷 Bhagavad-Gītā · 3.9

3.9 यज्ञार्थात् for the sake of sacrifice? कर्मणः of action? अन्यत्र otherwise? लोकः the world? अयम् this? कर्मबन्धनः bound by action? तदर्थम् for that sake? कर्म action? कौन्तेय O Kaunteya? मुक्तसंगः free from attachment? समाचार perform.Commentary Yajna means sacrifice or religious rite or any unselfish action done with a pure motive. It means also Isvara. The Taittiriya Samhita (of the Veda) says Yajna verily is Vishnu (174). If anyone does actions for the sake of the Lord? he is not bound. His heart is purified by performing actions for the sake of the Lord. Where this spirit of unselfishness does not govern the action? it will bind one to Samsara however good or glorious it may be. (Cf.II.48).

3.9 Ayam, this; lokah, man, the one who is eligible for action; karma-bandhanah, becomes bound by actions- the person who has karma as his bondage (bandhana) is karma-bandhanah-; anyatra, other than; that karmanah, action; yajnarthat, meant for Got not by that meant for God. According to the Vedic text, 'Sacrifice is verily Visnu' (Tai. Sam. 1.7.4), yajnah means God; whatever is done for Him is yajnartham. Therefore, mukta-sangah, without being attached, being free from attachment to the results of actions; O son of Kunti, samacara, you perform; karma, actions; tadartham, for Him, for God. An eligible person should engage in work for the following reason also:

3.9 The world is imprisoned by the bond of work only when work is done for personal ends, but not when work is performed or money acired for the purpose of sacrifice etc. prescribed in the scriptures. So, for the purpose of sacrifice, you must perform acts like the acisition of money. In doing so, overcome attachments generated by the pursuit of personal ambitions, and then do your work in the spirit of Yajna. When a person free from attachment does the work for the sake of sacrifices etc., the Supreme Person, propitiated by sacrifices etc., grants him the calm vision of the self after destroying the subtle impressions of his Karmas, which have continued from time without beginning. Sri Krsna stresses the need for sustenance of the body solely by the remnants of sacrifices in respect of those who are devoted to all ends of human life. He decries the sin of those who nourish the body by things other than the remnants of sacrifices:

3.9 Yajnarthat etc. Binding are the actions which are different from the one that is Yajnartha, i.e., the one that is to be performed necessarily. The action, that is to be performed necessarily, does not yield any fruit, if it is performed with no attachment for the fruit.

।।3.9।। प्रत्येक कर्म कर्त्ता के लिये बन्धन उत्पन्न नहीं करता। केवल अविवेकपूर्वक किये हुये कर्म ही मन में वासनाओं की वृद्धि करके परिच्छिन्न अहंकार और अपरिच्छिन्न आत्मस्वरूप के मध्य एक अभेद्य दीवार खड़ी कर देते हैं। वासनाओं से पूर्ण अन्तकरण वाले व्यक्ति में दिव्यत्व का कोई प्रकाश नहीं दिखाई देता। पारम्परिक अर्थानुसार यज्ञ के अतिरिक्त जो अन्य कर्म हैं वे वासनाओं को उत्पन्न कर व्यक्ति के विकास में अवरोधक बन जाते हैं।यहां यज्ञ शब्द का अर्थ है वे सब कर्म जिन्हें मनुष्य निस्वार्थ भाव एवं समर्पण की भावना से विश्व के कल्याण के लिये करता है। ऐसे कर्म व्यक्ति के पतन में नहीं वरन् उत्थान में ही सहायक होते हैं। यज्ञ शब्द का उपर्युक्त अर्थ समझ लेने पर आगे के श्लोक और अधिक स्पष्ट होंगे और उनमें उपदिष्ट ज्ञान सम्पूर्ण विश्व के उपयुक्त होगा।जब समाज के लोग आगे आकर परस्पर सहयोग एवं समर्पण की भावना से कर्म करेंगे केवल तभी वह समाज दारिद्रय और दुखों के बन्धनों से मुक्त हो सकता है यह एक ऐतिहासिक सत्य है। ऐसे कर्मों का सम्पादन अनासक्ति के होने से ही संभव होगा। अर्जुन में यह दोष आ गया था कि वह विरुद्ध पक्ष के व्यक्तियों के साथ अत्यन्त आसक्त हो गया और परिणामस्वरूप परिस्थिति को ठीक समझ नहीं पाया इसलिये समसामयिक कर्तव्य का त्याग कर कर्मक्षेत्र से पलायन करने की उसकी प्रवृत्ति हो गयी।कर्ममार्ग के अधिकारी व्यक्ति को निम्नलिखित कारणों से भी कर्म करना चाहिये