My Thoughts on Life and its Philosophy

N V Satish Kumar

Tag: Sankhya Yoga

  • ACT – The First Step on the Fourfold Path

    This essay marks the formal beginning of our journey along The Fourfold Path: Act, Think, Question, Seek.

    In the earlier reflection Where are We? – A Mid-life Introspection, we observed the state of modern existence, drifting in mechanical routines. We must recognize that most of us inhabit this default state: We move through the day in an almost automatic flow — waking up to notifications, rushing through tasks, responding to messages, attending meetings, completing errands, and finally collapsing at night with exhaustion but little clarity about what the day was truly for. This is not conscious action; it is merely motion. The solution to this mechanical existence begins not with deep meditation or philosophical debate, but with the immediate and foundational step: Act.

    What does it mean to Act?

    To act is to take responsibility.

    As the Bhagavad-Gita reminds us in Chapter 3 (Karma Yoga), no one can remain without action even for a moment (Gita-3.5 – “Na hi kaścit kṣaṇam…”). This is a profound truth of one verse from this chapter. Many may say, “But I am active all day,” yet activity is not the same as action. Action is a chosen responsibility, whereas activity is a drift through circumstances. Much of the exhaustion that accumulates in modern living arises not from responsibility but from countless unchosen reactions. To Act is to pause, step out of the blur, and decide: This is mine to do.

    Why must we Act?

    We must act because action is the only means through which we participate meaningfully in life. Without action, even the noblest intentions remain unrealised, and clarity has no ground to stand on. The Gītā reinforces this necessity in Chapter 2 (Sāṅkhya Yoga), reminding us that we have a right to action, not to its fruits, Gita 2.47. Further to it, as already noted earlier, Gita-3.5 (Karma Yoga), no one can remain without action even for a moment. This means that inaction is not truly possible; life expresses itself through action every moment. Teachings of Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 together free us from worrying about results and emphasise the importance of conscious responsibility. By acting without fixation on outcomes, we break the loop of anticipation and step into a clearer participation in life.

    When should we Act?

    We should act when a responsibility clearly stands before us. When something is ours to do, timely action brings order and reduces confusion. Delaying what must be done only makes the mind heavier. Acting at the right moment restores direction and steadiness. Even a small timely action — finishing a pending task, helping someone who genuinely needs us, or addressing a duty we have postponed — can bring immediate clarity. This clarity, born of resolved effort, is the first reward that encourages one toward continued conscious living.

    What not to React to : Action vs. Reaction:

    Everything that arises within us doesn’t deserve action. Anger, irritation, insecurity, and impulsive desires often demand expression, but acting on them rarely brings clarity. Gita warns that desire, distorted by anger, unsettles judgement (Gita 3.36–37, Karma Yoga).

    Here, it is helpful to note a crucial distinction: Action (Act) is a deliberate choice made from clarity; Reaction (Act upon) is merely the expression of an impulse like anger or desire. The two are not the same. Recognizing this distinction protects the purity and direction of our efforts. Every conscious Act, however small, is a step away from the mechanical drift, while every Reaction drains our energy and drags us deeper into the very mechanical drift that binds us to unconscious repetition.

    When not to Act?

    There are moments when restraint becomes the wiser choice. Silence, patience, or waiting can create deeper clarity than immediate effort. Arjuna’s pause in the first chapter of the Gītā was not weakness but an honest recognition of confusion. Chapter-2 (Sāṅkhya Yoga), reminds us that clarity must precede effective action. In modern life, not acting can mean holding back a reaction when emotions are unsettled, giving a decision time to settle, or allowing circumstances to align better. Acting prematurely often causes unnecessary disturbance, while waiting at the right time preserves inner equilibrium.

    The Thread Forward: Transitioning to Think

    Action is the first step that lifts us out of mechanical drift, but action alone cannot complete the journey. ‘Thought’ refines action, helping us understand why we act, whether our actions reflect our values, and how they prepare us for deeper inquiry (Fourfold Path).

    When one conscious action clears even a small part of the inner fog, the mind naturally begins to ask deeper questions: Why do I do what I do? Is this aligned with what truly matters? This gentle awakening of thought becomes the natural bridge from Act to Think.

    Closing Reflection

    To act is to begin. From action, thought will arise; from thought, questioning will deepen; from questioning, seeking will unfold. In this step-by-step way, the path quietly leads life toward clarity.

  • Karma Yoga – The Right Attitude in Practice

    Bhagavad Gita : Chapter-3

    Opening Context

    The Bhagavad Gita is a silent flame within the Mahabharata. It is a still moment found in the midst of war. A conversation that transforms external conflict into internal inquiry, internal inquiry into internalised knowledge, and internalised knowledge into a realised complete freedom. Across eighteen chapters, the Gita charts a path from confusion to clarity, from fear to freedom.

    From Sorrow to Twofold Path

    The first chapter of the Gita is Arjuna Vishada Yoga. Here Arjuna represents the ordinary human being. External circumstances deeply unsettle his inner personality, leaving him shaken in judgment and overcome by sorrow. As a symbol of this collapse, Arjuna declares he does not desire victory (na kāṅkṣe vijayaṁ kṛṣṇa – 1.32). Overcome by grief, he drops his bow (evam uktvā’rjunaḥ saṅkhye – 1.47). Unless we see ourselves as Arjuna, the Gita does not speak to us.

    The second chapter is Sankhya Yoga. The teachings begin to refine Arjuna — and through him, us — both from inside and outside. This is generally understood as a two‑fold path. The first path addresses the inner personality namely, ‘Self’. The true nature of the ‘Self’ is eternal. The self is never born, never dies, and always exists (na jāyate mriyate vā – 2.20). Fire cannot burn it, water cannot wet it, weapons cannot pierce it (nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi – 2.23). The second path addresses outer action (karmaṇy-evādhikāraste – 2.47), the duties of the individual. These two paths converge in the goal of sthitaprajñatā, the steady wisdom that arises when desires are abandoned (prajahāti yadā kāmān – 2.55).

    For an overview on Chapter-2 : Click here : https://nvsatish.com/2025/10/17/bg-sankhya-yoga-02/

    Beginning of Karma Yoga

    In the third chapter, the Gita turns fully to Karma Yoga. Both the path of knowledge and the path of action are good. For those engaged in activity, action is the right way. Therefore the Gita does not ask us to abandon action. Instead, it teaches that performing action is better than renouncing it (niyataṁ kuru karma tvaṁ – 3.8). It instructs us to act with the right attitude. The Gita explicitly rejects the idea of avoiding action. No one can remain without action even for a moment. Everyone is compelled by the forces of nature (na hi kaścit kṣaṇam api – 3.5). Even the wise continue to act. Their actions guide others and sustain the world (yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhaḥ – 3.23). They act without attachment, setting an example, and take care not to disturb those still learning.

    The Right Attitude in Action

    Karma Yoga proclaims that action done without selfishness, as yajña, frees one from bondage (3.9). Such selfless action is known to purify the mind, making it fit for knowledge. This philosophy is explained through yajña, the method of mutual offering that sustains life. Rain supports food. Food supports beings. Beings support the cycle by acting in the right spirit (sahayajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā – 3.10–3.15). When this harmony is ignored or disturbed, the cycle of life becomes incomplete and disjointed. On the other hand, when it is honoured, individuals become free and a sense of cosmic responsibility prevails.

    Qualities and Non‑Doership

    Through this chapter, the Gita says that all actions of an individual arise only from the three guṇas, the characteristic qualities of nature (prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni – 3.27). Action is merely an interaction between such qualities, and the individual is not the doer. One who knows this truth does not claim to be the doer. By giving up doership, ego falls away. Fear disappears. Actions continue, but the burden of “I” is gone.

    Surrender and Duty

    Another mark of right action is surrendering all actions to the Lord. Then fear and expectation vanish (mayi sarvāṇi karmāṇi – 3.30). Each person acts according to their own nature (sadṛśaṁ ceṣṭate svasyāḥ – 3.33). Therefore the Gita teaches us to perform our own duty. Action that does not belong to one’s dharma can be dangerous. Only action in line with one’s own dharma is safe (śreyān svadharmo viguṇaḥ – 3.35).

    Desire and Its Veils

    Desire clouds judgment, hiding the inner light (kāma eṣa krodha eṣaḥ – 3.36–3.37). Like smoke covering fire, dust covering a mirror, or a womb covering the embryo (dhūmenāvriyate vāhnir – 3.38), desire veils clarity. The way to overcome desire is to know the Self to be higher than the senses, mind, and intellect. Use that knowledge of the intellect to discriminate between right and wrong and let the intellect control the mind from desires (evaṁ buddheḥ paraṁ buddhvā – 3.43).

    Closing Message

    We need to understand that renunciation, in the context of karma Yoga, is not escape from work. It is giving up attachment to the outcome, while acting with focus and skill in every work. This chapter begins with the necessity-to-act and ends with freedom-while-working. Such attitude ultimately leads to liberation.

  • The Seed That Holds the Gītā: Sāṅkhya Yoga

    Bhagavad Gita: Sankhya Yoga – What is in it ?

    It is a very well-known fact that the Bhagavad Gītā is a deep conversation between Arjuna and Lord Krishna that speaks about life, action, and inner clarity. Though the Gītā spans eighteen chapters, Chapter 2 has a uniqueness to it. Titled as Sāṅkhya Yoga, this chapter is the seed from which, all teachings of the Gītā grow. The full scope of the Gītā’s vision is quietly introduced in this very chapter.

    Before any teaching by Bhagavan Lord Krishna begins, the Gītā opens with Arjuna’s breakdown. He stands on the battlefield, but his strength fails. His thoughts are confused, his heart is heavy, and his will collapses. Yet this collapse is not the end – it marks the beginning of a deeper search. When old convictions of someone fall apart, better questions begin to rise from within.

    This chapter, even though popularly referred to as Sāṅkhya Yoga, is known by other names too. It is called the Bīja Adhyāya, meaning the Seed Chapter, because it contains the essence of all that follows. It is also called the Upakrama Adhyāya, the Opening Chapter of teaching, because it introduces in this chapter itself, all the major contents of the actual teaching that follows. And it is known as the Gītā Sāra Adhyāya, the Essence Chapter, because it holds the core ideas that are later expanded in the remaining sixteen chapters.

    Every major concept in the Gītā—whether about the Self, action, devotion, surrender, or equipoise – is first introduced in this chapter. It serves as the foundation where the teachings of Jñāna Yoga (the path of knowledge), Karma Yoga (the path of action), and Bhakti Yoga (the path of devotion) are first presented. These paths are not explained in full here, but their essential ideas are seeded and set in motion in this very chapter. The rest of the Gītā unfolds by deepening what is first revealed in this chapter.

    The Gītā teaches about the Self (ātman) – which in brief can be said to be the living presence within every being. An inquiry into the Self marks the beginning of what later unfolds as Jñāna Yoga. The Self is not the body that grows and changes. The Self is neither the mind that shifts & reacts nor the intellect that judges and decides. The Self is not a thought, emotion, or identity—it is the very power that makes life within possible. The Gītā, through this chapter, enumerates the characteristics of the Self quite exhaustively. It describes the Self as the silent witness behind all experience, the source from which awareness flows, that which is not born and does not die, that which does not grow old or fade, and that which is not touched by pleasure or pain, success or failure. The Self, in the Gītā’s view, simply is – changeless, radiant, and free. To introduce this contrast between the changing body and the unchanging Self, Bhagavan offers a quiet metaphor drawn from everyday life. One of the earliest verses in this chapter (2.13) says: “Just as childhood, prime age, and old age come to us in this life, so also is the transition to another body. The wise do not get confused by this.” Here, the Self (dehin) is the indwelling presence that remains unchanged while the body moves through various stages—birth, growth, aging, death, transition into another birth, again growth, and so on. It is the body that changes and re-forms; the Self simply continues, untouched by these shifts. This verse introduces the Self as an unhindered continuity. The Self is not a momentary spark. It remains present through all the changes, untouched and unmoved. The Self is the witness—still, aware, and untouched.

    Karma Yoga, elaborated in a separate chapter, also finds its first voice here. Verse 2.47 offers a profound truth, often quoted by the world over “You have the right to action, but not to its fruits.” This is a call to freedom from bondage of results. It invites us to act with clarity of purpose, without our attention on the results. Karma Yoga begins here – not as a method, but as a shift in attitude. The Gītā teaches that when action is done without holding onto results, it becomes a path to inner freedom. In the same vein, verse 2.50 adds another layer: “One who has wisdom casts off both good and bad results.” And then: “Skill in action is Yoga.” This skill is not about efficiency or technique. It is about equilibrium. It is the ability to act without inner disturbance, to move without losing the focus on the central purpose. The Gītā’s idea of skill in action belongs to a higher plane. It is not about doing more – it is about doing with awareness.

    Bhakti Yoga, the path of devotion, also begins to stir in this chapter. Though not named directly, the spirit of Bhakti is present here in this chapter. Lord Krishna speaks not just as a teacher, but as someone whose presence must be trusted. This trust is not only intellectual—it is emotional and spiritual. It is the beginning of surrender. The heart begins to bow. The trust begins to hold. Verse 2.61 offers a quiet devotional anchor: “One who restrains all the senses and remains devoted to Me – his wisdom is firmly established.” Here, the phrase mat-paraḥ (“centred on Me”) signals the early stirrings of Bhakti. It is not mere discipline – it is discipline anchored in relationship. The Gītā teaches that devotion is not a separate path – it is the heart of steadiness. Bhakti Yoga begins here – not as ritual, but as relationship. It is the quiet trust that steadies the seeker. It is the devotion that holds the mind when the world pulls it apart.

    The word sthita-prajña appears for the first time in Gita in this chapter. It refers to a person who has become steady in wisdom—not as a direct result of the teachings, but as a living illustration of what those teachings point toward. Lord Krishna describes the sthita-prajña in a series of verses (2.55–72): “When a person gives up all desires that arise in the mind, and finds satisfaction in the Self alone, he is said to be steady in wisdom.” He is not shaken by praise or blame, not pulled by desire or fear. He lives with clarity of understanding, moves with balance of mind, and rests in the Self. He is full within, like the ocean that remains unmoved though rivers flow into it: (2.70) “Just as rivers flow into the ocean, which remains unmoved and steady, so too is the person who remains full and undisturbed by desires.” The sthita-prajña is not only the outcome of this chapter, but the embodiment of this chapter’s vision – a glimpse of what it means to live free while still being engaged in the world.

    The teachings of the Gītā are timeless, yet they speak directly to our lives even today. Arjuna’s collapse reflects the confusion we face when our sense of responsibility feels blurred and our choices seem overwhelming. His turning point mirrors our own moments of breakdown; those moments – when deeper questions begin to rise from within us. This chapter of Sāṅkhya Yoga offers crucial tools to everyone for living with clarity in the middle of pressures and changes. Jñāna Yoga reveals the steady Self beneath all roles. Karma Yoga guides us to act with purpose and detachment. Bhakti Yoga invites us to trust and surrender. All of these find themselves seeded firmly in this chapter. All the three paths remain deeply relevant even today. The Gītā’s  vision continues into the subsequent chapters, but the mirror has already been held up. And in that mirror, we begin to see ourselves – or rather, our-Self.

    పై వ్యాసాన్ని తెలుగులో చదవాలనుకుంటే, ఈ క్రింది లింకు ని క్లిక్ చేయగలరు.

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