Srimad Bhagavadgita-Rahasya OR Karma-Yoga-Sastra -Bal Gangadhar Tilak
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CHAPTER 2
Translation:-(46) To that extent to which there is a use (that is, necessity) for a well when there is a flood of water everywhere (clearly, there is no necessity whatsoever), to the same extent is there any necessity of the Vedas (containing the ritualistic Karma-kanda) for the enlightened Brahmana (that is to say, for him, there is no more any necessity of the Vedic Karma-kanda which describes desire-fulfilling ritual). Description:-[There is no difference of opinion as to the broad meaning[1] of this stanza; but, commentators have entered into a useless hair-splitting discussion about the terms used in it. "sarvatahsamplutodake" is a compound phrase in the seventh case (locative case) ; but if it is looked upon not merely as the locative case, nor as an adjectival phrase qualifying the word ' udapana', but as the 'sati saptami ' (locative absolute), one can syntactically work out the sentence, in a simple way as : " sarvatahsamplutodake sati udapane yavan arthah (na svalpam api prayojanam vidyate) tavan vijanatah brahmanasya sarvesu vedesu arthah”, without taking any outside words as implied ; and this also gives the following clear and simple meaning: — "Just as no one cares for wells when there is water everywhere, (because drinking-water can be had anywhere without difficulty and sumptuously), so has the man, who has attained Knowledge, no more any use for mere 'Vedic' ritual like sacrificial Yajnas etc ". The Vedic ritual has to be performed for obtaining the final Release-giving Knowledge, and not merely for obtaining heaven ; and that man who has already obtained this Knowledge, has nothing new to learn by performing Vedic ritual. That is why it is stated later on in the 3rd chapter of the Gita[2] that "to him who has acquired Knowledge, there is no more any duty loft in the world". When one can without difficulty obtain as much pure water as desired from a large lake or from a river who will even look at a well? In such circumstances no one attaches the slightest importance to a well. in the last chapter of the Sanatsujatlya[3], this very stanza occurs again with a slight verbal difference; and the meaning of it has been given m the commentary on it by Madhvacarya in the same way as above and in the Sukanuprasna, where the relative worth of jnana (Knowledge) and Karma is being described, it is clearly stated that “na ate (jnaninah) karma prasamsanti kupam nadyam pibanniva”, that is, “just as one who gets water from the river, does not attach any importance to a well, so do ‘they’, that is, the Jnanins, not attach the slightest importance to Karma[4].”
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