Karma Yoga Sastra -Tilak
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CHAPTER XI
RENUNCITATION AND KARMA-YOGA
It is well-known in history that Buddha himself gave up his kingdom and his wife and children and entered the Samnyasa state in youth. Although Sri Samkaracarya refuted the Jain and Buddhistic doctrines, yet the path of Asceticism, which was principally put into vogue by the Jains and Buddhists, was allowed to remain by the Acarya as being the Samnyasa prescribed by the Srutis and the Smrtis; and he has, therefore, interpreted the Gita as supporting the Samnyasa path. But, really speaking the Gita is not a work which supports the Smarta path ; and although the earlier portions of it refer to the Samkhya or the Samnyasa path, the later portions, which contain the conclusion, support the Activistic or Bhagavata religion, as has been mentioned by me already in the first chapter to have been stated by the author of the Mahabharata itself. As both' these paths are Vedic, it is possible to harmonise them with, each other to a considerable extent, if not wholly. But harmonising them in this way, is one thing, and saying that, the Gita supports only the Path of Renunciation, and that the references in it to the Path of Energism as being productive of Release, are merely praise, is quite a different thing. As. a result of difference in taste, one man may prefer the Smarta religion to the Bhagavata religion; or he may consider as- more convincing the reasons which are commonly given in support of the Abandonment of Action. I will not deny that possibility. For instance, no one has any doubt that Sri Samkaracarya favoured the Smarta or Samnyasa path, and looked upon all other paths as based on ignorance. But,, on that account, one cannot conclude that that was the- purport of the Gita. If you do not accept the doctrines laid, down by the Gita, do not follow them. But, it is not proper on that account to interpret the statement, "there are, in this- world, two independent Nisthas or paths leading to Release for living one's life," made in the commencement of the Gita, as meaning that: "the Samnyasa path is the only true and superior- path". These two paths, which have been described in the Gita, have been current in the Vedic religion, independently of each other, even from before the days of Janaka and Yajnavalkya; and we see that persons like Janaka, on whom the duty of the maintenance and uplift of society had befallen,, as a result of their status as Ksatriyas, or hereditarily, or as a result of their own prowess, continued their activities desirelessly, even after the acquisition of Knowledge; and were spending their lives in bringing about the benefit of the world. Bearing in mind this status of certain persons in society, the Mahabharata contains two such distinct statements, according to difference in status, as, "sukham jivanti munayo bhaiksyavrt- tim samasritah", i. e., "ascetics living in the woods, joyfully accept the status of beggars" [1], and "danda em hi rajendra ksatradharmo na mundanam", i. e., "it is the duty of the Ksatriyas to maintain and uplift people by punishment, and not to shave off the hair on their heads"[2]. But,. from this, one must not conclude that Karma-Yoga was the proper duty only for the Ksatriyas, who were responsible for the maintenance of society.
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