BG 4.28 — Jñāna-Karma-Sannyāsa-Yoga

Bhagavad Gītā 4.28Chapter 4 · Jñāna-Karma-Sannyāsa-Yoga · Krishna → Arjuna · anuṣṭubh

द्रव्ययज्ञास् तपोयज्ञा योगयज्ञास् तथापरे ।

स्वाध्यायज्ञानयज्ञाश् च यतयः संशितव्रताः ॥

dravya-yajñās tapo-yajñā yoga-yajñās tathāpare

svādhyāya-jñāna-yajñāś ca yatayaḥ saṃśita-vratāḥ

spokensingle-voice recital; rendered via IndicF5 conditioned on a Sanskrit reference clip

meaning

Some offer wealth, others offer austerity or yoga, and still others offer Vedic recitation or the pursuit of knowledge; all are strivers with sharply honed vows.

ekras · bhāṣya

The verse names four more kinds of yajnin, side by side. Dravya-yajna: sacrifice of wealth. The dravya-yajnin distributes wealth at sacred fords, builds wells, feeds the hungry, supports the rishis. The dravya — the material substance — is the offering, and giving it away with the right inner stance is the act. Tapo-yajna: the practitioner of austerity. The body is the offering; the discipline of fasting, vigil, silence is the fire. Yoga-yajna: the practitioner of formal yoga, eight-limbed or otherwise. The mind-body discipline is itself the sacrifice. Svadhyaya-jnana-yajna: the recitation of shastra and the pursuit of knowledge. The reading and the inquiry are the offering.

Madhusudana counts six yajnas in this single verse where others counted five — splitting dravya-yajna into purta (the public works) and ishta (the personal donations).

Vallabha distributes the verse across the ashramas: grihastha — householder — is the dravya-yajnin; vanaprastha — forest-dweller — is the tapo-yajnin; the yoga-yajnin and the svadhyaya-jnanin are at appropriate stages. The closing phrase is the same for all: yatayah samshita-vratah — strivers with sharply honed vows. Different practices, same intensity of inner commitment. The chapter's catalog widens further. The path is not narrow; the inner condition is the constant.

Context

where

Chapter 4 · Jñāna-Karma-Sannyāsa-Yoga · meter anuṣṭubh

who speaks

Krishna → Arjuna

preceded by — BG 4.27

Others pour all the acts of the senses and vital breath into the fire of self-restraint, a fire lit by knowledge.

What's going on

Some offer wealth, others offer austerity or yoga, and still others offer Vedic recitation or the pursuit of knowledge; all are strivers with sharply honed vows.

Sūtras through this verse (51)

ŚrīdharaclassicalB

The Lord descends out of compassionbetween

4.9His acts are willed only to bless others.───→here4.28───→11.1By high compassion He showed the world-form.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalA

Sorrow and delusion are the diseasebetween

2.69Ignorance is night, wisdom alone wakes.───→here4.28───→4.42Cut the heart's doubt with the sword of knowledge.

MadhvaclassicalT1

Hari is supreme — the running reading-rulebetween

4.24Every word for ritual points back to Viṣṇu.───→here4.28───→5.7'Self of all beings' just means the Lord.

show all 51

Madhvaclassicalmadhva_pratibimba

Madhva Pratibimbabetween · other

4.14Acts without clinging───→here4.28───→5.14Two tiers of rulership

MadhvaclassicalT3

Ranking is real — and it never collapsesbetween

4.6Avatāras differ in their fullness of Hari.───→here4.28───→6.9Devas, asuras, mortals are three native kinds.

MadhvaclassicalT5

Mirror-and-image — how seeming-action worksbetween

4.14He acts but does not cling to the act.───→here4.28───→5.14The Lord rules the modes; the soul rules the body.

MadhvaclassicalT6

Citation is the spine — texts carry the loadbetween

4.8Ṛgveda khilas explain the descent as play.───→here4.28───→6.6Maitrāyaṇī defines the stilled mind.

MadhvaclassicalT10

The deluder is named — three goddesses, one Lordbetween

4.6Even the unborn descends through the deluder Durgā.───→here4.28───→7.4Eight elements name the inert side of nature.

MadhvaclassicalT12

Closure by gloss — the small repertoirebetween

4.25'Divine' just means the Lord, named indirectly.───→here4.28───→5.7'Self of all' resolves to the Lord himself.

ŚrīdharaclassicalD

The path that turns no one awaybetween

4.11However they come, I meet them so.───→here4.28───→7.16Four kinds of seekers, all good-hearted.

ŚrīdharaclassicalE

Inner cleansing reconciles work and knowingbetween

3.3One path, two grades: impure, then pure mind.───→here4.28───→4.39Faith earns knowing; work readies that faith.

ŚrīdharaclassicalI

His evenness as ground for refugebetween

4.11I meet each one as that one approaches.───→here4.28───→9.29Even to all — yet near to those who turn.

ŚrīdharaclassicalC

Devotion is both the way and the homeapproach

───→here4.28───→6.47Be a devotee: that is the meaning.

ŚrīdharaclassicalJ

Insight given as a gift, not earned aloneapproach

───→here4.28───→4.34Knowers will pass it to you by teaching.

ŚrīdharaclassicalL

Chapter prefaces as the bhāṣya's spineapproach

───→here4.28───→5.1Settling the doubt: renounce or work?

ŚaṅkaraclassicalE

Ignorance is the only enemybetween

4.18See not-doing in doing, doing in not-doing.───→here4.28───→5.13Body-self confusion is the only error.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalF

The Lord is born only as it werebetween

4.9My birth and acts are not of this world.───→here4.28───→7.14Divine illusion is hard to cross alone.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalG

After knowing, act only to hold the worldbetween

4.18The post-knowledge actor does no action at all.───→here4.28───→5.8I do nothing at all, says the knower.

ŚaṅkaraclassicalJ

Scripture stands behind every claimbetween

4.13The four orders are the Puruṣa's own body.───→here4.28───→15.1The world-tree is the tree of the Kaṭha.

RamsukhdasclassicalA

What binds you (and how to let go)between

4.23Clinging to anything is what binds you.───→here4.28───→5.12Drop the wish for fruit, not the fruit itself.

RamsukhdasclassicalE

Your own work as worshipbetween

4.13The four orders are His own creation.───→here4.28───→18.41Each order's work is born of its nature.

RamsukhdasclassicalH

All paths arrive at the same roombetween

4.23Action's flagship verse: it dissolves itself.───→here4.28───→4.36Knowledge ferries you across the ocean.

Ramsukhdasclassical

Sādhaka Sañjīvanī commentary at this versebetween

───→here4.28───→

ŚaṅkaraclassicalH

The Lord is friend of every beingapproach

───→here4.28───→5.29Friend of all beings, the witness of every act.

RamsukhdasclassicalI

The Lord already inside the heartapproach

───→here4.28───→6.30See Me everywhere, I am never lost.

Ekrasmodernkarma_yoga

Karma yoga — the apprentice pathbetween · v2

4.18Action in inaction───→here4.28───→5.6Renunciation needs the path

Ekrasmodernstress

Stress — panic to shelterbetween · v2

4.16Even the wise are confused───→here4.28───→7.14Cross the maya

Gauravmoderninterfaith_cosmology

Interfaith Cosmologybetween

4.11'Ye yatha mam prapadyante tams tathaiva bhajamy aham.' As they approach me, so I───→here4.28───→7.21'Yo yo yam yam tanum bhaktah shraddhayarchitum ichchhati.' Whatever form the dev

Gauravmodernsanatana_dharma_101

Sanatana Dharma 101between

4.8'Paritranaya sadhunam vinashaya cha dushkritam, dharma-samsthapana-arthaya sambh───→here4.28───→9.27Dharma-as-offering pillar. 'Yat karoshi yad ashnasi yaj juhoshi dadasi yat.' Gau

RāmānujaclassicalD

Karma-yoga as kainkarya (worship)between

4.24Brahman the offering, Brahman the offerer.───→here4.28───→6.1The renouncer is the one who acts for Me.

RāmānujaclassicalG

Māyā is real causal powerbetween

4.6Self-power, not self-illusion.───→here4.28───→7.14Māyā is real wonder, not unreality.

RāmānujaclassicalH

Prapatti / śaraṇāgati — universal upāyabetween

4.11As they approach Me, so do I receive them.───→here4.28───→7.14Surrender alone crosses the māyā.

VallabhaclassicalA

Two paths — rule-bound and grace-onlybetween

4.11Each soul takes the path Krishna assigns to it.───→here4.28───→9.4The Lord pervades all, yet stays untouched.

VallabhaclassicalD

Chapter-opening preludesbetween

4.1Four-verse prelude names avatāra-līlā.───→here4.28───→5.1Single-verse prelude sets sannyāsa-yoga eka.

VallabhaclassicalG

The Lord plays — calf-affection, not contractbetween

4.8A mother chastising her child is no cruelty.───→here4.28───→7.1The play-Person of every form opens chapter 7.

Ekrasmodernmeditation

Meditation — the dhyāna tourapproach · v2

───→here4.28───→6.10Solitary seat

Gauravmodernchaplaincy_kit_of_tools

Chaplaincy Kit Of Toolsapproach

───→here4.28───→4.34Paramparā / direct transmission. 'Tad viddhi pranipatena pariprashnena sevaya, u

RāmānujaclassicalC

Three ṣaṭkas (1–6 / 7–12 / 13–18)approach

───→here4.28───→5.1A four-clause summary of all of 2 through 4.

VallabhaclassicalK

Aphorism, gloss, full commentaryapproach

───→here4.28───→6.47Six chapters of aphorism close at this verse.

Ekrasmodernfamily_conflict

Family Conflictexit · other

2.8No grief-remover I see───→here4.28───→

Gauravmoderneminem_dsm_arjuna

Eminem Dsm Arjunaexit

2.11'Ashochyan anvashochas tvam prajna-vadamsh cha bhashase.' You grieve those not t───→here4.28───→

JayatīrthaclassicalD

Saṅgati declared at the head of every adhyāyabetween

4.1Three blocks named at the chapter head.───→here4.28───→6.1Karma-yoga is outer; samādhi-yoga inner.

JayatīrthaclassicalE

Vishnu-sarvottamatva read into apparently neutral wordsbetween

4.11Mām is Viṣṇu, not generic absolute.───→here4.28───→7.5Higher prakṛti is Śrī, not the eight-fold.

JayatīrthaclassicalF

Bhakti-tāratamya: gradation among devotees, gradation in fruitbetween

4.11Fruit proportional to the service offered.───→here4.28───→7.21Other deities give what Viṣṇu permits.

ĀnandagiriclassicalF

Which karma? — fourfold typologybetween

4.18Action-in-inaction needs the typology.───→here4.28───→5.1Body-residue karma vs. fruit-bearing karma.

ĀnandagiriclassicalH

Phala-saṃkalpa is the only upādhibetween

4.18Action-in-inaction: the upādhi seen. Anchor.───→here4.28───→5.13All actions renounced by mind alone.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalB

Recognition, not additionbetween

4.14Recognize, do not learn — the verb shifts.───→here4.28───→7.24Failure of seeing, not absence of presence.

AbhinavaguptaclassicalD

Avatāra: appearance without departurebetween

4.13Four orders made by the one who stays equal.───→here4.28───→9.4He pervades, yet is not in any of it.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalD

Adhikāra — eligibility as architecture, not exceptionbetween

4.11'Yathā' is open; the verb is the gate.───→here4.28───→9.22Yoga-kṣemam: the Lord's work, not the seeker's caste.

VedāntadeśikaclassicalG

Three yogas — three angles on one configurationbetween

3.30Karma offered to the indweller becomes worship.───→here4.28───→4.33Knowledge-rite outranks mere material rites.

MadhusūdanaclassicalG

Knowing and acting cannot run togetherbetween

3.1The grand architecture cannot mix the two.───→here4.28───→4.34Approach a knower; knowing is not earned by action.

Śabda · lemmas (12 unique · 15 occurrences)

यतयः yati — an ascetic, controlled one · nominative masculine plural noun
स्वाध्याय svādhyāya — self-study, recitation of scripture (sva + adhyāya) · compound

show all 12

यज्ञाः yajña ×4 — sacrifice, worship, ritual offering · nominative masculine plural noun · also at 3.10
द्रव्य dravya — substance, material · compound · also at 4.33
तपः tapas — austerity, ascetic heat, spiritual discipline · compound
योग yoga — yoga; union, discipline, application · compound
तथा tathā — thus, in that manner; likewise
अपरे apara — other, later; lower, secondary · nominative masculine plural noun
ज्ञान jñāna — knowledge, wisdom, cognition · compound · also at 1.1, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.26, 3.32 +70
च ca — and; (homonym: also the consonant ca)
संशित saṃśita — sharpened, resolute (past-pple. of sam- + √śo) · compound
व्रताः vrata — vow, observance · nominative masculine plural noun

Praśna · so what (7)

01If sacrifice (yajña) can be performed through material giving, austerity, meditation, recitation, or knowledge — what makes any one of these more 'real' as offering than another?
02Madhva insists that even tapas is only an oblation when offered with paramēśvarārpaṇa-buddhi (Lord-dedication intention) — does the same act with different intentionality constitute a fundamentally different action?

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03Śaṅkara's saṃśita-vrata ('vow made razor-sharp') implies vows can be dull or keen — what sharpens a vow, and what blunts it?
04Vallabha's āśrama-mapping assigns dravya-yajña to householders and tapo-yajña to forest-dwellers — does life-stage determine which sacrifice is available to you, or which is most appropriate?
05Madhusūdana cites Patañjali's mahā-vrata definition, making the vow absolute across all conditions of birth, place, time, and circumstance — how does an unconditional vow differ in practice from a conditional one?
06If Śrīdhara's alternative reading allows svādhyāya to mean either Vedic recitation or reflective study of its meaning, do the two practitioners engaged in the same text belong to the same sacrifice-type?
07The verse lists yatayaḥ (strivers) as those who perform all these yajñas — does effort (yatana) constitute a separate qualification beyond the type of sacrifice, or is sustained striving itself the deepest sacrifice?

Vyavahāra · try it in your life

Advaita

Treat any sustained, desireless outlay — whether donating time, money, or attention — as a sacrifice in the Vedic sense: the value lies in the intention-quality (yajña-buddhi) and the sharpness of your commitment (saṃśita-vrata), not in the size of the gift or the austerity undertaken.

Viśiṣṭādvaita

Frame every disciplined effort — gym, diet, charitable work, pilgrimage — as deva-arcana (service to the divine) rather than self-improvement; the shift from 'building myself' to 'dedicating this to Bhagavān' changes the quality of the action even when the external behavior is identical.

show all 6

Dvaita

Before beginning any disciplined practice — exercise, fasting, study — pause and explicitly form the intention 'idaṃ tasmai' (this is for Him); Madhva's bhāṣya insists the offering-consciousness transforms the act, so the mental gesture is not optional decoration but the substance of the sacrifice.

Śuddhādvaita

Recognize which life-stage you currently occupy and let that determine your primary mode of offering: if you are building a household and career, dravya-yajña (material giving and resource stewardship) is your natural altar; if you are withdrawing from worldly roles, interior silence (citta-vṛtti-nirodha) becomes the appropriate sacrifice.

Bhakti

Apply Śrīdhara's two-path reading to learning itself: reading or listening to a text (recitation-sacrifice) and sitting with what it means through reflection (knowledge-sacrifice) are distinct disciplines — both valid, but each requiring its own kind of attention; do not collapse one into the other.

Advaita-Bhakti

Use Madhusūdana's mahā-vrata test to audit any commitment you make: is your resolution conditioned by circumstances (jāti, deśa, kāla, samaya) or does it hold unconditionally? If it dissolves under pressure of convenience, it has not yet become a 'sharpened vow' — and the sharpening is the practice itself.

Adhiṣṭhāna · substrate signature

substratev2.6-frozen

parserByT5-Sanskrit-multitask (Nehrdich/Hellwig/Keutzer EMNLP 2024)

mūlaBelvalkar critical edition (BORI 1947), via Ambuda multi-witness

show all metadata

weightsa=1 · b=0.01 · e_v=0.005 · z=0.2 · h=0 · th=0.01

anchorfit on Ramsukhdas's Sādhak Sañjīvanī (1980), frozen across the eight-commentator panel; cross-validated R@4 = 71.6% on Śaṅkara

extracted2026-04-21

methodPaper 1, Section II.B

↓ view raw per-verse object (JSON)↗ per-verse-object schema ↗ substrate code (MIT) + data (CC-BY 4.0)

The schema generalizes to any bounded-polysemy corpus with discrete primary text units, attested witness traditions, identifiable schools, and formal substrate. Port the per-verse object; refit weights on a domain-appropriate Layer-3 anchor; ship.

Bhagavad Gītā Chapter 4, Verse 28: Krishna to Arjuna — Jñāna-Karma-Sannyāsa-Yoga