Karma Yoga

Hindi

जब रसोई में ईश्वर के निमित्त भोजन पकेगा, तो स्वाभाविक है कि रसोई अत्यंत स्वच्छ रखी जाएगी, पकाने वाले स्वयं को भी शुद्ध और स्वच्छ रखेंगे, और सात्त्विक भोजन ही पकेगा। ऐसे भोजन से भोजन-जनित रोगों की संभावना अपने आप ही न्यून हो जाएगी। ईश्वर के लिए बनाया गया भोजन प्रसाद रूप में परिणत होता है, अतः वह पाप-मोचन का भी कारण बनता है।

English

These are the words of Brahmā, the creator of the fire-yajna Ritual. The Bhāgawata Purāna illustrates Brahmā's strong attachment to the fire-yajna ritual. Upon his being brought into being, Brahmā's first action was to conduct a fire-yajna, using his divine powers to manifest wood, clarified butter, etc., even before creating cows or trees. It's not surprising that he attributes such mystical powers to the remnants of a Vedic fire-yajna, if by "remnants" he means grains and fire-ash (bhasma)suggesting that saints, if not everybody, who partake of these remnants will be absolved of all sins. While this might be an exaggeration, there are certainly spiritual benefits for those involved. God Himself expresses a similar sentiment about yajna and its remnants in the Gitā in verse 4:31, although He refers to something widely different from a Vedic fire-yajna. "All acts of a person dissolve into nothingness whose attachment has melted away, who experiences real freedom, whose mind is always stable in Knowledge, and all of whose acts are like a yajna (offerings to God)." (4:23) In chapter 4, the Lord lists several spiritual pursuits of various kinds and calls all of them "yajna." He also says that on completion of these yajnas, a nectar is produced on consumption of which the aspirant attains union with God. But this nectar or "remnanat" is intangible, not grains or ash. "O, Arjuna, Scion of the Kuru Lineage! {Each of} the yajna produces nectar at the end, by consuming which the spiritual aspirant is drawn into the Being of God..." (4:31) Therefore, the utterances of God are not identical to Brahmā's; they signify something much deeper. According to Him, we turn our daily duties into a "yajna" or acts of worship by performing them without attachment and dedicating them all to God. On such selfless performance of our duties, what remains from this "yajna" in the form of Yagyashesha, is Yoga or union with God. This "remnant"—not something physical—is called "Amrita" (nectar) by God in the fourth chapter– "Yajnashistāmritbhujah."(4.31)