Krishna and Bhagavad Gita

Krishna and Bhagavad Gita

Is it sufficient to just renounce one’s duties without involving in Devotional Service?

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhakthivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, Founder Acharya, International Society for Krishna Consciousness, explains the words of Krishna in BHAGAVAD GITA AS IT IS (C-5, T-6):

sannyasas tu maha-baho
duhkham aptum ayogatah
yoga-yukto munir brahma
na cirenadhigacchati

TRANSLATION

Merely renouncing all activities yet not engaging in the devotional service of the Lord cannot make one happy. But a thoughtful person engaged in devotional service can achieve the Supreme without delay.

PURPORT

There are two classes of sannyasis, or persons in the renounced order of life. The Mayavadi sannyasis are engaged in the study of Sankhya philosophy, whereas the Vaisnava sannyasis are engaged in the study of Bhagavatam philosophy, which affords the proper commentary on the Vedanta-sutras. The Mayavadi sannyasis also study the Vedanta-sutras, but use their own commentary, called Sariraka-bhasya, written by Sankaracarya. The students of the Bhagavata school are engaged in the devotional service of the Lord, according to pancaratriki regulations, and therefore the Vaisnava sannyasis have multiple engagements in the transcendental service of the Lord. The Vaisnava sannyasis have nothing to do with material activities, and yet they perform various activities in their devotional service to the Lord. But the Mayavadi sannyasis, engaged in the studies of Sankhya and Vedanta and speculation, cannot relish the transcendental service of the Lord. Because their studies become very tedious, they sometimes become tired of Brahman speculation, and thus they take shelter of the Bhagavatam without proper understanding. Consequently their study of the Srimad-Bhagavatam becomes troublesome. Dry speculations and impersonal interpretations by artificial means are all useless for the Mayavadi sannyasis. The Vaisnava sannyasis, who are engaged in devotional service, are happy in the discharge of their transcendental duties, and they have the guarantee of ultimate entrance into the kingdom of God. The Mayavadi sannyasis sometimes fall down from the path of self-realization and again enter into material activities of a philanthropic and altruistic nature, which are nothing but material engagements. Therefore, the conclusion is that those who are engaged in Krsna conscious activities are better situated than the sannyasis engaged in simple speculation about what is Brahman and what is not Brahman, although they too come to Krsna consciousness, after many births.