24. When Shree Krishna appeared on the Earth, seemingly as a human being, he conducted himself in all ways and manners, appropriate for his position in society, as a member of the royal warrior class. If he had acted otherwise, other human beings would begin to imitate him, thinking that they must copy the conduct of the worthy son of the righteous King Vasudev. Had Shree Krishna failed to perform Vedic duties, human beings following his example would be led away from the discipline of karm, into a state of chaos. This would have been a very serious offence and Lord Krishna would be considered at fault. Thus, he explains to Arjun that if he did not fulfill his occupational duties, it would cause pandemonium in society.
Similarly, Arjun was world-famous for being undefeated in battle, and was the brother of the virtuous King Yudhisthir. If Arjun refused to fulfill his duty to protect dharma, then many other worthy and noble warriors could follow his example and also renounce their prescribed duty of protecting righteousness. This would bring destruction to the world balance and the rout of innocent and virtuous people. Thus, for the benefit of the entire human race and the welfare of the world, Shree Krishna coaxed Arjun not to neglect performing his prescribed Vedic activities.
25. Previously, in verse, Shree Krishna had used the expression loka-saṅgraham evāpi sampaśhyan meaning, "with a view to the welfare of the masses." In this verse, the expression loka-saṅgraham chikīrṣhuḥ means "wishing the welfare of the world." Thus, Shree Krishna again emphasizes that the wise should always act for the benefit of humankind.
Also, in this verse the expression saktāḥ avidvānsaḥ has been used for people who are as yet in bodily consciousness, and hence attached to worldly pleasures, but who have full faith in the Vedic rituals sanctioned by the scriptures. They are called ignorant because though they have bookish knowledge of the scriptures, they do not comprehend the final goal of God-realization. Such ignorant people perform their duty scrupulously according to the ordinance of the scriptures, without indolence or doubt. They have firm faith that the performance of Vedic duties and rituals will bring the material rewards they desire. If the faith of such people in rituals is broken, without their having developed faith in the higher principle of devotion, they will have nowhere to go. The Śhrīmad Bhāgavatam states:
"One should continue to perform karm as long as one has not developed renunciation from the sense objects and attachment to God."
Shree Krishna urges Arjun that just as ignorant people faithfully perform ritualistic duties, so also the wise should perform their works dutifully, not for material rewards, but for setting an ideal for the rest of society. Besides, the particular situation in which Arjun finds himself is a dharma yuddha (war of righteousness). Thus, for the welfare of society, Arjun should perform his duty as a warrior.
26. Great persons have greater responsibility because common people follow them. So Shree Krishna urges that wise people should not perform any actions or make any utterances that lead the ignorant toward downfall. It may be argued that if the wise feel compassion for the ignorant, they should give them the highest knowledge—the knowledge of God-realization. Lord Krishna neutralizes this argument by stating na buddhi-bhedaṁ janayet, meaning the ignorant should not be asked to abandon duties by giving superior instructions they are not qualified to understand.
Usually, people in material consciousness consider only two options. Either they are willing to work hard for fruitive results or they wish to give up all exertions on the plea that all works are laborious, painful, and wrought with evil. Between these, working for results is far superior to the escapist approach. Hence, the spiritually wise in Vedic knowledge should inspire the ignorant to perform their duties with attentiveness and care. If the minds of the ignorant become disturbed and unsettled then they may lose faith in working altogether, and with actions stopped and knowledge not arising, the ignorant will lose out from both sides.
If both the ignorant and the wise perform Vedic actions, then what is the difference between them? Apprehending such a question, Shree Krishna explains this in the next two verses.
27. We can see that the natural phenomena of the world are not directed by us, but are performed by prakṛiti, or Mother Nature. Now, for the actions of our own body, we usually divide them into two categories: 1) Natural biological functions, such as digestion, blood circulation, heartbeat, etc., which we do not consciously execute but which occur naturally. 2) Actions such as speaking, hearing, walking, sleeping, working etc. that we think we perform.
Both these categories of works are performed by the mind-body-senses mechanism. All the parts of this mechanism are made from prakṛiti, or the material energy, which consists of the three modes (guṇas)—goodness (sattva), passion (rajas), and ignorance (tamas). Just as waves are not separate from the ocean, but a part of it, similarly the body is a part of Mother Nature from which it is created. Hence, material energy is the doer of everything.
Why then does the soul perceive itself to be doing activities? The reason is that, in the grip of the unforgiving ego, the soul falsely identifies itself with the body. Hence, it remains under the illusion of doership. Let us say there are two trains standing side-by-side on the railway platform, and a passenger on one train fixes his gaze on the other. When the second train moves, it seems that the first is moving. Likewise the immobile soul identifies with the mobility of prakṛiti. Thus, it perceives itself as the doer of actions. The moment the soul eliminates the ego and surrenders to the will of God, it realizes itself as the non-doer.
One may question that if the soul is truly the non-doer, then why is it implicated in law of karma for actions performed by the body? The reason is that the soul does not itself perform actions, but it does direct the actions of the senses-mind-intellect. For example, a chariot driver does not pull the chariot himself, but he does direct the horses. Now, if there is any accident, it is not the horses that are blamed, but the driver who was directing them. Similarly, the soul is held responsible for the actions of the mind-body mechanism because the senses-mind-intellect work on receiving inspiration from the soul.
28. The previous verse mentioned that the ahankāra vimūḍhātmā (those who are bewildered by the ego and misidentify themselves with the body) think themselves to be the doers. This verse talks about the tattva-vit, or the knowers of the Truth. Having thus abolished the ego, they are free from bodily identifications, and are able to discern their spiritual identity distinct from the corporeal body. Hence, they are not beguiled into thinking of themselves as the doers of their material actions, and instead they attribute every activity to the movements of the three guṇas. Such God-realized Saints say: jo karai so hari karai, hota kabīr kabīr "God is doing everything, but people are thinking that I am doing."
29. The question may be raised that if soul is distinct from the guṇas and their activities, then why are the ignorant attached to sense objects? Shree Krishna explains in this verse that they become bewildered by the guṇas of the material energy, and think themselves to be the doers. Infatuated by the three modes of material nature, they work for the express purpose of being able to enjoy sensual and mental delights. They are unable to perform actions as a matter of duty, without desiring rewards.
However, the kṛitsna-vit (persons with knowledge) should not disturb the minds of the akṛitsna-vit (persons without knowledge). This means that the wise should not force their thoughts onto ignorant persons by saying, "You are the soul, not the body, and hence karm is meaningless; give it up." Rather, they should instruct the ignorant to perform their respective karm, and slowly help them rise above attachment. In this way, after presenting the distinctions between those who are spiritually wise and those who are ignorant, Shree Krishna gives the sober caution not to unsettle the minds of the ignorant.
30. In his typical style, Shree Krishna expounds on a topic and then finally presents the summary. The words adhyātma chetasā mean "with the thoughts resting on God." Sanyasya means "renouncing all activities that are not dedicated to him." Nirāśhīḥ means "without hankering for the results of the actions." The consciousness of dedicating all actions to God requires forsaking claim to proprietorship, and renouncing all desire for personal gain, hankering, and lamentation.
The summary of the instructions in the previous verses is that one should very faithfully reflect, "My soul is a tiny part of the Supreme Lord Shree Krishna. He is the Enjoyer and Master of all. All my works are meant for his pleasure, and thus, I should perform my duties in the spirit of yajña or sacrifice to him. He supplies the energy by which I accomplish works of yajña. Thus, I should not take credit for any actions authored by me."