Bhagavad Gita BG 4.28
Chapter 4, Verse 28 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
द्रव्ययज्ञास्तपोयज्ञा योगयज्ञास्तथापरे । स्वाध्यायज्ञानयज्ञाश्च यतयः संशितव्रताः ॥
dravya-yajnas tapo-yajnas yoga-yajnas tathaapare svadhyaya-jnana-yajnas ca yatayah samshita-vratah
Meaning
Some perform the yajna of material offering, some the yajna of austerity, some the yajna of yoga; and others — ascetics of sharp vows — perform the yajna of self-study and knowledge.
Understanding
Krishna catalogs yajna by its substance: dravya-yajna (material offering — charity, gifts, conventional ritual), tapo-yajna (austerity as offering — physical and mental discipline), yoga-yajna (yoga as offering — the practice of yoga as the gift to the divine), and svadhyaya-jnana-yajna (self-study and knowledge as offering — the most internalized form). The yatayah samshita-vratas (ascetics of sharply held vows) practice the last. All of these are valid paths — the common thread is the orientation of offering.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| द्रव्ययज्ञ | dravya-yajna | material offering as yajna |
| तपोयज्ञ | tapo-yajna | austerity as yajna |
| योगयज्ञ | yoga-yajna | yoga practice as yajna |
| स्वाध्याय | svadhyaya | self-study, scriptural recitation |
| संशितव्रताः | samshita-vratah | of sharp/firm vows, rigorous in their commitments |
| तथा | tathā | and also / in addition |
| अपरे | apare | others / still others |
| च | ca | and (conjunction) |
| यतयः | yatayaḥ | the ascetics / those with strict vows |