Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18, Verse 15

English Translation

Whatever action a man performs with the body, speech and mind, be it just or its reverse, of it these five are the cuases.

Detailed Commentary

।।18.15।। Explanation — In actions performed by the body, speech, and mind, the five factors beginning with *adhiṣṭhāna* are involved. For instance, the word 'body' (*śarīra*) implies *adhiṣṭhāna*; 'speech' (*vāk*) implies the external senses (*bahiḥkaraṇa*); and 'mind' (*manas*) implies the internal sense (*antaḥkaraṇa*). 'Naraḥ' (man) signifies the doer (*kartā*), and 'prārabhatē' (commences) encompasses the endeavors of all the senses. Now, regarding 'divine' (*daiva*), it resides within the *antaḥkaraṇa* as *saṁskāra* but cannot be directly perceived. Its presence is revealed through the *vṛttis* (mental modifications) it generates and the actions performed in accordance with them. Whatever actions a human being undertakes through body, speech, and mind, be they scripturally sanctioned (*śāstravihita*) or unsanctioned (*śāstraviruddha*), these five factors are present. All actions occur through the body, speech, and mind. The activities arising from these are termed *kāyika* (bodily), *vācika* (verbal), and *mānasika* (mental). Impurity in these three leads to bondage. Therefore, for their purification, the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth verses of the seventeenth chapter respectively describe *kāyika*, *vācika*, and *mānasika tapas*. The purport is that only scripturally sanctioned actions should be performed, and *tapas* undertaken with a desireless attitude (*niṣkāma bhāva*) is *sāttvika*, leading to liberation, whereas *rājasika* and *tāmasika tapas* cause bondage. Considering this body, speech, etc., as one's own, and performing actions for oneself, brings about impurity. Hence, without purifying them, the Sāṅkhya doctrine can only be intellectually understood, but a clear realization cannot occur. In such a situation, if the aspirant does not consider them as their own and performs no actions for themselves, they will quickly become purified. Whether one purifies them through the path of *Karma Yoga* and severs the connection, or severs the connection through discrimination (*viveka*) via *Sāṅkhya Yoga*, both means lead to the disengagement from *Prakṛti* and its functions, and the experience of the true essence (*vāstavika tattva*). The very cosmic power (*samaṣṭi śakti*) by which the activities of the universe occur also naturally governs the activities of the individual. In the absence of *viveka*, considering oneself the doer in activities such as eating, drinking, sitting, standing, sleeping, waking, etc., leads to bondage. But where one does not assume doership, there is no accumulation of *karma*. For example, activities like transitioning from childhood to youth, the breath's movement, digestion, etc., happen naturally without doership and incur no merit or demerit. Similarly, when there is no ego of doership (*kartṛtvābhimāna*), all actions are experienced as being performed by *Prakṛti* alone. Connection — The Lord clarifies the purpose of stating the five factors in the performance of actions in the subsequent verse.