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BG 5.6 — 5.6 But renunciation, O mighty-armed Arjuna, is hard to attain without Yoga; the Yoga-harmonised sage ickly goes to Brahman.
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संन्यासस्तु महाबाहो दुःखमाप्तुमयोगतः |
योगयुक्तो मुनिर्ब्रह्म नचिरेणाधिगच्छति ||५-६||

saṃnyāsastu mahābāho duḥkhamāptumayogataḥ . yogayukto munirbrahma nacireṇādhigacchati ||5-6||


5.6 But renunciation, O mighty-armed Arjuna, is hard to attain without Yoga; the Yoga-harmonised sage ickly goes to Brahman.

Word-by-word meanings

5.6 संन्यासः renunciation? तु but? महाबाहो O mightyarmed? दुःखम् hard? आप्तुम् to attain? अयोगतः without Yoga? योगयुक्तः Yogaharmonised? मुनिः Muni? ब्रह्म to Brahman? नचिरेण ickly? अधिगच्छति goes.Commentary Muni is one who does Manana (meditation or reflection). Yoga is performance of action without selfish motive as an offering unto the Lord.Brahman here signifies renunciation or Sannyasa because renunciation consists in the knowledge of the Self. A Muni? the sage of meditation? the Yogaharmon

Commentaries

Non-dualism. The individual self and Brahman are one. The world is appearance (maya). Liberation through knowledge.

Sri Shankaracharya

5.6 Tu, but, O mighty-armed one; sannyasah, renunciation, in the real sense; duhkham aptum, is hard to attain; ayogatah, without (Karma-) yoga. Munih, the meditative man-the word muni being derived in the sense of one who meditates on the real nature of God; yoga-yuktah, eipped with yoga, with Vedic Karma-yoga in the form of dedication to God without thought of results (for oneself); adhigacchati, attains; brahma, Brahman; na cirena, without delay, very ickly. Therefore it was said by Me, 'Karma-yoga excels'. [Karma-yoga leads to enlightenment through the stages of attenuation of attachment, withdrawal of the internal and external organs from their objects, and their inclination towards the indwelling Self. (Also see Commentary on 5.12).] The monasticism under discussion is called Brahman because it leads to knowledge of the supreme Self, as stated in the Upanisad, 'Nyasa (monasticism) is Brahman. Brahman is verily the supreme' (Ma. Na. 21.2) Brahman means monasticism in the real sense, consisting in steadfastness to the knowledge of the supreme Self.

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Swami Gambirananda

5.6 But, O mighty-armed one, renunciation is hard to attain without (Karma-) yoga. The meditative man eipped with yoga attains Brahman without delay.

This interpretation draws on the Advaita tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.

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