Summary:

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Verse 15: Knowing “me” as either Atma (awareness untouched by action because there is no second thing to affect it) or Ishvara (the intelligence manifesting as laws and forms), even ancient seekers performed action. Ishvara is not authoring your life by its own discretion – you are the one writing your script through your actions, and Ishvara extends the helping hand you ask for. Life is not pre-written or random; the cause-and-effect relationship is completely impersonal, and the blank page of your future is filled by the causes you put forth today. It is never too late, as self-imposed limitations are merely learned behaviors and stories that determine your focus and thus your reality. Ishvara is understood as a platform for self-growth (yoga-shastra) and self-discovery (brahma-vidya). The “seekers” are interpreted two ways: mumukshus performing action for antahkarana shuddhi (mind purification), and jnanis acting for loka sangraha (service) according to their prarabdha karma (life trajectory), svabhava (natural disposition), and svadharma (relational duties). The healthy human expression is to contribute rather than take, aligning with Ishvara's natural order. Ishvara Prasada Buddhi means treating every difficult situation as a gift to unwrap – reflecting after the heat passes builds equanimity for similar situations ahead.

Verse 14 – Revision:

Ishvara is the author of cause-effect. But you are the doer (writer).

You tell Ishvara what to author through your actions. Thus you reap the results you sowed in past, and are sowing right now. It’s not a fixed script, but script is constantly refined.

Knowing this, the horse reins are in your hands, removing victim mindset and external blame. It also means Ishvara doesn’t have an agenda for anyone. You create an agenda for yourself based on your choices.

Ishvara’s laws facilitate your fancies. For instance, if you drop your favorite porcelain, can’t be angry at gravity for breaking it. Gravity isn’t there to help nor hinder you – it’s operating impersonally.

In short, Ishvara makes possible the cause-effect system operated by universal laws, but doesn’t decide what cause-effect-relationship each object will go through.

Additionally, each organism’s cause-effect will be influenced by (a) its environment and family associations, (b) how many lives it positively touches.

NEXT VERSE:  Arjuna is reminded, to gain knowledge of self (Krishna's svarupa as discussed previous session), he/she needs to engage in actions to uncover outdated thinking patterns…

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Verse 15:

एवम् ज्ञात्वा कृतम् कर्म पूर्वैः अपि मुमुक्षुभिः ।
कुरु कर्म एव तस्मात् त्वम् पूर्वैः पूर्वतरम् कृतम् ॥ ४-१५॥
evam jñātvā kṛtam karma pūrvaiḥ api mumukṣubhiḥ ।
kuru karma eva tasmāt tvam pūrvaiḥ pūrvataram kṛtam ॥ 4-15॥

Knowing (Me) in this manner, even seekers of ancient times performed action. Therefore, perform action indeed as even it was done by those who came before in the ancient past.

“Knowing Me in this manner…”

As discussed last week in Verse 14, Krishna's use the word “Me”, depending on the context, can refer to…

1. 1. Atma (Consciousness)
   2. Ishvara (Intelligence): Meaning, Ishvara isn’t doing your life, only lending whatever hand you ask it through your decisions. Knowing Ishvara isn’t for nor against you, it provides a platform for (a) self-growth, and (b) self-discovery.

“Even seekers of ancient time performed action. Therefore, perform action indeed…”

Two interpretations of word “seekers / ancients” (pūrvāiḥ)…

Interpretation 1: Seeker who is mumukshu (wanting to purify the mind for sake of liberation)

You come to earth connected to situations and people, which calls responsibilities from you. Doing them righteously, you’re rewarded. Participating with them creates friction necessary to uncover blind spots, develops humility (else won’t listen to teachers), reduces biases, etc.

Additionally, your willingness to engage in life, helps you balance out dearly-held-onto views (raga-dvesha), that keep you admiring a narrow range of possibilities, that sustain black-white thinking, and keep your vision at surface level.

Here's an example of of black-white thinking driven by likes-dislikes: Ghandi postponed India’s independence, or Ghandi is example of compassion. A refined approach is to recognize no matter what happens, it's an eternal story of who said what and when, and will never end. Could've you done better? Would've your choices been smarter? Everyone is doing what they can according to the pressures and situations they're exposed to.

Summary: Stay where you are, say “yes” to opportunities, and each will show a blind spot, an outdated thinking pattern. Each time refining the vision further, enjoying more equanimity.

Interpretation 2: Seeker who has become a jnani…

Meaning those ancient seekers who came to realize their freedom (moksha), continued to perform actions, not for antaḥ-karaṇa-śuddhi but for loka-saṅgraha, according to one’s:

• 1. Prarabdha (the pleasant/unpleasant circumstances that come your way)
  2. Svadharma (what's expected of you in each role you play and situations you're in)
  3. Svabhava (skills natural to you due to impressions carried over from prior lives)

NEXT VERSE: The true meaning of action and actionlessness…

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Course was based on Swami Dayananda (Arsha Vidya) home study course.

Recorded 1 Feb, 2026