Realization of `inaction in action’ and `action in inaction’ is praised here. Sri Krishna says that he is a perfect sage whose actions in the outside world are without desires or the thoughts which cause such desires. Such actions performed are mere movements without any attachment for the actions and for their results because of the absence of any selfish purpose.

They are undertaken for preventing people from going astray or merely for the maintenance of the body or to set an example to others. When a sage performs these actions in the community such a learned person really does no action and his action is equivalent to inaction since all his actions are consumed by the fire of wisdom in having known the truth about action and inaction through the knowledge of Self.

The Self knowledge is a spiritual fire which consumes the results of all kinds of actions, good or bad, making the enlightened sage free from the bonds of action. Even when such a saint works in the world outside he is only expressing the will of the Divine and not his own desires and therefore, it is said that his actions are burnt by the fire of knowledge.

The commentary on this verse and the rest, is avaialble for free as:
Kindle eBook
Google Play Book
Apple Books

Budhah, the wise, the knowers of Brahman; ahuh, call; tam, him; panditam, learned, in the real sense; yasya, whose, of the one who perceives as stated above; samarambhah, actions-whatever are undertaken; are sarve, all; kama-sankalpa-varjitah, devoid of desires and the thoughts which are their (desires’) causes (see 2.62)-i. e., (those actions) are performed as mere movements, without any selfish purpose: if they are performed by one (already) engaged in actions, then they are for preventing people from going astray, and if they are done by one who has withdrawn from actions, then they are merely for the maintenance of the body-; and jnanagni-dagdha-karmanam, whose actions have been burnt away by the fire of wisdom.

Finding inaction etc. in action etc. is jnana, wisdom; that itself is agnih, fire. He whose actions, karma, described as good and bad, have been dagdhani, burnt away by that fire of wisdom, is jnana-agni-dagdha-karma.

However, one who is a perceiver of ‘inaction’ etc. [Perceiver of inaction etc.: He who knows the truth about action and inaction as explained before.-Tr.] is free from actions owing to the very fact of his seeing ‘inaction’ etc. He is a monk, who acts merely for the purpose of maintaining the body. Being so, he does not engage in actions although he might have done so before the dawn of discrimination. He again who, having been engaged in actions under the influence of past tendencies, later on becomes endowed with the fullest Self-knowledge, he surely renounces (all) [Ast. adds this word sarva, all.-Tr.] actions along with their accessories as he does nnot find any purpose in activity. For some reason, if it becomes impossible to renounce actions and he, for the sake of preventing people from going astray, even remains engaged as before in actions-without attachment to those actions and their results because of the absence of any selfish purpose-, still he surely does nothing at all! His actions verily become ‘inaction’ because of having been burnt away by the fire of wisdom.

By way of pointing out this idea, the Lord says: