Let us first see what yajna means. Everyday we make use of nature. If a hundred of us crowd together in one spot for a day, that will spoil the place, pollute the atmosphere, and thus harm nature. We should do something to recoup nature, to restore its balance. It is for this purpose that the institution of yajna was created. Yajna is intended to reimburse, to put back what we have taken from nature. We have been farming for thousands of years and eroding the fertility of the soil thereby. Yajna says, “Return to the soil its fertility. Plough it. Let it absorb heat from the sun. Manure it.” To make good the loss is one of the purposes of the yajna. Another purpose is to purify the things we use. We use a well and make the place all round it dirty and slushy.
The harm thus caused should be undone; so we should clean the surroundings. Production of something new is also an aspect of yajna. We wear clothes; so we should spin regularly to produce them. Growing cotton or food grains, spinning—all these are forms of yajna. Whatever we do as yajna should not have any selfish motive behind it; it should rather be done with a sense of duty to compensate the loss we have caused. There is no altruism in it; it is the repayment of what we already owe. In fact, we are born with a debt. What we produce for repayment of that debt is a form of service; we are not obliging anybody thereby. We use so many things in the world around us. Yajna should be done for their replenishment and purification as well as for new production.
5. Human society is the second institution. Our parents, teachers, friends—all of them toil for us. Dana has been prescribed to discharge our debt to society. Dana too is no altruism. We are already highly obliged to society. We were totally defenceless and weak when we were born. It is the society that looked after us and brought us up. We should therefore serve it. When we serve others without taking anything in return, that is altruism; but we have already taken much from society. The service that is rendered to repay that debt is dana. Dana means contributing to the progress of mankind. While yajna means working for the replenishment of nature’s loss, repayment of the debt to society through exerting oneself physically or through money or some other means is dana. 6. The third institution is the body. It too gets worn out daily by our use. We daily use mind, intellect and organs. Tapas has been prescribed for removing the defects and distortions that arise in the body and purifying it.
7. Thus it is our duty to act in such a way that these three institutions— nature, society and the body—function smoothly and efficiently. We create a number of good or bad institutions, but these three have not been created by us. They have already been given to us. They are natural, not man-made. It is our natural duty to replenish through yajna, dana and tapas the wear and tear in these three orders. If we follow this, all our energy will be harnessed for this purpose. No strength will be left for anything else. All our strength would be consumed for the sake of these three institutions. If we could say like Kabir, “O Lord! I am returning this shawl given by you without soiling it!”1 that would be a matter of fulfillment for us. But for this, the triple programme of yajnadana-tapas must be followed. Here we have regarded yajna, dana and tapas as if they were different entities; but in fact, they are not really different. Nature, society and the body are not completely distinct entities. Society is not something outside nature, nor is the body outside it. Therefore, productive labour (yajna), dana, tapas—all these can be called yajna in a broad sense. It is in this spirit that the Gita has referred to dravyayajna (sacrifice with material gifts) and tapoyajna (sacrifice with austerities) in the Fourth Chapter. The Gita has broadened the meaning of yajna. Whatever service we render to these three institutions is bound to be a form of yajna. But it is also necessary that this service should be without any desire or expectation for reward. In fact, there can be no room whatsoever for expecting any fruit of our actions, as we have already received much from these institutions. We are already burdened with debt. What we have to do is to return what we have already taken. Nature attains a state of harmony and equilibrium through yajna, society attains such a state through dana, and tapas maintains equilibrium in the body. Yajna-dana-tapas is thus the triple programme for preserving balance and order in these three institutions. It will lead to purification and elimination of pollution.
8. To enable us to serve in this manner, we have to consume something. That too is a part of yajna. The Gita calls it aahaara (food). Just as an engine needs fuel, body needs food. The food is not yajna in itself, but it is necessary for the successful performance of yajna. That is why we say before starting the meals, ‘उदरभरण नोहे जावणजे यज्ञकर्मा’ (‘This is not for filling the belly; it is an act of yajna.’) Just as offering flowers to the Lord is worship, toiling in the garden to produce the flowers is also worship. Anything done for the performance of yajna is a form of worship. The body can be useful to us only when it is given food. Whatever is done for the sake of yajna is a kind of yajna itself. The Gita calls such actions ‘sacrificial acts’ (actions for the sake of yajna). Whatever is offered to the body to enable it to be ever-ready for service is a kind of sacrificial offering; it is a form of yajna. The food taken for the sake of service is indeed sacred. 9. Again, all these things should have faith at their foundation. One should always have in mind the idea that all service is to be ultimately dedicated to God. This is extremely important. Life cannot be full of service if such a spirit is not there. Dedication to the Lord is the key that must never be overlooked.
