Shloka 26
Brahmopadeśa: Adhipatitva-kathana, Dharma-lakṣaṇa, and Kṣetra–Kṣetrajña Viveka
Book 14, Chapter 43
प्रवृत्तिलक्षणो योगो ज्ञानं संन्यासलक्षणम् | तस्माजज्ञानं पुरस्कृत्य संन्यसेदिह बुद्धिमान्
pravṛttilakṣaṇo yogo jñānaṃ saṃnyāsalakṣaṇam | tasmāj jñānaṃ puraskṛtya saṃnyased iha buddhimān |
Dijo Vāyu: «El yoga se caracteriza por la participación en la acción justa, mientras que la renuncia se caracteriza por el conocimiento verdadero. Por eso, el sabio debe poner el conocimiento en primer lugar y, en esta misma vida, adoptar la renuncia, haciendo del discernimiento —y no de meras señales externas— el fundamento del camino del renunciante».
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes two paths by their defining features: yoga is marked by pravṛtti (engaged, duty-oriented action), while saṃnyāsa is marked by jñāna (inner knowledge and discernment). It advises that genuine renunciation should be grounded in knowledge rather than external signs, and that a wise person should prioritize insight and thereby adopt renunciation.
Vāyudeva is speaking as a teacher-figure, offering a doctrinal clarification about yoga and saṃnyāsa. The focus is not on an external event but on ethical-spiritual instruction: how to understand and choose a life-orientation where knowledge leads and outward markers are secondary.