Mahakatha
M 80% OFF

Chapter 4 · Verse 29 · Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga

Bhagavad Gita 4.29

transformative Jnana & Wisdom Karma & Action Mind & Meditation

Sanskrit

अपाने जुह्वति प्राण प्राणेऽपानं तथाऽपरे। प्राणापानगती रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणाः।।4.29।।

Transliteration

apāne juhvati prāṇaṁ prāṇe ’pānaṁ tathāpare prāṇāpāna-gatī ruddhvā prāṇāyāma-parāyaṇāḥ apare niyatāhārāḥ prāṇān prāṇeṣhu juhvati sarve ’pyete yajña-vido yajña-kṣhapita-kalmaṣhāḥ

Word by Word

apāne the incoming breath
juhvati offer
prāṇam the outgoing breath
prāṇe in the outgoing breath
apānam incoming breath
tathā also
apare others
prāṇa of the outgoing breath
apāna and the incoming breath
gatī movement
ruddhvā blocking
prāṇa-āyāma control of breath
parāyaṇāḥ wholly devoted apare—others
niyata having controlled
āhārāḥ food intake
prāṇān life-breaths
prāṇeṣhu life-energy
juhvati sacrifice
sarve all
api also
ete these
yajña-vidaḥ knowers of sacrifices
yajña-kṣhapita being cleansed by performances of sacrifices
kalmaṣhāḥ of impurities
Simplified Perspective

Krishna reveals that sacrifice takes many forms—some offer the outgoing breath into the incoming, others master the vital currents through pranayama, and still others regulate their very sustenance as an offering. The underlying truth is this: when you consciously transmute the ordinary movements of life—breath, food, thought, action—into sacred ritual, you burn away the knots of ego and karmic residue.

In your own daily practice, each conscious breath becomes a bridge between the finite self and the infinite; each meal taken with awareness becomes communion rather than mere consumption.

Listen

Bhagavad Gita 4.29 — BG 4.29

0:00
Sanskrit text from the Bhagavad Gita (public domain). Commentary © Mahakatha.

Your Mantra Prescription

This mantra is prescribed for clarity and purpose. Is that what you're going through?

2.2M people trust Mahakatha