SLOKA OF THE DAY:

Bhagavad Gita As It Is -
Chapter 6 Text 1
sri-bhagavan uvaca
anasritah karma-phalam
karyam karma karoti yah
sa sannyasi ca yogi ca
na niragnir na cakriyah

sri-bhagavan uvaca--the Lord said; anasritah--without taking shelter; karma-phalam- -of the result of work; karyam--obligatory; karma--work; karoti--performs; yah--one who; sah--he; sannyasi--in the renounced order; ca--also; yogi--mystic; ca--also; na--not; nih--without; agnih--fire; na--nor; ca--also; akriyah--without duty.

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: One who is unattached to the fruits of his work and who works as he is obligated is in the renounced order of life, and he is the true mystic, not he who lights no fire and performs no duty.

JOURNAL:

Srila Prabhupada writes in his purport; Although the eightfold yoga system is recommended in this chapter, the Lord emphasizes that the process of karma-yoga, or acting in Krsna consciousness, is better.

I sit with a devotional item to occupy each one of my senses when I chant my japa. I touch my beads, listen to the group japa tape that Prabhupada made and my own voice, speak the Holy Names, keep a picture in front of me of Krishna and smell incense that I have offered. The process of the eightfold yoga system is the exact opposite of this.

I have found that as I chant I slowly stop thinking of the world around me. My senses seem to fall out from under my control and the astanga-yoga system that was described in 5.27-28 happens automatically as the number of rounds grows.