nayam loko 'sty ayajnasya
kuto 'nyah kuru-sattama
kuto 'nyah kuru-sattama
yajna cannot even attain this earthly planet with its
meagre happiness. How then, can he attain the planets
of the devas and others?
SARARTAH-VARSINI (Srila Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakura):
By not performing yajna, fault (sin) is incurred. To explain
this, Bhagavan Sri Krishna is speaking this sloka beginning with
nayam. If one cannot even attain the earth planet, which provides very little happiness, how can one attain the higher
planets such as those of the devas?
SARARTHA-VARSINI PRAKASIKA VRTTI (SNM):
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura expresses Krishna’s mood as
follows, "Therefore, Arjuna, O best of the Kurus, one who
does not perform yajna cannot even attain this world, what
to speak of the next. Therefore, yajna is certainly an obligatory
duty. From this you should understand that smarta-
varnasrama (the caste-rules enjoined in the smrtis), astanga-yoga,
Vedic sacrifices and so on are all part of yajna. Even
brahma-jnana is a special type of yajna. There is no karma
(prescribed duty) in this world other than yajna. Everything
else is vikarma.”
