In Bhagavad Geeta chapter II verse 42 and 43 Bhagwan Krishna speaks as if belittling the Vedic rituals associated with Yagna.
Yagna was an important part of Vedic way of life. Why would Krishna speak so harshly against it? I wondered! All of a sudden another question came to mind; did Krishna ever performed a Yagna?
As I turned to internet for my research I was surprised to find some fact.
Elaborate Yagna were mostly performed by kings.
Krishna was never a king. He was a king maker!
He killed Kansa and reinstated his Grandfather Ugrasane as king of Mathura, and remained there as a counselor.
Despite being called Dwarkadheesh, he was not king of Dwarka. Dwarka was run by a council, Krishna being the most influential among the many counselors.
He was not against Yagna either. Took part in many Yagna as an influential guest.
When Yudhister wanted to do the Yagna to relieve himself from his pain and suffering due to Mahabharata war, Krishna helped him organize the Yagna.
In Bhagvad Geeta chapter 18.3 Krishna say himself- ‘Yagna, Daan and Tapah should never be abandoned.’
Knowing all this I realized his reason of being critical in Ch.II was only to lead Arjuna in understanding the difference between work done with desire and attachment versus doing it without being attached to fruits of work.
Savita Tyagi
3.22.2026
