Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 5, Verse 6

संन्यासस्तु महाबाहो दुःखमाप्तुमयोगतः । योगयुक्तो मुनिर्ब्रह्म नचिरेणाधिगच्छति

saṃnyāsastu mahābāho duḥkhamāptumayogataḥ | yogayukto munirbrahma nacireṇādhigacchati

Translation

But renunciation, O mighty-armed, is hard to attain except by Yoga; a sage equipped with Yoga ere long reaches Brahman.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

saṃnyāsaḥ

renunciation

tu

indeed

mahābāho

O mighty-armed

duḥkham

hard

āptum

to obtain

ayogataḥ

from non-yoga (without yoga)

yogayuktaḥ

with yoga, joined

muniḥ

muni

brahma

to Brahman

na

not

cireṇa

by a long time

adhigacchati

goes

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

Renunciation (saṃnyāsa) here spoken of is the true (pāramārthika) saṃnyāsa; and Yoga is the Vedic Karma-Yoga (performance of Vedic ritual) dedicated to the Īśvara and entirely free from motives. A sage (muni) is so called because of his meditation (manana) on the form of the Īśvara. 'Brahman' here means renunciation (saṃnyāsa), because renunciation consists in the knowledge of the Highest Self (Paramātman); the Śruti says: "What is called 'Nyāsa' is Brahman; and Brahman is verily the Great" (Tait. Up. 4.78). A sage equipped with Yoga soon reaches Brahman, the true renunciation, which consists in steady devotion to right knowledge. Wherefore, I have said that Karma-Yoga is better.