VI: 46

Chapter 6, Verse 46

"Be a Yogi, Arjuna,
Because the Yogi
Goes beyond those
Who only follow
The path of the austere,
The path of learning,
Or the path of good works."

Sri Aurobindo:

After an intervention of Arjuna and a reply to his doubt as to how Yoga can be at all possible for the restless minds of humans, the Divine Teacher speaks of that stainless Yogi who seeks for and attains, by works and knowledge and whatever other means suffice, not spiritual knowledge nor power nor anything else for its own sake, but for union with God alone.  In that quest and realization, all else is contained and lifted beyond itself to its most divine significance.

Paramahansa Yogananda:

The Yogi teaches and serves others in the highest way...by an inspiring life.  Example ever speaks louder than words.  Reform thyself and thou wilt reform thousands.  Forgetting God is the greatest error.  Communion with God is the highest virtue.

Dispassion towards worldly entanglements in order to commune with God is desirable on the path of Yoga.  Scriptural study with the parallel desire to practice the truths revealed in them is also important.  Performance of dutiful actions that take care of one's own needs and are serviceful and uplifting to others provides a beneficial balance in the life of the Yogi.

Spiritual knowledge without practical realization is necessarily limited in its value.  Few understand the Bhagavad Gita as its writer, the sage Vyasa, understood its truths.  Few understand the words of Christ as he understood them.  Vyasa and Christ experienced the same truth.  They describe it variously in different languages.  In order to fully understand their words, you must learn to commune with Vyasa and Christ in God-consciousness.