230 Karma Yoga is especially contrasted with the jnana yoga
The terms yoga and karma-yoga are occasionally used interchangeably by Åaį¹
kara, especially contrasted with the jƱÄna-yoga of SÄį¹
khya. He defines Yoga in II.39.
Yoga, the means to that (Knowledge), is:
(1) first, distancing oneself (reading prahÄna with Änandagirl and not prahanana ākillingā) from the pairs-of-opposites (dvandva);
(2) undertaking actions as karma-yoga, namely as worship (ÄrÄdhana) of God;
(3) samÄdhi-yoga.
In IV.38, āpurified by yogaā is glossed as purified by karma-yoga and samÄdhi-yoga. The accompanying word mumukį¹£u presumably would cover dvandva-prahÄna.
In XII.12 and elsewhere, karma-yoga is used as yoga, to include other elements besides action:
Yoga is said to be samÄdhi ā concentration on the Lord (ÄŖÅvare cetah-samÄdhÄna), and a performance for the Lordās sake of actions, and so on. It rests on seeing difference between Self (Ätman) and the Lord (Ätmeį¹£vara bheda Äsritya)…. It is not compatible with Right Vision (samyag-darÅana-ananvita)…. It relies on an ÄŖÅvara apart. So jƱÄna-yoga, which knows the Lord to be the Self, is not practicable for a karma-yogin…. Conversely, the jƱÄna-yogin, who sees no difference between them, would have no incentive to rely on a supposedly purely external Lord.
Nevertheless, though (as Åaį¹ kara points out) the Lord directs Arjuna (in IV. 15) to karma-yoga, this is after his first teaching of jƱÄna, in chapterĀ II, has had no effect. jƱÄna yoga has been taught to Arjuna, but he could not then follow it.
In X.19 the Lord specifically consents to Arjunaās request, by declaring: āI will tell you of my gloriesā, For constant meditation (nitya dhyeya) says Åaį¹ kara, and adds: āListen!ā The first of these glories is: T am the Self (aham ÄtmÄ) in every living being,ā which is a statement of jƱÄna . Then, for one who cannot meditate on the Lord as Self (tad-asakta), the glories of the Lord immanent in MÄyÄ are given.
Later in X.37 it is even more direct: āI am DhanaƱjayaā (Arjuna), but Arjuna fails to take it in (though for a moment he thinks he has). So in fact instruction in jƱÄna is given, but while Arjunaās basic feeling is that of karma-yoga, he cannot be rightly said to be on the jƱÄna-yoga path.