यं संन्यासमिति प्राहुर्योगं तं विद्धि पाण्डव | न ह्यसंन्यस्तसङ्कल्पो योगी भवति कश्चन
yaṃ saṃnyāsamiti prāhuryogaṃ taṃ viddhi pāṇḍava . na hyasaṃnyastasaṅkalpo yogī bhavati kaścana
Ce qu'ils appellent sannyasa, sache, ô Pandava, que c'est le yoga ; car nul ne peut devenir un yogi s'il n'a pas renoncé à ses désirs et à ses intentions.
That which they call monasticism, know that to be Yoa, O Pandava, For, nobody who has not given up expectations can be a yogi.
Krishna souligne ici l'identité profonde entre le sannyasa (renoncement) et le yoga. Le véritable renoncement ne consiste pas à abandonner le monde, mais à se détacher des intentions et des désirs égoïstes (sankalpa) qui lient l'individu aux fruits de ses actions. Sans ce détachement, l'esprit ne peut atteindre la stabilité nécessaire à la pratique du yoga.
Sankalpa is the working of the imagining faculty of the mind that makes plans for the future and guesses the results of plans so formed. No one can become a Karma Yogi who plans and schemes and expects fruits for his actions. No devotee of action who has not renounced the thought of the fruits of his actions can become a Yogi of steady mind. The thought of the fruits will certainly make the mind unsteady.Lord Krishna eulogises Karma Yoga here because it is the means or an external aid (Bahiranga Sadhana) to Dhyana Yoga. Karma Yoga is a steppingstone to Dhyana Yoga. It leads to the Yoga of Meditation in due course. In order to encourage the practice of Karna Yoga it is stated here that Karma Yoga is Sannyasa. (Cf.V.4)