Bhagavad-gītā 4.29
Read once with your eyes. Read again aloud.
अपाने जुह्वति प्राण प्राणेऽपानं तथाऽपरे। प्राणापानगती रुद्ध्वा प्राणायामपरायणाः।।4.29।।
apāne juhvati prāṇaṁ prāṇe ’pānaṁ tathāpare prāṇāpāna-gatī ruddhvā prāṇāyāma-parāyaṇāḥ apare niyatāhārāḥ prāṇān prāṇeṣhu juhvati sarve ’pyete yajña-vido yajña-kṣhapita-kalmaṣhāḥ
Yet some offer as sacrifice, the outgoing into the in-coming breath, and the in-coming into the out-going, stopping the courses of the in-coming and out-going breaths, constantly practising the regulation of the vital energy; while others yet of regulated food, offer in the Prânas the functions thereof.
English rendering by Swami Swarupananda. Public domain first edition, 1909.
Build the sentence from its parts
Read across once, then cover the meanings and recover them from the Sanskrit forms.
| Sanskrit form | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| apāne | the incoming breath |
| juhvati | offer |
| prāṇam | the outgoing breath |
| prāṇe | in the outgoing breath |
| apānam | incoming breath |
| tathā | also |
| apare | others |
| prāṇa | of the outgoing breath |
| apāna | and the incoming breath |
| gatī | movement |
| ruddhvā | blocking |
| prāṇa-āyāma | control of breath |
| parāyaṇāḥ | wholly devoted apare:others |
| niyata | having controlled |
| āhārāḥ | food intake |
| prāṇān | life-breaths |
| prāṇeṣhu | life-energy |
| juhvati | sacrifice |
| sarve | all |
| api | also |
| ete | these |
| yajña-vidaḥ | knowers of sacrifices |
| yajña-kṣhapita | being cleansed by performances of sacrifices |
| kalmaṣhāḥ | of impurities |
Read the Sanskrit as a connected thought built from apāne (the incoming breath), parāyaṇāḥ (wholly devoted apare:others), and kalmaṣhāḥ (of impurities). Ask what changes between the first and last term, and how that movement contributes to knowledge that purifies action. State the connection in your own words, then check it against Bhagavad-gita 4.29.
Original school explanation. Written independently from the Sanskrit word map. It is not a quotation, translation, or summary of a named modern commentary. Chapter lens: Follow the links among teaching lineage, divine appearance, action, knowledge, sacrifice and the teacher–student relationship.
Five careful reading routes
The cards below are reading references, not claims about what an acharya says in this verse. Modern wording stays inside authorized editions. Classical commentary will appear only after an independent translation has passed scholarly and rights review.
Meaning map
Follow the thought
- 1
Yet some offer as sacrifice, the outgoing into the in-coming breath
- 2
the in-coming into the out-going, stopping the courses of the in-coming and out-going breaths, constantly practising the regulation of the vital energy
- 3
while others yet of regulated food, offer in the Prânas the functions thereof
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A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Bhagavad-gita As It IsFor Bhagavad-gita 4.29, consult the authorized BBT edition. No purport, translation, or author-attributed summary is reproduced here.
Find the authorized editionBhaktivinoda Thakura
Rasika-ranjanaA verified independent rendering for Bhagavad-gita 4.29 has not yet passed scholarly and rights review. Modern translations are not copied here.
Independent rendering pending reviewBaladeva Vidyabhushana
Gita-bhushana-bhashyaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 4.29 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewVishvanatha Cakravarti Thakura
Sarartha-varshini-tikaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 4.29 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewOther Gaudiya acharyas
Authorized Gaudiya editionsFor Bhagavad-gita 4.29, later teachers remain a further-reading route. Their wording and distinctive teaching structures require permission or a separate rights review.
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