Chapter 6 is the chapter of meditation, but meditation is not introduced as an escape from life. A seeker first needs a prepared mind. Spiritual knowledge comes through śravaṇam, listening to the teaching systematically from a competent teacher, and mananam, reflecting on that teaching until doubts are removed. Meditation has a role before and after this knowledge: before knowledge, it helps prepare and purify the mind; after knowledge, it helps assimilate the teaching deeply. The chapter therefore begins with the general disciplines that make meditation possible. The PDF clearly presents Chapter 6 as dealing with meditation, and also states that meditation is not the direct means of liberation, knowledge, or mystical experience; knowledge alone reveals mokṣa, and meditation has preparatory and assimilative roles.

The first preparation for meditation is samatvam, a balanced mind. This does not mean becoming emotionless like a stone. It means not being carried away by violent emotional reactions. The same mind that goes through daily life is the mind that later sits for meditation. If the mind is disturbed all day by anxiety, anger, competition, hurt, and result-obsession, that disturbed mind will sit for meditation and replay those impressions. Therefore, a meditative mind must be prepared through karma-yoga during daily life itself.

This śloka defines that karma-yoga.

Anāśritaḥ karmaphalam means not depending on the result of action. Here, karmaphalam especially means material benefits such as name, fame, promotion, salary, comfort, recognition, pleasure, and status. These are not condemned. They have their place. But they are not the highest priority. A karma-yogī gives primary value to dharma and mokṣa, while artha and kāma are kept subordinate. Wealth, comfort, and enjoyment may be used, just as pickle may accompany curd rice, but they should not become the main meal of life. The teaching specifically says that material accomplishments may be valued, but they must remain subservient to spiritual growth; when forced to choose, the karma-yogī chooses spiritual growth over material advantage.

Kāryaṁ karma means the action that ought to be done. It is not any random activity. It refers to duties and actions that help inner growth. The teaching identifies these actions as scripturally guided actions meant for citta-śuddhi, purification of the mind. It also connects them with pañca-mahā-yajña-type actions, where not only the individual benefits, but society also benefits. These are called nitya-naimittika karma, vihita karma, niṣkāma karma, and pañca-mahā-yajña.

Briefly:

Nitya karma means daily obligatory duties that maintain dharma and inner discipline.

Naimittika karma means occasional duties performed when a particular situation or occasion arises.

Vihita karma means actions enjoined or approved by śāstra.

Niṣkāma karma means action done without selfish desire for material reward.

Pañca-mahā-yajña refers to the fivefold duties of contribution and gratitude toward Bhagavān, ṛṣis, ancestors, fellow beings, and other living beings.

Such actions are called kāryaṁ karma because they are meant for inner growth, not merely for personal enjoyment. They are selfless and welfare-oriented. In contrast, artha-kāma-dominated actions may benefit only oneself. The karma-yogī chooses actions that refine the mind.

Bhagavān then makes a striking statement: such a karma-yogī is the true saṁnyāsī. A person need not have physically renounced family, profession, or possessions to have inner renunciation. If he has given up dependence on material results, he has the essence of saṁnyāsa. He may live as a householder and still be inwardly renounced.

Bhagavān also says such a person is the true yogī. Meditation is the mind dwelling steadily on one field. A karma-yogī’s mind is available for the present duty. He plans when planning is needed, acts when action is needed, and after action, he accepts the result as Īśvara-prasāda. He is not constantly agitated by the past or anxious about the future. Because every action is offered to Bhagavān, his life itself becomes a form of open-eye meditation. The teaching explicitly says that such a karma-yogī can be called a meditator because his mind is fully available for the present task and because his action is offered to Bhagavān.

The last part of the verse corrects two superficial definitions.

Na niragniḥ — one is not a true saṁnyāsī merely by giving up ritual fires. A person may give up rituals, sacred fires, home, and external responsibilities, but if the mind is still full of ambition, anxiety, status-seeking, and future plans, that is only external saṁnyāsa.

Na cākriyaḥ — one is not a true yogī merely by being inactive. A person may sit silently with closed eyes, straight posture, and mālā, but if the mind is wandering everywhere, it is not real meditation. Physical stillness is not the same as inner yoga.

Thus the first verse of the meditation chapter teaches a very important foundation: meditation is not isolated from daily life. The mind becomes ready for meditation when daily action becomes karma-yoga. True renunciation is freedom from dependence on material results. True yoga is a focused, Īśvara-centered mind in and through action.