On the Moral and Spiritual Implications of the Fivefold Sacrifice: Journal of Vaishnava Studies

Abstract

Sadananda here refers to the concept of the indwelling God or Paramatma4 (the Lord of all atma-s, a form of Vishnu) and the spiritual discipline of karma yoga as it is, e.g., described in the Bhagavadgita. The core discipline of karma yoga is the “fivefold sacrifice” or maha-pancha-yajna and it is performed as a worship of the concrete form of God in every being. This article discusses the spiritual significance and the moral implications of the concept of the “fivefold debt” and the corresponding “fivefold sacrifice.” Such sacrifice is performed in order to repay this debt. The debt is owed to the deva-s (managers of the forces of nature and deities
presiding over the senses and mental functions), the rishi-s (seers and teachers of the Veda-s), the pitri-s (ancestors), fellow human beings and all other living beings (bhuta-s5). This sacrifice is performed in order to physically maintain all living  beings and guarantee their well-being, but it is directed towards God or Bhagavan Shri Vishnu6 in that particular being, not towards the being itself.