Decisive knowledge: Vyavasayatmika buddihi

Krishna chose to give Jnana first to Arjuna over karma. Animals are better equipped to do karma (actions), ex: building skills of ants, bees & humming birds, running skills of cheetah & deer, load bearing capacity of bull & donkey, escapism of Cuckoo etc. Karma is their strength, mostly driven by basic instincts like hunger, sleep, fear and urge to procreate.  However, we humans are blessed with intellect and discrimination, the power of knowledge, that's our strength, that's the reason, Krishna never gave a sermon listing do's and dont's, he first chose to rectify Arjuna's mis-understanding with proper knowledge. He also cautioned about two traps in this path of knowledge, mere logical argumentation (prajna vada) and blind scriptural interpretation (veda vada), often both leading to dangerous consequences. Solution is buddhi yoga, or Jnana yoga or in other words Sankyha yoga. Every action should be properly supported by clear understanding, not mechanically performed like a bull of the mill, actions without knowledge, is not the inherent nature of humans.

व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्दिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन।

बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्दयोऽव्यवसायिनाम्॥गीत २-४१॥

The word Vyavasaya is repeated multiple times in this second chapter, the correct meaning of vyavasaya in sanskrit is decisiveness. Vyavasayatmika buddihi means decisive knowledge, confirmed understanding, without any room for ambiguity, dilemma, mis-concepts or mis-understanding. With such a decisive knowledge, karma will naturally be in the right direction.

There are four types of knowledge;

* Experienced knowledge

* Experimented knowledge

* Traditional knowledge

* Logical knowledge

WH questions like who, what, where and when leads to superficial knowledge of  tradition and logic, questions like How and why leads to scientific, experiential knowledge. Karma has to be backed with such an experienced and experimented knowledge, Vyavasayatmika buddhi is that knowledge gained by experimentation and experience. This is the main message of the second chapter, Decisive knowledge: Vyavasayatmika buddihi.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
References: 
Audio cassettes and CDs from Aurobindo society, 
http://www.aurosociety.org/
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------