Summary from Radhika ji
When we talk about devas, eg: Surya deva/Indra deva/Chandra deva - they are essentially divinity in those entities
Unless their energy is there, life cannot exist in this universe.
Chandra(moon) is the reflection of the sun - if he doesn't do his job - there won't be oshadhi's (meaning medicines) which can be interpreted as vegetation we need for eating. Unless moonlight is there, growth will not happen.
All jnyanendriya's have abhinama devata's. Unless they work properly, if we take pindanda, the body is inert. Unless all these work properly, ie rasa, roopa, sparsha, gandha, unless the presiding deva's work properly life cannot happen. When Jiva leaves this body, all of them leave with prana the last to leave.
Be aware and take care of your indriyas so they can serve us. fro eg: Anything we consume, take part, we have to be aware that this is a 'shesha' ie. given over, as prasad after the yagna. Otherwise, one will become selfish.
Verse 21, talks about Sreshtah - one you look up to - in your home, parents are sreshta. Children follow what parents do. We as parents should exercise caution and set good examples for our children. There shouldn't be a disconnect between what we think and how we act. This is required for the path of sadhana. That unity, integrity is what one needs to develop. Always strive to mean what you say.
22,23,24 are Bhagavan's own example
He has shown what the duties are when one is born as a human. What is it he has to do on a daily basis. Nityakarma, Naimithakarma. Bhagavan knew that if he didn't do these daily karmas, other people would follow him and not do them. An example of a teacher snacking in the middle of class - students will follow. Bhagavan is showing us that it is important how we conduct ourselves.
Verse 22 - Bhagavan is making a statement that there is nothing he needs to attain and nothing that he doesn't have but he is demonstrating that he is doing his daily karmas. To understand, let's look at his own life - from childhood to end of his avatar, he constantly worked on discharging his duties - to perfection. Why did he do this? He was setting a model example for the rest of us. And doing it in a fair and impartial. He was with Pandavas because Dharma was with them. Shishupala was his relative and he gave him 100 chances before the chakra came down to strike him. Even with Duryodhana and Karna, he conducted himself with dignity and gave several chances.
In verse 20, when Bhagavan is talking about Janaka, he shows us why a jnani/realized person does work. You cannot be without doing work for a 'kshana'. People start work for themselves, as the mind purifies, they will start to understand why they do what they do and think beyond themselves.
Verse 23 - Bhagavan tells us what will happen if he doesn't do his daily karmas. Bhagavan says that if he didn't do karma, people will follow him. Think about sunrise/sunset/rotation of the earth/gravitational force/season let's ask ourselves what would happen if any of these events didn't happen, what would be the impact on the world? All these are daily phenomena pervaded Bhagawan that we are dependent on for our daily lives.
For eg: if we are bound by prakriti gunas, we are bound by action and we have to do something at least to maintain our bodies. Bhagavan is telling us that we have to work all the time. Without this, we won't be able to lead our day to day lives.
Verse 24 - Varna is often misquoted and misused. Caste has been translated in a hurry. Varna means color. Let's say, for example, 4 sons born to a Brahmin, each can belong to 4 varnas.
1 - Brahmin pandit, 2 - business, 3 - hindu military hotel, 4 - service
Shushrusha is what a shudra does - one needs to be a shudra first. varna comes from our innate nature ie. Nature is what we carry in the subtle body from one birth to the next.
People who have a particular inclination, they should excel in that activity when they follow their inclination.
Bhagavan is stressing this and showing us how this is to be done -
There are 3 things ie. Intent or desire to do work, know how to do work and actually doing the work.
This was followed by a general discussion on the topic covering the above points.