CH 3, Verse 4

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Chapter 3 Verse 4Na karmaNaam anaarambhaannaishhkarm yaM purushho'shnute /na cha

sa.nnyasanaad eva siddhi.n samadhigachchhati //By non-performance of actions,

none reaches the actionless state of Brahman; and by the renunciation of

actions, none reaches perfection.LESSONS FROM BHAGAVAD GITA – 16As taught by

Parama Pujya Sri SwamijiCompiled by: Swami Dattananda Bhakti Mala, August

1993“By non-performance of actions, none reaches the actionless state of

Brahman; and by the renunciation of actions, none reaches perfection” (Chapter

3, Verse 4).Everyone is subject to the law of Karma. In modern terminology,

this law is called ‘law of action and reaction or cause and effect.’ Everyone

has to reap the results of one’s actions and one cannot get out of them.

Desires will force one to perform certain works. The performance of these works

will create in the mind, impressions or tendencies, which will remain there in

subtle from and become the seeds for further desires. These desires will force

one again to do certain actions. IN this way, the cycle of impressions,

desires, and actions will continue and there is no end to them.Rebirth or

reincarnation is caused by our desires or tendencies formed in the mind. A man

will have certain desires and their inherent tendencies. Directed by these

tendencies, he does certain works to get results. The results may come

immediately or after ten years or twenty years or may come in the next life.

For example, if a man invests money in the construction and establishment of a

factory, he will have to wait for the results until the factory starts

functioning. Even if the production starts in the factory, its success depends

upon many other factors. Therefore, the results may not be immediate. But the

man’s thoughts will always be on his factory and the money that he invested on

it. Such thoughts and ideas will persist even in the last moments of his life.

So in his next incarnation, he will do the same acts and reap the results.In

other words, those actions that have not produced results in this life will not

be dead. The impressions of those actions will remain in the mind in the form

of seeds and come up again in the next incarnation and make one work and get the

results.The results of actions depend upon the nature of actions. It the

actions are wicked and selfish, they produce pain and suffering. If the actions

are noble and selfless, they bring happiness and pleasure. Anyway, one has to

take rebirths to enjoy the fruits of ones good actions and to suffer the

consequences of bad actions done in one’s past lives. Therefore, good actions

also become as much a bondage as bad actions because of the continuity of the

wheel of births and deaths, which denies one eternal happiness and bliss. But

one can get rid of this bondage easily if one remembers that the highest aim of

this earthly life is not earthly pleasures, which do not last long and which are

followed by pain and suffering. The highest ideal is the attainment of eternal

bliss by the realization of God.Those people who aim at the eternal bliss are

devoted to God. They perform work for the sake of God in a selfless way. They

have only one idea and one thought and that is God. They dedicate the results

of their works to God. They are Karma Yogis. They become free from all grief

and pain. They get Mukti or liberation.As actions create in the mind

impressions and tendencies that become the cause for future births, many people

think that actions are a source of bondage and want to give up actions totally.

They think they can easily take to the life of a sanyasi who has renounced

desires and works. But many people are not fit for that kind of life. People,

being tired of ordinary works of life, think that they will be happy if they do

not go through the troubles and worries of a life of actions. So Sri Krishna

says “by abstaining from actions, one does not get freedom from

actions.”Actionless state of Brahman means the state of a man of wisdom

(Stithaprajna,) as described in the last portions of the second chapter. The

Self or Atman is free from all actions and one whose mind gets merged in the

Self becomes free from all actions. But this state cannot be attained by giving

up actions. Supposing a man gives up all actions and sits quiet without doing

anything, his sitting quiet becomes an action. That means even if one can give

up all actions, one cannot abandon the action of sitting quiet.Then what is the

meaning of giving up actions? It means getting rid of the merits and demerits

of actions. How can you do it? You have to work selflessly keeping in view

that what you do is a service to God. Keep this ideal before your mind and

work. Then all anxieties and results of the works you give up to God. Then

work becomes worship. Such a work purifies your heart and, slowly, you march

towards Godhood and you attain a state of peace and eternal bliss. Such a state

comes only by doing work. So the Lord says, do not relax and waste your time.

Continue doing selfless works for the sake of humanity. By not doing any work,

you cannot reach Brahman. By renouncing work you cannot attain perfection.

 

 

 

 

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