Bhagavad Gita - Daily - II CHAPTER 3-30 II

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Gita 3-30

 

"mayi sarvaani karmaani, sannyasyadhyatma-chetasaanirasheeh nirmamo bhootvaa, yudhyasva vigata-jvarah"

Dedicating all actions to Me, with your mind fixed on Me – the Self of all, being freed from desire and attachment, and discarding anguish (or mental fever), do your ordained duty of waging the war."

Comment:

If the spiritual aspirant happens to be a Bhakta (devotional aspirant) type then he should offer all actions to God. Offering actions means – not doing any actions for himself but doing all actions for the happiness of God only.

From "Gita Prabodhani" in Hindi by Swami Ramsukhdasji

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Chapter 3, Verse 30 is as follows;

Mayi = in me

SarvaaNi = all

KarmaaNi = actions

Samnyasya = totally renouncing

Adhyaatma-Chetasaa = by discriminating intellect, with the mind centred on the Self

NiraasheeH = free from hope

NirmamaH = free from ownership

Bhootvaa = having become

Yudhyasva = fight

VigatajvaraH = free from (mental) fever

English translation:-

Surrendering all your actions to Me, with your thoughts resting on the Supreme Self, freed from hope and attachment, cured of mental fever; engage in the battle.

Comment:

O Arjuna! With the total dedication, surrendering all your actions to Me i.e. the Vaasudeva, by discriminating intellect with your mind entirely focussed on Me i.e. the Supreme Self, craving for nothing i.e. giving up an iota of hope for the fruit of any favourable outcome, being free from all sense of possessions or ownership, without any mental perturbation, in a spiritual frame of mind i.e. with the discriminating perception of, `I am the servant of the Supreme Lord and I voluntarily become an instrument in fulfilling His desire (Ishwara Ichchhaa) by performing my assigned role', with a smile and with no undue concern i.e. totally free from worry or sorrow; you ought to perform your bounden duty by fighting this epic battle. This doctrine of Lord Krishna, which is based on the scriptural authority that obligatory duty must be performed by every being, remains valid for ever since time immemorial.

This verse is one of my favourite verses, as it sets the `Golden Standard' of the most ideal Karma Yoga. An ideal action must generate energy and avoid wasteful expenditure of any form of energy through unproductive means, by not over indulging into sensual pleasures and material acquisitions in this mortal world. Such an ideal action represents a nobler purpose in your every activity which is beyond the selfish interests of your own body, mind and intellect. You may use this `Golden formula' to increase the efficiency and productivity of every action that you initiate and in turn achieve material prosperity and earn distinctive reputation in your field of expertise. In the long run, by religiously following this doctrine of Lord Krishna, you will eventually attain realisation of the Supreme Self.

Shreemad Bhagawad Geeta stresses and advocates the most dynamic and vibrant but selfless action for the welfare of the entire beings. Therefore, the study of Geeta must begin in the most formative years, rather than as a post-retirement hobby or pastime.

In this verse there are citations of the three important paths in the realisation of the Self namely;

Path of devotion i.e. Bhakti Yoga à `Mayi SarvaaNi KarmaaNi Samnyasya'

Path of knowledge i.e. Dnyaana Yoga à `Adhyaatma Chetasaa'

Path of action i.e. Karma Yoga à `NiraasheeH NirmamaH Bhootvaa Yudhyasva VigatajvaraH'

Samyak means total and Nyaasa means renouncement. Renunciation of action does not mean insipid life of inactivity. Actions performed through attachment and desires are renounced the moment we take the ego-centric and selfish stink away from our bounden duty. If hope is the unborn child of the future then ego is the memory of the dead past; therefore, without lingering in the dead moments of the past and without reveling in the unborn moments of the future, it is better that every Sadhak should utilise the present unique chance to perform noble task of fighting his / her individual battle of life.

Arjuna was a warrior and his bounden duty was to fight a righteous battle. However, he wanted to find an escape route by non-participation in the battle and that he was looking for an immediate sanction from Lord Krishna. In this verse, Lord Krishna offers him a commandment that if Arjuna is looking forward to `Shreyas' and not `Preyas' then he has no alternative but to fight this righteous battle, with the right mental outlook and disposition of `Placing all actions in God' or `feeling that all actions are done by God'. For a deluded person, all his actions seem to have their roots in himself; however, a wise man knows that his actions spring from the origin, which is none other than the Brahman. Please refer verse 15 in chapter 3 in Shreemad Bhagawad Geeta in support of this argument: `Karma Brahmodbhavam Viddhi'.

The one whose mind is wayward, he is indeed swayed by the storms of desires and cravings. The one whose mind is not centered in the Self, he believes that only he himself thinks, he sees, he works and he speaks. His actions are egoistic. He arrogates to himself the power to do, not to do and to undo, which in the ultimate analysis, he does not really possess at all. His actions are naturally directed towards a selfish, base and worldly goal or hope. Hopeful of attaining the desired goal and at the same time afraid of not being able to reach it due to his own shortcomings and inadequacies, this egoistic man is constantly torn by the two opposing forces of attraction and repulsion. Such tension is referred to as mental fever in this verse. A wise man is free from such tension or mental fever. He knows that God's will is done here; he is free from personal hopes. He is centered in the Self or the Aatman. He is free, peaceful and blissful. Please refer verse 22 in chapter 4 in Shreemad Bhagawad Geeta in support of this argument: `Yadruchchhaa Laabha SantuShtaH'

Just as water flowing in one direction gathers momentum in a water fall, just as wind blowing in one direction gathers enormous power in the form of hurricane or tornado, just as sunrays focussed by a convex lens gather the heat energy to set a paper on fire; in the similar manner by proper collective utilisation of your body, mind and intellect, you gather immense internal strength to achieve any goal that you set up in your life.

Therefore, Lord Krishna's advice to Arjuna is, "Forget the worries of the past failures or unsuccessful attempts so far in your life, ignore the anxieties and expectations of the favourable outcomes of your present activities in the future and just singularly focus your entire energies emanating from your physical body, mind and intellect on your present bounden duty of fighting the righteous battle without undue and irrational exuberance."

Thanks & Best Regards,

Shrikant Joshi

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