Bhagavatgita a detailed study-chapter2

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47. karmaNyeva aDhikaaraH the maa phaleshu kadhaachana

maa karma phalahethuh bhooh maa the sango asthu akarmaNi

 

You have right over action only and not the fruit of action. Your action should not be motivated by desire for fruit. nor should you be attached to inaction.

 

maa karma phalhethuh bhooh- your action should not be resul-oriented.

 

Acts done with an expectation of result cause bondage because they are done with desire. But the same act done as an offering to God releases one from bondage. As all beings are bound to act it is not possible to desist from action. If you stop doing any action physically you may be doing the same mentally or do some other action involuntarily .So karmayoga consists in not stopping from action but do the same without longing for the result as the result is not under your control.

 

Swami Vivekananda said `work for work's sake duty for duty's sake' meaning that one should do work for its own sake and not out of desire to get the result .But the question is, will anyone do anything unless he wants the result? Certainly not! There is nothing wrong in starting a work with a specific result in mind but Karmayoga consists in not getting attached to the result. This is not as pessimistic as it seems to be but sheer common sense. When we begin a work we cannot help fixing a goal to achieve as otherwise we would not have started at all. But once started we should concentrate on the action only without worrying about the result constantly as the anxiety will reduce our efficiency .On the other hand , if we put our heart and soul into the work we are doing, the result will automatically follow, and even if it does not, due to some factor on which we have no control, we will not feel frustrated as we have already had the satisfaction from the work itself .This is what Swami Vivekananda meant by `work for work's sake.' To give up the attachment to the fruit of action is Karmayoga as advised in the Gita .It applies not only to the mumukshu,. one who aims for realization but also to the man of the world ,wherein lies the value of Gita The work which is assigned to you in this birth in accordance with your karma is your duty that has to be discharged. This is what Krishna means when He says Maa te sango astu akarmani, "You should not give up work altogether." This provides the answer to the question "If I should give up the result why should I act in the first place?

 

Karma here, which one is supposed to be doing and not relinquish it, means the svadharma the acts according to his varanasrama , sanctioned by dharma and not those prohibited because they are motivated either by desire or aversion and thus one gets attached to them which leads to bondage. The elucidation of svadharma would follow in the subsequent chapter on karmayoga. Anything done as a duty, without attachment to result, does not result in bondage.

 

Let us examine what I meant by the above statement. When we start a work, we have definitely an idea of the possible result. It may appear to be good or bad from common standards such as that in war. When a soldier is fighting to defend his country for instance, the expected result may be killing or get killed. But he does not think of either, once he goes to the battlefield and discharges his duty without attachment to the result. Similarly a judge who gives a judgment either favourable or unfavourable to the accused is not worried about the result of his act but merely does it as his duty. This is an example of doing an act without attachment to the result.

 

On the other hand if we get attached to the result , our mind will be riddled with doubts and anxiety about the future and fear and regret about the past which will prevent us from concentrating on the work at hand. We tend to react according to our impressions gathered from our past karma thus accumulating more karma for which we have to experience the result later on. Thus acting with attachment leads to bondage.

 

If you send an important mail for instance you have the power only to send it and not over its being replied. It may never reach the recipient or he may never answer it but that is not in your control. If you worry about the possibility of not getting a reply the chances are that you will never send it. This is what is meant by maakarmaphalahethuh bhhoh maathe sango asthu akarmaNi.

 

On the other hand if you do everything with an attitude that you are doing what should be done and the rest is in the hands of God, you will not worry about the result at all.

maa karma phalahethuh bhooh can also be understood as follows. An artist or a musician may expect a reward for his work but when he actually at his work, singing or painting he enjoys what he is doing and the idea of remuneration is far behind in his mind. This attitude could be seen in any walk of life with respect to a dedicated worker .in any field. So the work, karma, of such an individual is not phalahethu, for the sake of result alone.. Even if there is no reward such a person will not and could not desist from his work.