Friday, June 30, 2006
GITA 108 DAYS - DAY 20
20. Act well; do not wish for results
The duty of an individual is to perform his actions well; but without 'wishing' for their results. An action performed with the wish of attaining favorable results will lead ultimately to disappointment.
A person can decide how an action should be done; but its result is not within his control. If we expect desirable results over things beyond our control, we will be affected by anxiety and disappointment. When the mind revels in expectations and wishful thinking, the action will not get the attention it requires to do it well and doubts will rise. This leads to incomplete actions and such actions will not bear results.
If we cut the ripened jackfruit after smearing our hands with oil, the jackfruit glue will not stick to our hands. Likewise, if we smear the oil of ‘knowledge’ and act in the world, we will not get attached to anything.
Reason to do an action must be ‘chitta suddhi’ (cleansing of mind) and not ‘vastu-siddhi’ (attaining material gain). All actions must be done with an attitude of surrender to the Lord and such an action is a ‘karma-yoga’. One should not carry out an action aiming at a particular result nor should one be disinterested in doing any work.
Nature and men who live in it are constituted by the three ‘gunas’ (characteristics) – sattvic (noble); rajasic (active); and tamasic (inactive, dull). In an individual, these qualities are present in various proportions at a given moment. When one of these qualities becomes predominant, that will be manifested in the person’s behavior. One should strive to achieve a level of nobility that transcends these three gunas. One can reach that state by realizing the Self where the notions of differences do not exist. At this stage, the person imbibes the essence of ‘karma-yoga’.
The duty of an individual is to perform his actions well; but without 'wishing' for their results. An action performed with the wish of attaining favorable results will lead ultimately to disappointment.
A person can decide how an action should be done; but its result is not within his control. If we expect desirable results over things beyond our control, we will be affected by anxiety and disappointment. When the mind revels in expectations and wishful thinking, the action will not get the attention it requires to do it well and doubts will rise. This leads to incomplete actions and such actions will not bear results.
If we cut the ripened jackfruit after smearing our hands with oil, the jackfruit glue will not stick to our hands. Likewise, if we smear the oil of ‘knowledge’ and act in the world, we will not get attached to anything.
Reason to do an action must be ‘chitta suddhi’ (cleansing of mind) and not ‘vastu-siddhi’ (attaining material gain). All actions must be done with an attitude of surrender to the Lord and such an action is a ‘karma-yoga’. One should not carry out an action aiming at a particular result nor should one be disinterested in doing any work.
Nature and men who live in it are constituted by the three ‘gunas’ (characteristics) – sattvic (noble); rajasic (active); and tamasic (inactive, dull). In an individual, these qualities are present in various proportions at a given moment. When one of these qualities becomes predominant, that will be manifested in the person’s behavior. One should strive to achieve a level of nobility that transcends these three gunas. One can reach that state by realizing the Self where the notions of differences do not exist. At this stage, the person imbibes the essence of ‘karma-yoga’.
# posted by Sukumar Canada @ 7:20 AM 
