The Solution for Satiation
Why do rewards, recognition & remuneration give momentary happiness & raise temptation for the next?
How can one keep Fear of Failure away?
Why Action is better than In-action?
The answer lies in KarmaYoga
Before we proceed, let’s decipher the Word Karma Yoga.
Karma — means acts, actions, deeds of one.
The word Karma कर्म originates from the word Karman कर्मन् which is a Sanskrit word that has two parts: Kr (कृ ) which means to do or to perform or to make and man (मन्) means man or human.
Thus Human actions, deeds, activities are called Karma which has repercussions. Even the smallest action of any human starts a series of chain reactions in the Universe and hence actions should always be undertaken with the right intent and for the right purpose.
The second word Yoga is derived from the Sanskrit word Yuj, which means to join or to unite.
Yoga and various forms of Yoga thus endeavor to unify one’s mental, physical, and inner consciousness with Universal consciousness.
“युज्यते अनेन इति योगः — It means Yoga is that which joins
Chapters 2, 3 & 4 of Shreemad Bhagwad Gita covers aspects of Karma Yoga and what kind of Karma is Superior.
The context of these Chapters is the conversation between Lord Shri Krishna and Ace Archer Arjun. The War of Mahabharata is about to begin, however, Arjun is befuddled, baffled, blurred with the fact that he is fighting and intending to kill his kin and Gurus. Lord Shri Krishna thus then gives knowledge to Arjun, about what is right, when one is confused, convoluted, and muddled as well as life in general.
There are 4 paths to achieve higher consciousness and be one with Supreme consciousness.
i. Karma Yoga or the Path of Action (Karma-mārga)
ii. Bhakti Yoga or the Path of Devotion (Bhakti-mārga) to Ishvar (God)
iii. Jnana Yoga or the Path of Knowledge (Jñāna-mārga)
iv. Raja Yoga or the Path of Meditation
The core of Human Anxiety and human problems is the fleeting perception of Happiness and Unhappiness, which is evasive and non-lasting.
The sense of happiness or Unhappiness (distress) arises from the five senses when they come in contact with an object or come in an environment that is not as per one’s wishes or expectations or when desires and expectations are unmet.
Lord Shri Krishna suggests that: The one who wishes to liberate oneself from the agony of apprehension, anxiety, angst, should not be elated during happy times and should not be sad when times are tough. But how can one achieve it?
One can achieve this by bringing a shift in attitude.
A Sense of Acceptance to all acts and events which are uncontrollable and a feeling of gratitude to the Supreme Universal Consciousness.
In Kaliyug when one moves away from Selfish motives of Position, Power & Promotion to Collective Good (Lok Sangrah), one migrates from being a Karma Chari to Karma Yogi.
In this world, the Highest Karma is the one where one fights, strives, and acts to uphold Dharma (Universal Laws of Collective Well-being https://cutt.ly/ZIhmnGv)
When one’s mind remains Equanimeous in gain or loss, victory or defeat, joy or misery, without worrying about the Outcome, one enters the State of Karma Yoga.
“As one moves in Karma Yoga, moving beyond rituals, rites, acts for worldly pleasures, or to please one’s senses, one breaks the bondage of Karma as well.”
(When one performs all duties, all acts, all actions as actions of God with one’s best ability, skill & wisdom, having a thought that one is neither responsible for the acts nor is the beneficiary of the outcome, surrendering the act and outcome both to Highest Consciousness, one breaks the cycle of acts and repercussions.)
There are many advantages of Karma-Yoga
i. It purifies the mind and soul (Antahkarana)
ii. Induces inclination towards Dharma and Moksha
iii. Enhances Sattva or Satoguna.
Karma is pervasive in Sanatana Dharma or Eternal & Universal laws of collective Well-being of all Living beings on this Planet (Sanatana means Eternal and thus can’t be linked to one religion, sect, or caste and is applicable to entire human species.)
Chapter 2, Verse 47 of Gita –
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन। मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥
Defines Karma-yoga –
i. One has the right or control over the performance of one’s prescribed duties or actions.
ii. One is however not entitled to fruits or rewards of one’s actions
iii. One should not feel one is cause for one’s action.
iv. Since one is not entitled to rewards, one should not get inclined or attached towards inaction.
Inaction or inactivity is the path to Tamas.
Several factors influence the outcome and thus one should focus only on the action without worrying about results.
One should never feel that one’s single-handed actions led to the outcome. There are multiple forces that work together for an outcome to take place and not everything is in one’s control.
Thus a feeling of Nimitta mAtra (निमित्त मात्र) “ Only an Instrument” can ensure one does not succumb to Ego, Aham, Proud when milestones are achieved.
Abandoning attachment and being Equanimeous (Samatva) in true terms is Yoga.
Acts done with an intention of an outcome to benefit oneself are surely inferior to acts done with complete surrender to almighty.
Focusing on one’s efforts only without focusing on the Outcome will enable better input or a higher level of devotion while performing the act. This state is also known as the state of FLOW by a few Scientists which many artists or musicians get into.
The key to being focused on Karma is to keep the ‘Fear of Failure’ away.
Thus Effort and effort with one’s best ability, wisdom, and skill is Supreme. Results may come sooner, may come later, or act itself may teach some valuable lessons for the next step in life. The outcome can be any. If an individual gets rid of the fear of failure and keeps on trying, the worst case could be delayed success rather than failure.
Individuals who work only for rewards are misers.
When one is one’s death bed and one looks back on what one has achieved in life, it’s not the money, not the material things, not the past praises it the goodwill of the community, number of people one has impacted positively in life (Lok Sangrah) and fights one has fought to uphold highest principles of Universal collective Wellbeing (Dharma). Hence one should not work for rewards but for Lok Sangrah and to uphold Dharma.
As one performs Nishkam Karma (Selfless or desireless deeds) one surely will get rewards sometimes more, sometimes less and one should accept them as Bhagavat Prasad (remnants from God’s Offerings).
Gratitude to our Guru Dharm Pracharak, Bheeshma Pitamah awardee Padma Bhushan, Dr. Mrityunjay Athreya, and my fellow Advisory board members at Sarthak Educational trust and Sarthak Team member — Nistha for having this Satsang and for making notes where knowledge could be imparted by our Guru.
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