Universe: A purpose greater than ourselves

The armies are still assembled. They have been waiting for almost an hour. Everything hangs in the balance. Everyone is awaiting the outcome of this one conversation, taking place on a single chariot between two people among the many millions gathered. Krishna summarises his teachings and brings us to a resolution. Arjuna begins by first asking Krishna to clarify the difference between renunciation and relinquishment.

The first is about stopping worldly endeavours because they are not spiritual. The second is about continuing with worldly endeavours but giving up their results. And what should one do about endeavours like sacrifice, charity, and austerity — should they be considered worldly and thus abandoned?

Krishna explains that any sacrifice, charity, and penance meant for one’s own uplift or the uplift of others should never be given up. Such acts should be performed out of duty, without attachment or expectation. Such acts nurture the very essence of religion: transcendental loving service.

Impious works that wilfully break social and religious regulations produce harmful results. Pious works, even when materially motivated, deliver beneficial results. However, along with those beneficial results, there still come reactions that draw us once again into the karmic cycle. Imagine someone giving to charity because they want to help but also because they want some recognition. So best of all is work devoid of any self-interest, for this produces no material results — good or bad — and leads to transcendence.

While it may appear that such selfless work enacted in the world is indeed producing results, the point is that selfless work does not generate either good or bad karmic implications, either of which would further bind one to this world.

Giving up duty out of bewilderment is renunciation in ignorance. Giving it up because it may be difficult is renunciation in passion. The intelligent are neither afraid of disagreeable work nor attached to agreeable work. Thus, they do not suffer ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ karma because they act only out of duty. Therefore, true renunciation and true relinquishment can be the same: stopping harmful endeavours while also acting out of duty in necessary or worthy worldly endeavours.

The notion of entirely giving up all worldly endeavour is misleading — it is neither desirable nor practical — so we should instead lead an honest life, dedicating our works to a purpose greater than ourselves.

This concludes Krishna’s summary of karma-yoga, and he now begins a summary of jnana-yoga, which involves raising our consciousness through philosophical understanding. Krishna starts by restating the five constituents of action: the physical basis (body), the means (the more subtle senses), the endeavours of the senses, the performer, and the Superself as the ultimate enabler. One who recognises these five constituents as contributing actors, and not just the individual, sees things as they are. We can detect this reality when we notice that no matter how hard we try, we can never control every detail or outcome of an act. This is because we are not the only actors.

— Excerpted from ‘The 5-Minute Gita’ by Nitesh Gor, with permission from Bloomsbury