Category Archives: kilbisham

Bhagavad Gita Verse 47, Chapter 18

05 Friday Jul 2013

Posted by in 18.47, aapnoti, chapter 18 verse 47, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, karma, kilbisham, kurvann, paradharmaat, svabhaavaniyatam, svadharmaha, svanushthataat, vigunaha

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shreyansvadharmo vigunaha paradharmaatsvanushthataat |
svabhaavaniyatam karma kurvannaapnoti kilbisham || 47 ||
 
One’s duty, though devoid of merits, is superior to another’s duty well performed. Doing the duty prescribed for one’s nature, one does not incur sin.
 
shreyan : superior
svadharmaha : one’s duty
vigunaha : devoid of merits
paradharmaat : than another’s duty
svanushthataat : well performed
svabhaavaniyatam : prescribed for per one’s nature
karma : duty
kurvann : doing
na : does not
aapnoti : incur
kilbisham : sin
 
We now focus on the subject of svadharma, which is the set of actions termed as duty. As we saw earlier, our duty can only be understood by conducting self analysis to understand what our mental makeup, what our varna is. Some of us may be well suited for starting businesses, whereas some of us may be better suited for the service sector. But it is quite common to get enchanted by another person’s occupation since it generates more money, since it has glamour and fame, and so on. How should we deal with this situation?
 
Shri Krishna says that we should stick to performing our svadharma, no matter how profitable or how glamourous other occupations seem like. In the short term, if we pick up another occupation, it may seem like we are doing a great job. But in the long run, we will fall into trouble. We will run into some problem or the other on account of not being suitable for someone else’s occupation. We also will deprive society from giving it the level of service possible if we had stuck with what we are good at.
 
Harbouring likes and dislikes towards actions, preferring someone else’s occupation to ours, has the effect of strengthening the ego, and hence should be avoided. Furthermore, in karma yoga, we are only expected to perform our best actions, and to not worry about the result. By performing our svadharma, by doing the best we can, we automatically the fear of the consequence of our action, whether or not it will be a merit or a sin. To perform actions fearlessly is a blessing in itself.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 21, Chapter 4

11 Saturday Feb 2012

Posted by in 4.21, aapnoti, chapter 4 verse 21, karma, kevalam, kilbisham, kurvan, naa, niraasheehi, shaareeram, tyaktasarvaparigraha, yatachittaatmaa

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niraasheeryatachittaatmaa tyaktasarvaparigraha |
shaareeram kevalam karma kurvannaapnoti kilbisham || 21 ||

Without expectation, with a subdued body and mind, giving up all possessions, performing actions only for (maintaining) the body, he does not incur sin.

niraasheehi : without expectation
yatachittaatmaa : subdued body and mind
tyaktasarvaparigraha : given up all possessions
shaareeram : body-related
kevalam : only
karma : actions
kurvan : performing
na aapnoti : does not incur
kilbisham : sin

As we proceed with our project, our mind is racing with thoughts and anxieties about the future – will this happen, will that happen, what will go wrong and so on. But when we enter a peaceful place like a temple or a library, we notice that our thoughts tend to quiet down. This is because the sights, smells and sounds of such places put a fence around our mind and senses, as it were, and cause them to brood over a higher ideal. So Shri Krishna urges us to contemplate upon a higher ideal as much as possible. When that happens, our mind and our body automatically become quiet and subdued.

Now, in the course of the project, we may end up creating certain objects – a huge report, an excel file, a powerpoint presentation, a cutting-edge invention and so on. The wealth generated from the project will enable us to buy a new house, car, TV etc. We may notice that we develop a strong attachment, a strong sense of possessiveness towards these objects. Our ego may get inflated because we think that we created them, or own them. But that attitude makes us slaves of those objects. The reality is that nature produced the raw materials, as well as the knowledge to convert those into these objects. We did not “do” anything.

It has to be noted that there is no need to give up possessions. That is not the meaning here. Our attitude towards our possessions should be like a renter versus an owner. We should take care of possessions but not be bound to them. Slowly, as our possessive thinking diminishes, our actions also reduce. We then care only about our svadharma, and on keeping our mind and body fit for service.

The attitude created by observing this teaching has the effect of reducing the ego notion, which is nothing but the false identification of the eternal essence with the body, mind, intellect and objects.