Karma Yoga - Selfless Service

Karma Yoga- Selfless Service by Shivadasi ©

Friday, July 20, 2007

Those who control their six senses by their intellect, and engage themselves in unselfish work are considered superior. (BG 3.7)

He who sees inaction in action and action in inaction, he is wise; he is a Yogi – (BG 4.18)

Karma yoga is the discipline of correct action based on the teachings from the Bhagavad Gita. The Bagavad Gita is one chapter from an Epic story, the Mahabharata. The Bhagavad Gita is written in the form of prose where a dialogue takes place between Arjuna (a warrior) and Krishna (his charioteer). Karma yoga is described as a way of acting and thinking and it suggests one should act without personal selfish desire in other words acting without being attached to the fruits of ones labor. Krishna stated in the Bhagavad Gita "the practice of karma yoga makes one fit and sharpened in his reasoning and creates the ability to transcend the mind". Krishna goes on to teach Arjuna that man is not the doer and that we must abandon our attachment to the fruits of our effort and that is the way to moksa (liberation). The story of the Bhagavad Gita transpires on a battlefield where two armies confront each other. There was a bitter quarrel between two royal families whom where related and the family to which Arjuna belonged was the righteous family. Truth and justice were at stake and Arjuna was determined to defend his side but after tremendous efforts all hope for negotiation failed and war was inevitable. Among the combatants on both sides, Arjuna sees his brothers, uncles, teachers, sons, nephews, and friends, to whom he was bound by a thousand ties of love, respect, and affection. Clearly foreseeing that the destruction accompanying the war will be followed by family disintegration and social chaos, he was reluctant to accept this responsibility and stated to Krishna that he would prefer to retire now from the battlefield, go into a forest, and lead the life of a religious mendicant. Confused, he asked Krishna to show him the path of duty. Arjuna does however pass through this terrible phase of remorse and melancholy and wins the war. Krishna tells him to allay his doubts about various paths, including Karma and worldly duties, to reach the highest Truth. What started as a dialogue between two friends, turns into a spiritual discourse between God and a sadhaka (aspirant). Krishna says to Arjuna, 'Your only duty is to act (right work) and not to obsess on the fruits of your labor (or the results) Chapter II: 47. Let not the work bind and blind you. To work is to worship; with total non-attachment and a selfless attitude. Forgo all the idea of 'doership' in favor of the Lord. With full concentration, get engaged in the work at hand, i.e. the battle against the enemy. This will become Yoga for you; for excellence in the work is itself Yoga. The most important characteristic of karma yoga is the right motivation, one should not act for gain or reward, even in the form of a salary or in Arjuna’s case in winning the war. Therefore, we can see how the idea of karma yoga is connected to the teaching of the Bhagavad Gita. Krisna suggests that our actions must be selfless and without a motive to experience the benefits of karma yoga. If you think in terms of I, me and mine you have already limited Self to performing actions from the ego center. The Gita starts by saying you are not the body, therefore you are not the doer. Sri Ramana Maharshi stated “one should act without thinking that oneself is the actor. Actions will go on even in the egoless state. Each person has come into manifestation for a certain purpose and that purpose will be accomplished whether he considers himself to be the actor or not.”

Work when performed as a spiritual discipline is called Karma Yoga. It is the main topic of the Bhagavad Gita, The purpose of the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita is to solve a moral problem and to attain non-attachment as your life’s work. When one reaches the point of non-attachment one has attained the goal of love and true freedom; the bondage of nature falls from us, and we see nature as she is; she forges no more chains of attachment for us. Inevitable we come to understand we are not bound by our nature and therefore one becomes free because we are not consumed with the results of our actions. Practicing Karma yoga suggests that one never flaunt gifts to the poor or expects gratitude, rather one is grateful for having the opportunity to give. Whether you are a householder or renunciate the act of giving with pure intention remains the same. To be an ideal householder is very difficult indeed as one is confronted by the difficult tasks of living in the world and perhaps it is more difficult then living the path of a renunciate, the true work of a householder is as hard if not harder than, the equally true life of renunciation.

When one gives with an open heart, it is not the receiver that is blessed, but the giver. Every time you make an offering it provides the opportunity to experience benevolence and to be filled with gratitude that you have something to give. Remember no matter what you have there is always a way to give. Every action we perform is an extension of our heart therefore our hands and the physical actions we take in life are the deepest expression of our heart. As yogis, we are ignited to realize the Self not the ego self as described in modern psychology but the supreme highest Self as described in Vendantic Philosophy, that which is infinite and everlasting. A karma yogi explores how the ego gets in the way of happiness, for example. Do you know someone who is attached to results of their work and grumbles about the nature of their duties that they must undertake? Or perhaps you identify with the unattached worker who sees all duties equally good and sees duty as a path to discover and eradicate the ego. If one is always competing with coworkers rest assured it will rouse envy and kill the kindliness of hearts. To the grumbler all duties are distasteful, nothing will satisfy him and life is filled with discontentment.

Some would consider personalities such as the Buddha and Mother Teresa to have been karma yogis acting entirely without motive and utilizing the greatest combination of head & heart. Shankaracharya said “by practicing Karma yoga, one's mind gets purified”. The Hindu Saint Mata Amritanandamayi stated,” that a life inspired by love and service to humanity is possible. Our compassion and acts of selflessness take us to the deeper truths. Through selfless action, we can eradicate the ego that conceals the Self. Detached, selfless action leads to liberation, such action is not just work; it is karma yoga.”

One must give up the idea of attachment to fully understand Karma Yoga and not become confused by mixing actions with the ego personality, if you hold yourself as a witness and go on working then you are never distracted or disappointed. Karma-Yoga makes a science out of work and teaches one how to best utilize all the workings of this world. Work is inevitable so work for the highest purpose, "Kill out all ambition, but work like those do who are ambitious." Do not identify yourself with anything and hold your mind free. See, that poverty, wealth and happiness are but momentary; they do not belong to our real nature at all. Misery comes through attachment, not through work. As soon as we identify ourselves with the work we feel miserable, work comes and goes, remember you are not the doer, with a sense of possession comes selfishness, which brings on misery. Every act of selfishness or thought of selfishness makes us attached to something, and immediately we become enslaved. Destroy the tendency to project selfishness; and when you have the power of checking it, hold it in and do not allow the mind to get into the ways of selfishness. Give up all fruits of work; do good for its own sake as freedom is indeed the goal of Karma-Yoga and thinking I am doing good creates bondage and attachment. Karma-Yoga, therefore, is a system of ethics intended to help one to attain freedom through selflessness. The Karma Yogi asks why do I require any motive to work other than the inborn love of freedom and strives to go beyond common worldly motives. The way to freedom is give up all the fruits of work and be unattached to the outcome. Know that this world is not you, nor are you this world; you are not the body; therefore you are not the work.

Every good thought that we send to the world without thinking of any return, will be stored and make us living examples of pure selflessness because selfishness dilutes purity and corrupts the heart. The question prevails, how can I perform actions for the sake of offering my life as a selfless act of giving. We can begin by attending to our daily work with an unselfish motive as that is the practice of Karma yoga and strive at the same time to make that ideal as near as possible to the truth. I am not suggesting one should work without financial sustenance or prosperity we must take care of our daily needs, household finances and responsibilities to society. I am also not in favor of Ashrams, Yoga Centers or Businesses who profit from abusing the idea of Karma yoga because they do not want to pay people. I have seen organizations misuse this idea of Karma Yoga and I think it is shameful. If you are a running a business you must ask yourself what is my REAL motive for asking someone to work without properly paying for their service and why am I not willing pay. If the universe has provided for you, then there must be a willingness to provide in return, as the law of karma is very powerful. One should not expect an aspirant to work for you with the excuse of karma yoga. We can offer support by removing physical needs to those who appear to have less and that is indeed a great offering but a far greater offering is spiritual knowledge, which can destroy misery. Helping another spiritually is the highest form of support given. When someone is spiritually strong they are sound in many respects, their life glistens their kindness shines out. One may offer intellectual knowledge as it can help to improve the quality of life only on a physical level only. Life is of very little value, if it is a life in the dark, groping through ignorance and misery. We can help those who need food temporarily but the misery one feels when hungry is satisfied temporarily until hunger returns. To give valuable and everlasting support is to educate humanity, spiritually and intellectually.

If we strive to attain purity of mind and reason through service and selflessness, we become shining examples in our community. Individually we must strive toward excellence and in doing so we learn to control the mind from negative influences. With practicing control over the senses the mind reaches a degree of perfection where the spiritual aspirant can understand the value and necessity of selfless service and renounce the fruits of labor to enjoy a higher state of bliss. Karma yoga, then, is the path of union with God through external action performed in a detached and selfless manner; dedicate all your efforts to God. This includes the performance of one’s own duty and service of humanity, but always in complete dedication as this is an essential distinction. There are many people who do good because they consider it a personal virtue, can you do good in the world without having a badge that announces I am virtuous because I do good in the world? Karma yoga is performed as an expression of divinity for the revelation of divinity, all other benefits, individual and communal being secondary.

Karma yoga is the yoga of action or work; specifically, karma yoga is the path of dedicated work, renouncing the results of our actions as a spiritual offering rather than hoarding the results for ourselves. A karma yogi does not measure their success by showing off their acquisitions, they seek not to measure their success by fortune but rather by living a divinely inspired life that is not hankered down with I, me and mine. What we experience today is the result of our karma both good and bad created by our previous actions. This chain of cause and effect that we ourselves have created can be changed forever by karma yoga. By disengaging the ego from the work process, by offering the results up to a higher power, whether a personal God or to the Self within we can eradicate negative karma. Karma is as real as gravity and we must respect that our thoughts, words and actions have an effect on the past, present and future. Whether we realize it or not all of us perform actions all the time even sitting and thinking is action. Since action is inevitable, an integral part of being alive, we need to reorient into a path to God-realization. All of us tend to work with expectations in mind, we work hard in our jobs to get respect and appreciation. We cook a splendid meal with the expectation that it will be received with praise. We dress nicely in anticipation of someone's appreciation. So much of our lives are run in expectation of future results that we do it automatically, unconsciously. Could you live a pure lifestyle and not except anything from anyone in return? Just as devotees offer flowers and incense in their loving worship of God, so can thoughts, words and actions be offered as divine worship. Knowing that the Lord exists in the hearts of all creatures, devotees can worship by serving all beings as manifestations of the divine. Karma Yoga suggests that life itself can be holy, karma yoga gives us the tools in everyday life to move into freedom.

Krisna stated, offer up everything to Me. If your heart is united with Me, you will be set free from karma even in this life, and come to Me at last. We can see Krishna as God, Allah, Moses, Mohammed, Buddha , Christ or your higher Self, whatever your belief system the path of Karma Yoga is not separate.

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