Om Namo
Bhagavathe Vaasudevaayaa!
Essay 11:
“Does Gita advocate Renunciation of all Actions
(Karmas)?”
This question keeps springing up quite often from
different quarters putting the Gita reader into confusion. This surely is on
account of a mistaken understanding of the tenets of Gita. In support of their argument
they refer to what is called ‘Sarva Karma Sanyasam’ or renunciation of all actions
discussed in the Gita. Harping on this, they hold the view that Gita advocates
renunciation of all actions as a sure shot to ‘moksha’ or liberation and thereby
promoting inaction and encourage shying away from doing any action so as to escape from the
bondage of ‘karma phalas’ or results of such actions.
To clear this mist and to put it in the proper
perspective, let’s reconstruct mentally, the scene and context of ‘Gitopodesh’.
The scene was the battle field of Kurukshetra and there was Arjuna the warrior
prince, who put his bow and arrows down. He was in a spell of utter dejection
and was in no mood to get up and fight the war which was his bounden duty.
Krishna was appealing to him to get up and fight but Arjuna was bogged down in
a mire of questions and confusions or ‘moha’ about the propriety of doing his
duty of fighting the war.
Then comes the ‘Gitopadesh’ – the eternal
knowledge. Krishna imparts this cosmic wisdom to Arjuna. At the end of this ‘samvad’
or the session of question and answers, Arjuna, free from confusion or ‘moha’,
picks up his legendary bow and arrows and fights the war to the finish and
emerges victorious.
If we analyse this situation – there was
someone who was refusing to do his karma or action but on listening to the ‘Gitopadesh’,
was fully recharged and he sprang back into action with renewed energy. This
clearly indicates that Gita advocates discharge or doing of one’s actions and doesn’t
in any way advocate renunciation of actions as clearly evidenced by the transformation it brought about in Arjuna - from a state of inaction to a state of energetic action.
What Gita advocates is ‘sarva karma phala
sanyasam’ - meaning sincere discharge of enjoined or assigned actions with a
sense of detachment to the outcome of such actions. Here detachment to the
outcome or result of such actions is defined as ‘sanyasam’ or renunciation. Hence
the actions are not to be renounced but one should be detached to the outcome.
All the assigned legitimate(as per his swadharma) actions should be done in the
name of God. Then there would not be any bondage- good or bad arising out of
such actions or karmas.
Gita says that once born, a person would
continually be doing actions for survival. Even Bhagavan Krishna says though
not required, he continuously keeps doing actions or else taking cue from Him,
people stop doing actions. Even the yogis who are self-realised and are beyond
any desire, keep doing actions for the sake of the welfare of the world. But
their actions don’t bind them as they are totally detached to the outcome of
such actions.
To sum it up, Gita does not advocate either renunciation
of actions or stipulate what actions are to be done but shows a way how to do
the enjoined actions in the most desirable or liberating way.
***
