Conceit, hypocrisy, and so forth should be abandoned. (64)
The consecration of one’s conduct to Him, [including] desire, anger, conceit, and so on, are to be directed toward Him alone. (65)
Love consisting of constant devotion as of a servant or constant [devotion] as of a wife, preceded by the dispersion of the three types [of reactivity, as mentioned in the preceding aphorism], should be practiced: love alone should be practiced. (66)
Book V
The radical (ekântin) devotees are foremost. (67)
Conversing with each other with choking throat and tears of ecstasy, they purify their families and the earth. (68)
They render sacred places (tîrtha) sacred; they render actions right; they endow scriptures with true meaning. (69)
They are filled with Him. (70)
The ancestors rejoice, the Gods dance, and this earth obtains a protector [in a true devotee]. (71)
In them there is no distinction of birth, knowledge, beauty, family, wealth, profession, and so forth. (72)
Because they are His. (73)
Controversy is not to be engaged. (74)
[This is demanded] because there is room for diversity and owing to the translogical nature (aniyatatva) [of God]. (75)
The scriptures on love are to be pondered; actions awakening it are to be taken. (76)
When “marking” time-having given up pleasure, sorrow, desire, gain, and so forth-not even half an instant should be spent uselessly. (77)
Practices like nonharming, truthfulness, purity, liberality, faith (âstikya), and so on should be cultivated. (78)
The Lord should ever be worshipped with one’s entire being by a carefree [devotee]. (79)
He, being praised, swiftly manifests to the devotees and makes them realize [His true nature beyond space and time]. (80)
Only love for the triple truth is greater; only love is greater. (81)
[Love], though singular, is elevenfold: [It takes] the forms of attachment (âsakti) through the glorification of [God’s] attributes; attachment to His beauty; attachment through worship; attachment through remembrance [of His names]; attachment through service; attachment through friendship [with Him]; attachment through affection [for Him]; attachment of a lover; attachment of self-surrender; attachment of uniformity [with His ultimate nature]; attachment in one’s separation from the Supreme. (82)
Thus declare the preceptors of love unanimously and fearless of people’s prattle: Kumâra, Vyâsa, Shuka, Shândilya, Garga, Vishnu, Kaundinya, Shesha, Uddhâva, runi, Bali, Hanumat, Vibhîishana, and so forth. (83)
He who trusts and believes this auspicious exposition declared by Nârada, he becomes loving; he reaches the Beloved; he reaches the Beloved. (84)
VI. KARMA-YOGA-FREEDOM IN ACTION
To exist is to act. Even an inanimate object such as a rock has movement. And the building blocks of matter, the atomic particles, are in fact no building blocks at all but incredibly complex patterns of energy in constant motion. Thus, the universe is a vast vibratory expanse. In the words of philosopher Alfred North Whitehead, the world is process. It is on this insight, commonplace as it may seem, that Karma-Yoga is founded.
The word karma (or karman), derived from the root kri (“to make” or “to do”), has many meanings. It can signify “action,” “work,” “product,” “effect,” and so on. Thus Karma-Yoga is literally the Yoga of Action. But here the term karma stands for a particular kind of action. Specifically, it denotes an inner attitude toward action, which is itself a form of action. What this attitude consists in is spelled out in the Bhagavad-Gîtâ, which is the earliest scripture to teach Karma-Yoga outright.
Not by abstention from actions does a man enjoy action-transcendence, nor by renunciation alone does he approach perfection. (3.4)
For, not even for a moment can anyone ever remain without performing action. Everyone is unwittingly made to act by the qualities (guna) issuing from Nature. (3.5)
He who restrains his organs of action but sits remembering in his mind the objects of the senses is called a self-deluded hypocrite. (3.6)
So, O Arjuna, more excellent is he who, controlling the senses with his mind, embarks unattached on Karma-Yoga with his organs of action. (3.7)
You must do the allotted action, for action is superior to inaction; not even your body’s processes (yâtrâ) can be accomplished by inaction. (3.8)
This world is action-bound, save when this action is [intended] as sacrifice. With that purpose, O son of Kuntî, engage in action devoid of attachment. (3.9)
Therefore always perform unattached the proper (kârya) deed, for the man who performs action without attachment attains the Supreme. (3.19)
Then God Krishna, who communicates this teaching to his pupil Arjuna, points to himself as the archetypal model of the active person:
For Me, O son of Pritha, there is nothing to be done in the three worlds, nothing ungained to be gained-and yet I engage in action. (3.22)
For, if I were not untiringly ever to abide in action, O son of Pritha, everywhere people would follow My “track” [that is, My example], (3.23)
If I were not to perform action, these worlds would perish, and I would be the author of chaos, destroying [all] creatures. (3.24)
Just as the unwise act attached to action, O son of Bhârata, the wise should act unattached, desiring the world’s welfare. (3.25)
By the qualities (guna) of Nature, actions are everywhere performed. [Yet, he whose] self is deluded by the ego (ahamkâra) thinks: “I am the doer.” (3.27)
But, O strong-armed one, the knower of Reality [who understands] the relationship between the qualities and action is unattached and thinks: “Qualities dwell upon qualities.” (3.28)
Always performing all [allotted] actions and taking refuge in Me, he attains through My grace the eternal, immutable State. (18.56)
Renouncing in thought all actions to Me, intent on Me, resorting to Buddhi-Yoga, be constantly “Me-minded.” (18.57)
What Krishna, the divine Lord in human form, is saying here is that all activity arises spontaneously as part of the program of Nature (prakriti). The idea that “I do this or that” is delusional, a fatal presumption that we habitually superimpose on what is actually occurring. Thus, even our thoughts are not really generated by us. Thoughts, like all processes of Nature, are simply arising. We decide to type into a computer, play the piano, ride a bicycle, or speak to a friend-but these activities, according to Krishna (and the spiritual authorities of Hinduism in general), are not effects of the ego-personality in relation to which they seem to be occurring. In fact, the ego-sense itself arises as one of the spontaneous activities of Nature, presuming itself to be the actor of certain deeds and then presuming itself to suffer their consequences.
The objective of Karma-Yoga is stated to be “action freedom.” The actual Sanskrit term is naish-karmya, which literally means “nonaction.” But this literal meaning is misleading, because it is not inactivity that is meant to be expressed here. Rather, naish-karmya-karman corresponds to the Taoist notion of wu-wei, or inaction in action. That is to say, Karma- Yoga is about freedom in action, or the transcendence of egoic motivations. When the illusion of the ego as acting subject is transcended, then actions are recognized to occur spontaneously. Without the interference of the ego, their spontaneity appears as a smooth flow. Hence, truly enlightened beings have an economy and elegance of movement about them that is generally absent in unenlightened individuals. Behind the action of the enlightened being there is no author; or we could say that Nature itself is the author.
Since, by definition, life is action, even any apparent inaction must be understood as a form of action. The principle of Karma-Yoga applies universally. This means that even the renouncers in the tradition of sam-nyâsa, who formally abstain from secular activity, are still bound to action and bound by their actions, unless their withdrawal from the world is done in the spirit of Karma-Yoga.
Through Karma-Yoga, whether one
lives the life of a householder or of a renouncer, every action is turned into a sacrifice. What is sacrificed is, in the last analysis, the self or ego. So long as the ego (ahamkâra) presumes itself to be the author behind actions or inactions, these actions or inactions have a binding power. They reinforce the ego and thereby obstruct the event of enlightenment. Egoic action or inaction generates karma.
The word karma has become part of the English language, and Webster’s explains it as “the force generated by a person’s actions held in Hinduism and Buddhism to perpetuate transmigration and in its ethical consequences to determine his destiny in his next existence.” This definition is essentially correct. Karma is not only action but also its invisible result that shapes a person’s destiny.
The underlying idea is that we are what we are because of what we do or, rather, how we do it. In our actions, we express who or what we are (or presume ourselves to be). In other words, we externalize our inner being, so that our actions are a reflection of ourselves. But they are not only reflections. There is a “feedback loop” between our actions and our being. Every action acts upon our self and contributes to the entire structure of the person we tend to be.
Thus, put simply, if someone tends to be a good- hearted, benign individual, his or her actions are apt to be what would be judged good or benign, and they in turn reinforce that person’s native good-heartedness and benignity. On the other hand, if someone tends to be mean and destructive, his or her actions are likely to be of the kind that would be judged mean and destructive, and they in turn reinforce that individual’s native meanness and destructiveness.
Actions and inactions have their immediate, visible results, which may or may not have been intended. But just as important is their invisible aftereffect on the quality of our being, about which we in the West are mostly ignorant. We may send in our monthly donation to our favorite charity and thereby obtain various advantages such as a tax break-the visible results of our action-but we also set in motion invisible forces that shape and transform our being and thus our future destiny: We reap what we sow. That India’s religious geniuses have understood this very clearly is evident from the karma doctrine.
The link between action and its feedback effects is thought to be an iron law-or what has been called the law of moral causation. It appears that the karmic law is the only immutable aspect of our world of constant change, the samsâra. It governs the cosmos on all its countless levels, and only the transcendental Reality itself is free of this peculiar arrangement.
This teaching is closely associated with another widespread belief, shared by all Hindu, Buddhist, and Jaina schools. This is the notion that the human being is a multidimensional structure or process, which does not come to an abrupt end with the death of the physical body. Diverse traditions have offered varying explanations for this postmortem continuity, and the interpretations range from naive to rather sophisticated. According to some, the surviving consciousness is clothed in a nonmaterial body awaiting its renewed incarnation on the material plane in another physical body, or on one of the supramaterial (or “subtle”) planes in a supraphysical body. According to others, the ego-consciousness does not survive the death of the body, so that there is, strictly speaking, no stable transmigrating entity but only a continuity of different “karmic” forces.
All schools are agreed that the mechanics of destiny on the physical plane and on any other level of existence are controlled by the quality of a person’s action or, more accurately, his or her intention. Karma-Yoga is the art and science of “karmically” aware and responsible action and intention. Its immediate purpose is to prevent the accumulation of unfavorable karmic effects and to reverse the effects of existing karma.
Karma-Yoga implies a complete reversal of human nature, for it demands that every action is performed out of a disposition that is radically distinct from our everyday mood. Not only are we asked to assume responsibility for appropriate (kârya) action but also to offer up our work and its fruit (phala) to the divine Person. Such offering (arpana), however, necessarily entails a self-offering, or the surrender of the ego. Karma-Yoga thus involves considerably more than doing one’s duty. It goes beyond conventional morality and involves a profound spiritual attitude. The “easy” discipline of Karma-Yoga, when adopted conscientiously, becomes a fiery practice of self-transcendence.
Action performed in the spirit of self-surrender has benign invisible effects. It improves the quality of our being and makes us a source of spiritual uplift for others. Lord Krishna, in the Bhagavad-Gîtâ, speaks of the karma-yogin’s working for the welfare of the world. The Sanskrit phrase he uses is loka-samgraha, which literally means “world gathering” or “pulling people together.” What it refers to is this: Our own personal wholeness, founded in self-surrender, actively transforms our social environment, contributing to its wholeness. But this is not the ultimate goal of the karma- yogin, only an intermediate effect of the practice of inaction in action.
“Mahatma” Gandhi was modern India’s most superb example of a karma-yogin in action. He worked tirelessly on himself and for the welfare of the Indian nation. In pursuing the lofty ideal of Karma-Yoga, Gandhi had to give up his life. He did so without rancor, with the name of God—“Ram”—on his lips. He embraced his destiny, trusting that none of his spiritual efforts could ever be lost, as is indeed the solemn promise of Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad-Gîtâ, which Gandhi read daily. Gandhi believed in the inevitability of karma, but he also believed in the freedom of the human will.
It should be noted here that the law of karma does not intrinsically encourage fatalism, even though some individuals and schools of thought have taken this stance. On the contrary, it is a call to assume responsibility for one’s destiny. This call is made in all the psychospiritual traditions of India, which, as liberation teachings, insist on the freedom of will: We are free to turn toward the transcendental Reality or toward conditional existence under the thrall of karma.
The fulcrum of Karma-Yoga is our ability to transcend all karmic necessity in our consciousness. We still have to endure certain karmic results (such as illness, misfortune, and of course death), but these need not determine our being: In our essence we are free, and the yogin who has realized the Self is abundantly aware of this truth. Action can improve the quality of our being and destiny, and this is the intent behind conventional religiosity: A person does good deeds because he or she wants to be spared the terrible blows of bad karma and instead enter one of the delightful celestial realms after dropping the physical body.
Karma-Yoga, however, aims at the transcendence of all possible destinies in the conditional realms of the multilevel cosmos. The karma-yogin aspires to the Unconditional beyond good and evil, pain and pleasure, beyond karmic necessity and embodiment. For when the Self is realized there is only bliss, and from this position the machine of Nature cannot touch us. A Self-realized yogin may still suffer all kinds of adversities-Sri Râmana Maharshi, one of modern India’s greatest sages, died of cancer-but he knows himself to be infinitely above the arising qualities of conditional existence. The enlightened adept is the eternal Essence behind all possible qualities-whether desirable or undesirable-that impinge upon the physical body or the personality associated with it. Herein lies his triumph over the body, the mind, and all other finite aspects of human nature.
Historically, Karma-Yoga can be regarded as the countering response of the conservative forces in ancient India to the growing social movement of world renunciation. Spiritually, however, it is much more than a compromise solution between conventional life (whether religious or secular) and the life of a forest- dwelling ascetic or wandering mendicant. It is an integral teaching that transcends both worldliness and otherworldliness. Therefore, the Bhagavad-Gîtâ with its integrated Karma-Yoga, Bhakti-Yoga, and Jnâna-Yoga represents a genuine innovation.25 Its teachings have had a lasting influence on many other Hindu traditions. This wonderful scripture is dealt with in more detail in Chapter 8.
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br /> Another work that must be mentioned in the present context is the Yoga-Vâsishtha, composed well over a thousand years after the dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna. Although it espouses a form of nondualism that is so radical as to regard the world to be entirely illusory, it nevertheless favors an outlook that affirms mundane existence. For in this scripture, the yogin is encouraged to fully participate in the activities of his family and society. Wisdom (jnâna) and action (karma) are compared to the two wings of a bird; it needs both to fly. Emancipation is said to be achieved by the harmonious development of both means. More will be said about this in Chapter 14.
A similar teaching can be found in the Tri-Shikhi-Brâhmana-Upanishad, a late medieval work:
Yoga is deemed twofold: Jnâna-Yoga and Karma-Yoga. Now then, O best of brahmins, listen to the Yoga of action (kriyâ-yoga). The binding of the undistracted consciousness (citta) to an object, O best among the twice-born [i.e., brahmins], is union (sam-yoga). It is attained in two ways: The constant binding of the mind (manas) to prescribed action-since action is to be performed-is called Karma-Yoga. The continual binding of consciousness to the supreme Object [i.e., the Self] should be known as Jnâna-Yoga, which is auspicious and yields all accomplishments. He whose mind is immutable, even though the twofold Yoga characterized here [is followed], goes to the supreme Good, which is of the nature of liberation. (2.23-28)
Karma-Yoga is the most grounded of all yogic approaches. Its great ideal of inaction in action (naishkarmya-karma) applies to all other spiritual disciplines and is as relevant today as it was when India’s sages first formulated it well over two thousand years ago.
VII. MANTRA-YOGA—SOUND AS A VEHICLE OF TRANSCENDENCE
Sound is a form of vibration, and it was known as such to the yogins of both ancient and medieval India. According to the dominant theory of the science of sacred sound-known as mantra-vidyâ or mantra-shâstra-the universe is in a state of vibration (spanda or spandana). The discovery that sound, particularly repetitive sound, affects consciousness was made a very long time ago, perhaps in the Stone Age. We may safely assume that some form of simple chanting and drumming, possibly with animal bones as drumsticks, was associated with paleolithic rituals. It is not surprising, therefore, that by the time the Vedic civilization was flowering in India, sound (both as ritual speech or chanting and as music) had become a rather sophisticated means of religious expression and spiritual transformation.
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