Talk:Karm, Dharm and Samsāraa:The Necessity of Performing Karm

By Vishal Agarwal

In the Gītā, Kṛṣṇa enumerates the following views regarding the necessity of doing karm-s:

Some wise thinkers declare that (all) karm is tainted with evil and therefore it should be forsaken. And others say that the acts of Yajña, Tapa (austerity) and Dānam (charity) should not be forsaken. Gītā 18.3

Acts of Yajñas, Austerity and Charity must not be forsaken and they must be performed. Yajñas, Austerity and Charity are indeed the purifiers of the wise thinkers. Gītā 18.5

But even these karmas must be performed without attachment and desire for fruits – this is my definite and esteemed opinion. Gītā 18.6

These views may be summarized as follows–

1. All karm-s are tainted with some portion of evil. Therefore, one cannot escape the cycle of births and deaths till he ceases to perform all actions and becomes complete action-less. This view approximates that of the followers of Sāṅkhya Darśana. They strongly recommend Sannyāsa in which the ascetic gives up most worldly duties and Vedic ceremonies and does the bare minimum to sustain his body.
2. All karmas with the exception of Yajña, Tapa and charity must be abandoned. Only these three acts must be performed because the Vedas ordain them and they bring great rewards whereas their non-performance results in evil. This view approximates that of the followers of Karmakāṇḍa and Dharmaśāstra.
3. Yajñas, austerity and charity must be always performed because they purify our Intellect (buddhi) and make it fit for spiritual enlightenment and their non-performance. Therefore, self-purification is the main goal of performance of these three acts according to this view, which is accepted by most śāstrā traditions.
4. Yajña, Tapa and charity must be performed constantly but without any desire for their beneficial fruit or without any attachment. This last is the view of Kṛṣṇa and is very similar to the third view but emphasizes total detachment from the act itself or its goal.

Additionally, there are other views in Hindu Dharm like:

1. Karmas ought to be performed only till spiritual wisdom dawns. A spiritually enlightened person need not perform any action (ritualistic or otherwise) at all. This is the view of traditions like Advaita Vedānta.

Many other similar views from within the śāstrā traditions may be cited likewise. Kṛṣṇa’s firm preference is for constant performance of good deeds like Yajña, Tapa and charity without an expectation of their result. In fact, in the Bhagavad Gītā in particular, numerous reasons listed below are provided why the first view in particular and the fifth opinion above are unacceptable.

Reason 1: Performance of worship and other karmas is the command of the Vedas and other scriptures

Know that karm originates from the Veda, and the Veda originates from the Imperishable (Divine). Therefore, the Veda, which encompasses all knowledge, is always established in Yajña. Gītā 3.15

This is indeed the antidote for the ātmā in humans – acquiring the knowledge of the Veda, and the due performance of one’s duty. Performance of one’s own duty means pursuit of duties of the āśrama (stage of one’s life) to which one belongs. Duties of āśrama are like the trunk of a tree, and all other duties are its branches. By performing these duties, one is uplifted, otherwise one gets goes downward…..Yajurveda, Maitrāyaṇīya Upaniṣad 4.3

The duties of one’s Āśrama must be performed because they are enjoined by scripture. Moreover, they are conducive to jñāna arising in oneself. He who performs his duties also does not get overpowered by evil. Brahmasūtras 3.4.1,2,4

The Karmakāṇḍa portion of the Vedas describe Brahman in an indirect way due to which even scholars of Vedas are unable to comprehend him. The same Brahman is described in a clear way through the path of Karmayog that is taught by the Upaniṣads. Mahābhārata 12.238.11

The Yajñas have originated from the Brāhmaṇas (portion of the Vedas), and the Yajñas are dedicated to the Brāhmaṇas indeed. The whole world follows yajñas, and yajñas are always present at the foundation of world. Mahābhārata 12.268.34

Reason 2: It is impossible to be completely action-less. We may be able to restrain our physical and verbal karm, but the control of mental activity is really very difficult.

No one can remain without doing karm for even an instant. Compelled by guṇas arising from prakṛti, everyone is made to do karm. Gītā 3.5

He who restrains his organs of action but whose mind continues to dwell on the objects of these senses is called a hypocrite who has a deluded soul. Gītā 3.6

For this reason, the path of Karmayog emphasizes the mental component of karm – the mental karmas per se, as well as the mental attitude or intent behind our physical and verbal actions. One might recall here the story of two brothers who embarked on a journey to visit a sacred temple. When the two brothers died, the brother who spent the night in the temple physically but thought of mundane matters all the time fared much worse than the brother who spent the night in a dance-bar but was absorbed in spiritual thoughts all the time.

Reason 3: It is impossible to even survive physically without performing any karm.

You must perform your allotted karm (duty) because action is better than inaction. In fact, not even the sustenance of your body can be accomplished through inaction. Gītā 3.8

Reason 4: The world is like a web in which we are all interconnected. We all owe something to others (including to the divine natural powers), and have duties towards others that we must perform.

In ancient times, Prajāpati created humans along with Yajñas and said, “By Yajñas you shall procreate, let this (Yajñas) be the cow that yields the milk of your desires.” Gītā 3.10

By this yajña, you shall sustain the Devas, so that the Devas sustain you. Sustaining one another, you shall obtain the supreme good. Gītā 3.11

Sustained by the Yajñas, the Devas will give you the enjoyments that you desire. He who enjoys their gifts without giving to them in return is indeed a thief. Gītā 3.12

Good persons, consuming what is left after the Yajñas, are freed from all evil. But the wicked who cook only for themselves indeed eat only evil. Gītā 3.13

From food are born the creatures. Food grows from rain. From Yajñas, rain comes into being. And Yajñas are born from karm. Gītā 3.14

Pārtha, whosoever in this world does not help rotate the wheel (of life) that has been set in motion, lives an evil life, delighting only in sensual pleasures, and lives in vain. Gītā 3.16

The interconnectedness of all humans through the web of karm, and the fact that we must perform karm just to stay alive (as stated earlier) has been explained very nicely using a modern analogy:

“Since the discovery of computers and wireless communication, this ancient and understanding that everything in nature is invisibly connected in a web of laws or rules has become much more obvious to us. For the moment, think of all of nature as a great mainframe computer with all of us as independent nodes with our own hard disk and processor. We are wirelessly connected to the mainframe in a kind of “inner-net.” We are uploading and downloading information all the time. Right at this moment, some file that you created is downloading information all the time. Right at this moment, some file that you created is downloading to you and “you have mail.” The biological functions of our bodies are being conducted by a larger program of rules and regulations that exist as software in the mainframe. We are never independent of that larger system, even if we ignore its messages for some time. Ignoring the mainframe is never in our best interest and inevitably leads us to the nearest body shop to be looked at by the “body nerds” we call doctors.”

Reason 5: The jñānī-s are looked upon as ideals by others, and therefore must set an example for the masses by performing their duties for the welfare of others even though they are not dependent upon anyone else for anything –

Whatever the most excellent person does, the same is done by others as well. Whatever standard he sets, the world follows that. Gītā 3.21

Bhārata, just as the unlearned do their karm due to attachment, so must the learned also act, but with the desire for welfare of this world. Gītā 3.25

Let the learned not create confusion in the intellect of the ignorant who are attached to karm. The learned should make them enjoy performing all karm, while himself performing actions as a yogī. Gītā 3.26

Reason 6:

Renowned jñānī-s have also lived their lives performing their duties –

It was through the performance of karm that Janaka and others attained complete perfection. Therefore, you must also perform karm keeping in view the welfare (or harmony, interconnectedness) of this world. Gītā 3.20

Mahābhārata 12.320.4 mentions Dharmadhvaja Janaka, the King of Mithilā, who obtained the result of saṃnyāsa even while being a householder and king. Mahābhārata 12.320.24 refers to Pañcaśikhā as a bhikṣu of Parāśara gotra. Verse 27 refers to Dharmadhvaja Janaka revealing that Pañcaśikhā taught the entire wisdom of Sāṅkhya to the King but did not permit him to renounce the world and become an ascetic.

Reason 7: Even Paramātmā, who owes nothing to anyone, performs karm ceaselessly –

Pārtha, there is no work in the three worlds that I must do, nor is there anything that I must attain that I have not attained yet. Nevertheless, I am engaged in actions. Gītā 3.22

Pārtha, if ever I did not engage in ceaseless karm, humans would follow my path in every way. Gītā 3.23

If I were to cease performing karm, these worlds would soon perish, and I would be the cause of admixture and destroy all these creatures. Gītā 3.24

Bhārata, whenever there is a decline of dharm, and a rise of adharm, I send forth (i.e., incarnate) Myself. Gītā 4.7

For the protection of the virtuous and for the destruction of the evil-doers, I come into being in every age. Gītā 4.8

Hari, the great yogī, is the Bhagavān of the Universe. Yet, he is always engaged through his actions with this universe and makes it prosper just as a farmer constantly works to increase the yield of his crop. Mahābhārata 5.68.14

Reason 8: The Ancients became great following the example of Paramātmā. Karmas do not taint Me, nor do I have any longing for the fruit of karm. He who knows Me thus is not bound by karm. Gītā 4.14

Having known this, the ancients, seeking mokṣa, also performed karm. Therefore, you too perform karm just as it was done by the ancients in earlier times. Gītā 4.15

Reason 9: Karma-phobia of some jñānī-s is not justified because the true actors are the guṇa-s, and because it is not just the soul but a combination of five factors that help us do karm –

Although all types of karm are performed by the guṇa-s of prakṛti, the soul deluded by ahaṃkāra (ego) thinks “I am the doer.” Gītā 3.27

But, mighty-armed, the knowers of reality believe that guṇa-s and karmas are distinct from the soul, and it is guṇa-s acting on guṇa-s. Therefore, they do not get attached. Gītā 3.28

Five Factors of Doing Karm — Mighty-armed, learn from Me, these five means declared conclusively in the Sāṅkhya doctrine that are needed for the accomplishment of all karmas. Gītā 18.13

The seat (or basis), also the doer, the various sorts of different instruments, and various separate efforts, with fate as being the fifth. Gītā 18.14

Whatever karm a person undertakes by his body, speech or mind – whether it is right or wrong, these five are its means. Gītā 18.15

This being so, he who sees his soul alone as the doer does not truly see because of the fact that he has not perfected his understanding. Gītā 18.16

He whose soul is free of the egotistic condition, whose intellect is not tainted, he does not kill, nor is he bound (by his karmas). Gītā 18.17

Reason 10: Repression of one’s active nature is not desirable –

Even the man of knowledge acts according to his own nature (prakṛti). All creatures follow their own nature. What can repression accomplish? Gītā 3.33

Reason 11: Performance of certain karmas purifies our minds and buddhi, and makes them fit for jñāna.

A person who performs good karm alone is eligible for instruction on jñāna –

Some wise declare that all karm is tainted with evil and therefore it should be forsaken. And others say that karm involving Yajña, Tapa (austerity) and Dānam (charity) should not be forsaken. Gītā 18.3

Best of Bhāratas, in this regard, listen to my definite conclusion regarding tyāga. Tiger among men, tyāga has indeed been declared to be of three kinds. Gītā 18.4

Acts of Yajñas, Austerity and Charity must not be forsaken and they must be performed. Yajñas, Austerity and Charity are indeed the purifiers of the wise. Gītā 18.5

But even these karmas must be performed without attachment and desire for fruits – this is my definite and esteemed opinion. Gītā 18.6

Upon the exhaustion of the fruit of evil karm, knowledge arises in the hearts of men, just as one can see himself in the mirror after wiping the dust covering it. Mahābhārata 12.204.8

Karmas purify the body whereas knowledge leads to the supreme goal. When good karmas destroy the flaws of one’s mind, then that person comes to abide in the joy of knowledge. Mahābhārata 12.271.38

After the doer has exhausted the fruit of his actions, and engages in good karm, he gets purified in mind and body and as a result, he gets inclined towards performing austerities and yog. Mahābhārata 3.209.39

The Brāhmaṇas seek to know It [Brahman] through the study of the Vedas, Yajñas, charity and austerity. Yajurveda, Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.4.22

Those who perform the Yajñas, who are learned in the Vedas, who are well established in Brahman, who offer of themselves oblations to the sole Ṛṣi (ekarṣi, name of the Yajña fire) with faith – to them alone one may declare this knowledge of Brahman…..Atharvaveda, Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 2.2.11

Without Kriyā yog, jñāna yog is fruitless. Nārada Purāṇa 1.33.32

A modern teacher explains, along similar lines, using a simple example:

“A mother was trying to give an ounce of bitter medicine to her child. However much she might caress and cajole the child, he would not take the medicine. She hit upon a wonderful idea. She placed a sweet ‘laddu’ before the child and said: ‘If you take this medicine, I will give you the laddu.’ At once, the child drank the medicine. As the medicine removed the effect of the disease and gave him abundant energy, he ran away in great joy, even forgetting the ‘laddu’.”

If you tell a man, ‘Please do this yajña (sacrifice)’, he will not do, because he seeks pleasure through every action. Therefore, the Vedas offer Svarga, etc., as rewards for the sacrifices. When man performs sacrifices, his heart is purified and gradually wisdom dawns in him. He does not even bother any more of Svarga and the finite happiness there. In Supreme Bliss he gets liberated.”

Reason 12: The system of four varṇas, that decides our karmas, was created by Bhagavān –

The system of four varṇas was created by Me according to the division of guṇas and karmas. Gītā 4.13

Because the system of four varṇas is of Divine origin, it follows naturally that we must perform our duties related to our varṇa diligently.

Reason 13: Jñāna reduces the effects of karm to ashes –

Arjuna, just as the fire which is kindled reduces firewood to ashes, so does the fire of knowledge reduce all karm to ashes. Gītā 4.37

Karmas do not bind him who has renounced his karm through yog, who has destroyed his doubts by knowledge and who is ever devoted to the soul. Gītā 4.41

Even a householder who is devoted to spiritual knowledge and adheres to the truth attains mokṣa without having to become a saṃnyāsin. Yājñavalkya Smṛti 3.204–205

Just as the mirror becomes shiny and clean by repeated polishing, in the same way, one’s intellect is purified by repeatedly engaging with jñāna. Śivadharmottara Upapurāṇa 3.34

The rope of dharm uplifts one, whereas the rope of adharm drags one down. Cleaving both these ropes with the sword of knowledge, one attains peace (of mokṣa) upon discarding the body. Śivadharmottara Upapurāṇa 3.42

Just as a blazing fire incinerates all fuel, whether it is dry or soaked in water; in the same way, the fire of knowledge reduces to ashes within a moment all of one’s evil as well as good karmas. Śivadharmottara Upapurāṇa 3.47

Reason 14: Renunciation of all karmas is difficult to achieve without union with karm. Therefore, it is just easier to combine the performance of karmas even in the path of jñāna yog.

But, mighty-armed, renunciation is difficult to obtain without yog. The sage who is disciplined in yog attains Brahman quickly. Gītā 5.6

Just as a chariot without horses, and horses without a charioteer do not go much distance, and just as the two (horses and charioteer) are helpful in making the chariot move; likewise, spiritual wisdom becomes a medicine (to heal the ailment of repeated cycle of births and deaths) only when combined with austerity. Just as grains mixed with honey and honey mixed with grains taste excellent, and just as a bird can fly high in the sky only with the help of both of its wings, likewise that Brāhmaṇa attains the eternal Brahman through spiritual wisdom combined with karm; and is endowed with spiritual knowledge together with austerity. Hārita Smṛti 7.10–12

Reason 15: They who abandon karm are actually blind to all jñāna and incur Divine wrath. It is only through performance of one’s duty that evil can be avoided.

“Our bodies and minds are mere vehicles for the working out of the results of our past karm. Karma-yog asks us to face life by facing the results of our past actions. The tendencies created by one set of actions can be countered only by the performance with equal intensity of an opposite set of actions. The chain of bondage is the chain of karm. That which has been enchained must be unchained. A screw that has been put into a wall with twenty turns can only be taken out with another twenty turns in the opposite direction – to do otherwise would damage the wall. The evolution of a person from sensuality to spirituality cannot be hurried. The effects of egotistic action can be nullified only by the performance of karma-yog. Karma-yog is the change of motive inspiring the performance.”

Those persons too, who, full of faith and free from cavil, follow this teaching of mine at all times, are released from the (fetters of) karmas. Gītā 3.31

But they who disparage my teaching and do not follow it – know them to be blind to all knowledge, as lost and mindless. Gītā 3.32

Performing your karm here in this world may you wish to live for a hundred years. This is the only way, and there is no other alternative, by which you will not get tainted by the results of your karm. Yajurveda, Īśāvāsya Upaniṣad 2

Reason 16: Just as fire is covered with smoke, good karm too has negative side-effects. But no one stops lighting a fire for the fear of smoke.

There are other side-effects of even well-intentioned karm, such as a farmer killing insects and bugs while ploughing the fields. No action is without these side-effects. Some of these side-effects are under our control, others are not.

One should not abandon the duty which is inborn even though it may be defective. Son of Kuntī, all karmas done with a selfish purpose are enveloped by defects, as fire by smoke. Gītā 18.48

Reason 17: The fact is that all the karmas done, while following the path of karma-yog, lead to spiritual knowledge.

All karmas in their entirety culminate in jñāna. Gītā 4.33

In this world, there is no greater purifier than knowledge. He who becomes perfected by yog finds this himself in his soul in course of time. Gītā 4.38

This kriyā-yog indeed helps accomplish jñāna-yog. Without karma-yog, none whosoever has ever obtained jñāna. Matsya Purāṇa 52.11b–12a

In fact, the path of karma-yog declares that performance of karm in the correct way results in jñāna. This makes karma-yog a full-fledged, independent path to reach the Divine.

Reason 18: Kṛṣṇa clearly declares his own preference for the path of karma-yog, than for the path in which all karmas are renounced.

Renunciation of karmas and karma-yog both lead to the highest bliss; of the two, karma-yog is indeed better than the renunciation of action. Gītā 5.2

Reason 19: It is fiction that other paths to mokṣa can avoid karm altogether. Kṛṣṇa rejected Sañjaya’s deceitful suggestion that the Pāṇḍavas should become ascetics and not ask for their kingdom to be returned. He championed the importance of performing karm while abiding in the life of a householder. Some of his verses are reproduced below:

Kṛṣṇa said:

Only those branches of learning that generate some activity bear fruit, and not other branches of learning. Between the two – karm and knowledge, one can see directly only karm yielding a beneficial result in this life. A thirsty person becomes pacified only after drinking water (not by merely knowing about water). Mahābhārata 5.29.9

Knowledge has been prescribed along with karm (in the Vedas), and therefore, karm pervades even knowledge. But he who considers the abandonment of karm as superior to doing karm, he is weak, and I consider his words as devoid of any worth. Mahābhārata 5.29.10

Within the Gītā itself, Kṛṣṇa declares that the Vedas prescribe many Yajñas, all of which are grounded in karm.

Kṛṣṇa said:

Those who eat the nectar-like remnant of yajñas go to the Primeval Brahman. This world is not for him who offers no yajñas, how then can he have any other world, who best of Kurus? Gītā 4.31 Thus there are many types of yajñas spread out in the face (or mouth) of Brahman (Brahmaṇo mukhe). Know them all to be born of karm. Knowing thus, you shall be released. Gītā 4.32

In fact, the other scriptures too declare that even spiritual pursuits have Yajña as their foundation:

Teaching, meditation, expounding, hearing and reflecting (upon wisdom about Śiva) – these are regarded as the five forms of jñānayajña. Śivadharmottara Upapurāṇa 3.14

The doer of Ātma-yajña offers his prāṇas as a libation into being that resides in the region between his navel and the heart. His Agnihotra is performed within his own body, and yet he is said to have satisfied all the worlds and all the Devas. Mahābhārata 12.245.28

Conclusion: Relinquishing karm altogether is not necessarily Sāttvik

Indeed, the renunciation of obligatory duties is not appropriate. Forsaking them out of delusion is said to be a Tāmasic relinquishment. Gītā 18.7

He who relinquishes karm because doing it is painful, or because of the fear that it will cause bodily suffering, his relinquishment is Rājasic, and he does not obtain the fruit of relinquishment. Gītā 18.8

He who does his obligatory karm (duty) because it ought to be done, forsaking attachment and also its fruit, his relinquishment is regarded as Sāttvik. Gītā 18.9

The wise person who relinquishes, whose doubts have been cut asunder, who is filled with sattva, he does not hate disagreeable action, nor is he attached to agreeable action. Gītā 18.10