Miscellaneous - Religion   

Acts that do not bind

CHENNAI: For a soul, attaining enlightenment is the highest goal and it is human birth that enables the soul to understand its true nature.

The Bhagavad Gita places great emphasis on Karma Yoga that integrates inner knowledge with external action and details many finer points to guide a wide range of people in accordance with their individual spiritual attainment. While it is the ignorant who desire the fruit for their action, the wise work without desire, and hold performance of action as ordained duty. It is also asserted that practice of Karma Yoga in the right spirit ultimately leads to Jnana.

Lord Krishna clarifies that the actions of already enlightened souls who continue to live on this earth do not bind them any further because such people have reached a stage where they are neither in need of anything nor desirous of reaching any goal, since they have attained the highest goal — enlightenment, said Sri N. Veezhinathan in a lecture.

When one's actions are free from the desire of fruits and when one is not deluded into believing that he is the one that performs actions, his Jnana is as powerful as fire to destroy the binding effects of all his past deeds. With the awareness of the distinction between body and soul, and no desire for anything that is not sanctioned by Sastras, this Jnani is not affected by joy or sorrow, pleasure or pain.

Through strict discipline of the mind the individual's thinking and bodily wants are controlled. All the sense perceptions are directed inwards from external objects of the world. The realisation that the sense perceptions can act in two ways — either get attracted to external objects of the world or get attuned to realise the true nature of the Self — opens up the option for one to use the senses in the way that is most beneficial for the Atma. When the bliss of the Atma is felt, there is inward joy and peace.

Even the celestials bow down to a person whose mind is steady with no disturbances, distractions or delusions as a result of being steeped in knowledge of the Self.

Such a person — whatever be his state (householder/Sanyasi), and whatever be the nature of his actions (yagas with the use of Agni, etc) — acts for the benefit of other people having renounced any personal gain that is likely to come out of the action.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Cartoonscape
The Hindu Crossword No. 8652
Solution to Puzzle No. 8651
Acts that do not bind
dated July 11, 1956: Nixon on Kashmir
dated July 11, 1956: Nehru in Ireland
dated July 11, 1956: Car festival at Puri
Weather

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu