Karma-Yoga : Ch-8. Part-18.

-



Karma-Yoga

CHAPTER VIII

THE IDEAL OF KARMA-YOGA

Part-18.


We have now seen what work is.

It is a part of natures foundation, and goes on always.

Those that believe in God understand this better, because they know that God is not such an incapable being as will need our help.

Although this universe will go on always, our goal is freedom, our goal is unselfishness; and according to Karma-Yoga, that goal is to be reached through work.

All ideas of making the world perfectly happy may be good as motive powers for fanatics; but we must know that fanaticism brings forth as much evil as good.

The Karma-Yogi asks why you require any motive to work other than the inborn love of freedom.

Be beyond the common worldly motives.

"To work you have the right, but not to the fruits thereof."

Man can train himself to know and to practice that, says the Karma-Yogi.

When the idea of doing good becomes a part of his very being, then he will not seek for any motive outside.

Let us do good because it is good to do good; he who does good work even in order to get to heaven binds himself down, says the Karma-Yogi.

Any work that is done with any the least selfish motive, instead of making us free, forges one more chain for our feet.


Swami Vivekananda
To be continued  ...


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jnana-Yoga - 3.7.

-
Image
CHAPTER - 3.  MAYA AND ILLUSION - 7. ( Delivered in London ) Coming from abstractions to the common, everyday details of our lives, we find that our whole life is a contradiction, a mixture of existence and non-existence. There is this contradiction in knowledge. It seems that man can know everything, if he only wants to know; but before he has gone a few steps, he finds an adamantine wail which he cannot pass. All his work is in a circle, and he cannot go beyond that circle. The problems which are nearest and dearest to him are impelling him on and calling, day and night, for a solution, but he cannot solve them, because he cannot go beyond his intellect. And yet that desire is implanted strongly in him. Still we know that the only good is to be obtained by controlling and checking it. With every breath, every impulse of our heart asks us to be selfish. At the same time, there is some power beyond us which says that it is unselfishness alone which is good. Swami Vivek
Read more

Karma-Yoga : Ch-4. Part-5.

-
Image
Chapter-4. What is Duty? Part-5. The Bhagavad-Gita frequently alludes to duties dependent upon birth and position in life. Birth and position in life and in society largely determine the mental and moral attitude of individuals towards the various activities of life. It is therefore our duty to do that work which will exalt and ennoble us in accordance with the ideals and activities of the society in which we are born. But it must be particularly remembered that the same ideals and activities do not prevail in all societies and countries; our ignorance of this is the main cause of much of the hatred of one nation towards another. An American thinks that whatever an American does in accordance with the custom of his country is the best thing to do, and that whoever does not follow his custom must be a very wicked man. A Hindu thinks that his customs are the only right ones and are the best in the world, and that whosoever does not obey them must be the most
Read more

WORK AND ITS SECRET : 2. : SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

-
Image
25/03/2019 WORK AND ITS SECRET -2. (Delivered at Los Angeles, California, January 4, 1900) If we examine our own lives, we find that the greatest cause of sorrow is this: we take up something, and put our whole energy on it — perhaps it is a failure and yet we cannot give it up. We know that it is hurting us, that any further clinging to it is simply bringing misery on us; still, we cannot tear ourselves away from it. The bee came to sip the honey, but its feet stuck to the honey-pot and it could not get away. Again and again, we are finding ourselves in that state. That is the whole secret of existence. Why are we here? We came here to sip the honey, and we find our hands and feet sticking to it. We are caught, though we came to catch. We came to enjoy; we are being enjoyed. We came to rule; we are being ruled. We came to work; we are being worked. All the time, we find that. And this comes into every detail of our life. We are being worked upon by other minds, and we a
Read more