You have the right to perform your actions, but you are not entitled to the fruits of these actions. Bhagwad Gita.
“ कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन । मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भुर्मा ते संगोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥“
Bhagvad Gita, commonly known as Gita, is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic Mahabharat.
This message was from Lord Krishna to Arjun during the Epic War of Mahabharat when Arjun was unwilling to fight, given that he had the opposite of him, all those persons he considers his own.
Let us study the context: In this case, Krishna tells Arjun that no matter what the results of the war, he should not be worried about it. He has to fight, then he has to fight.
He wins or loses, which is not important. Even if he dies during the war, he will attain heaven because he has correctly performed his duty.
At the start of the Dharm Yudh (battle for rights) between Kauravas and Pandavas, Arjun is filled with despair and dilemma over the magnitude of violence and deaths that the battle will cause in his elders and youngsters.
He tells Lord Krishna that he wishes to retract from the battlefield and seeks His counsel. Lord Krishna then gives answers to all his doubts. It is these answers and discourse that constitute the Bhagvad Gita.
To convince Arjun to fight Lord Krishna takes his chariot in the middle of the battlefield and counsels him to uphold Dharma through selfless action and fulfill his duty without thinking of the result.
Arjun is not satisfied and again tells Lord Krishna :
“Madhav (another name of Lord Krishna), all those standing opposite to me are my own. What is the use of fighting against my own for just a piece of land?”
He further laments: “The ones standing there are my respected uncles and dear cousins. What will I gain by killing them? Madhav, won’t I be sinning by killing them? Instead, I would prefer that they kill me here itself.”
Then Lord Krishna gets up from the seat of the charioteer and gives him some inspirational advice. These pieces of advice are beautifully explained in the Bhagvad Gita.
Among all the teachings I feel the one that He gives to Arjun, the one given below, is the most famous verse in Mahabharat, Chapter II, verse 47. Krishna goes on to say :
“ कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन । मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भुर्मा ते संगोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥“
(“Karmanye Vadhikaraste, Ma phaleshou kada chana.)
Ma Karma Phala Hetur Bhurmatey Sangostva Akarmani “)
Let’s see what this means:
Karmanye Vadhikaraste, Ma phaleshou Kada chana — You have the right to perform your actions, but you are not entitled to the fruits of the actions.
Lord Krishna explains to him about his duties. The above verse, which is among the most famous verses in Mahabharat, is one of those explanations.
Here Krishna says: “Kaunteya (Arjun) no matter what the result of the war is, you should not be worried about it. You must fight, and you must fight. It is not important whether you win or lose.
Even if you die during the war, you will attain heaven because you would have correctly performed your duty.”
Now coming to the second phrase of the above verse:
Ma Karma Phala Hetur Bhurmatey Sangostva Akarmani — Do not let the fruit be the purpose of your actions, and therefore you won’t be attached to not doing your duty.
Krishna advises “Arjun you should never let the fruit be the purpose of your actions”
Here, the action is his fight, and the fruit is either he wins or loses. He is not supposed to worry about victory or defeat. Either one wins or loses; he must be neutral about it.
In simple terms, it means to keep on performing your duties without being attached to the result of your actions. You should not worry about either getting something or you get nothing. You should have neutral behavior.
In short, let’s see what this means: Karmanye Vadhikaraste, Ma phaleshou Kada chana — You have the right to perform your actions, but you are not entitled to the fruits of the actions.
Ma Karma Phala Hetur Bhurmatey Sangostva Akarmani — Do not let the fruit be the purpose of your actions, therefore you won’t be attached to not doing your duty.
Well, let us relate that in our context as a human being: As an example: A student — Has to study, he passes or fails, that’s not in his control. The student does not study just for the sake of passing his exams. When he studies, he learns.
Whether he passes or fails, he should not be too happy or too sad about it. If ever a student studies to pass his exams, he has learned nothing even if he has passed.
But if he studies because he considers learning and studying as his duty, he won’t even need to be worried whether he will pass or fail.
And such students, as we have always seen, are most likely to pass their exams unless they cannot pass their exams for some reason. Even so, he should not be sad about it. Why? Because the most important is at least he performed his duty well.
Note: In Bhagavad Gita, As It Is, By Swami Prabhupada, the part Ma Karma Phala Hetur Bhur means never to consider ourselves to be the cause of the result of our activities.
This is right too because when we consider ourselves to be the cause of the result of our actions, it will tempt us to be attached to that result. So when we do something, we are not supposed to take credit for the fruit of our action.
We can also relate this preaching to the conditions of the worst phase of “ KAAL” that we were passing through, i.e., the Corona pandemic.
Our Corona Warriors, salute to them, were performing their duties 24/7X365 and helping the patients to recover from the dreaded and fatal disease. They worked long hours without caring for their own lives, as they were also at risk of contracting the virus.
They did their duty without knowing the results of their duty — the patient may or may not survive, but they continued the duty without thinking about the fruit of their actions.
So when we do something, we are not supposed to take credit for the fruit of our action. We consider that it is our duty, so we did it.
Conclusion:
By focusing on our efforts rather than worrying about outcomes, we cultivate detachment, inner peace, and fulfillment. This philosophy encourages us to work diligently, ethically, and wholeheartedly without being burdened by expectations, ultimately leading to a balanced and purposeful life.
Please let me have your comments and views on the subject..