What makes us ill can make us well
Actions done carelessly and with a wrong attitude fill a person’s life with suffering, and yet the remedy for that suffering is also action itself
Most people in the world are immersed in action, and they act in the hope of its result. Sometimes what they longed for arrives, and there is joy; sometimes it does not, and there is sorrow. A good deed brings merit, a wrong one brings sin, and the fruit of each must be borne in time.
When attachment to the fruit grows too strong, peace of mind is lost. Both while we act and long after, the recurring thought of how things will turn out causes constant anxiety. Karma Yoga is the art of taking this very action, which otherwise binds us, and turning it into a means for Self-realisation.
Once a man went to a feast and ate a great deal of ghee, and the very next day he was seriously ill with indigestion. Unable to bear the pain, he went to a doctor who told him, “Bring me a little ghee, and I will prepare a medicine for you.”
The man was astonished. He replied, “It was ghee that gave me this trouble in the first place, and now you ask me to fetch more?” Still, at the doctor’s insistence, he reluctantly brought it. The doctor mixed it with certain herbs, gave it to him in a particular way, and the ailment was cured.
In just this way, actions done carelessly and with a wrong attitude fill a person’s life with suffering, and yet the remedy for that suffering is also action itself. Once the attitude behind the action is set right, action is no longer a source of pain; it leads to the good of oneself and the good of the world.
Sometimes, however carefully we labour, the result we hoped for does not come. A farmer toils and sows his crop, and just as it ripens, a sudden downpour destroys the entire field. From this we learn that the fruit of action does not rest on our effort alone. That is why Sri Krishna tells us in the Gita to act while offering the fruit to God.
We are also deeply attached to the people and things around us, and this can stand in the way of performing our duties. Even the most experienced surgeon will not dare to operate on his own wife or child. Even a righteous judge will not bring himself to pass sentence on his own son when the boy stands accused. From this we see how greatly attachment interferes with our judgement and affects our actions.
In truth it is not actions that bind us, but the pride we take in them and the craving for their fruits. Karma Yoga is the way to act with the fullest skill and yet stay free of those bonds. The karma yogi knows that the results are not up to us, that we are but instruments in the hands of God.
So, whatever the task, a karma yogi does it beautifully, and whatever the outcome, it is received as the will of God. In this way, Karma Yoga lets us work in the world in practical ways with keen discernment, while at the same time moving steadily towards the ultimate goal - liberation.
Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, known simply as Amma, is a spiritual master and humanitarian who has given her darshan in the form of a motherly embrace to more than 4 crore people. Listening to the cries of the suffering, Amma leads the Mata Amritanandamayi Math, an NGO that reaches across more than 50 countries, working in the areas of healthcare, disaster relief, education, gender equality, and environmental restoration; Views presented are personal.
