Path of selfless action

October 25, 2014 01:11 am | Updated May 23, 2016 06:58 pm IST

Rama’s valour surfaces throughout Rama Avatar even as His commitment to Dharma remains unshakable, pointed out Sri B. Sundarkumar in a discourse. An epithet in Rama Ashtothram which alludes to Rama’s killing of the rakshasa Viradha in the Kishkinta Kanda hails the expertise and finesse of this act by the term Pandita. But this term also signifies a Jnani or realised soul who acts in a selfless manner always. Rama killed Viradha and released him from the curse so that he attained his Gandharva status.

In the Bhagavad Gita, when the Lord explains the essence of karma yoga, He reveals that selfless action is the basis of all existence. The Lord quotes the example of realised souls who are at peace but continue with their ordained duties till the end of their worldly existence in a detached manner, unlike others who are prompted to act by worldly desires. The Lord then refers to His role in this regard when out of His Sankalpa He works untiringly without respite. There is nothing which He does not possess or anything He needs to acquire. Yet He is engaged forever in His task of maintaining world order — an incessant activity by which He preserves the world and prevents it from falling back into non-existence. To create an object is of course a creditable act. But to preserve, maintain and sustain it is a greater effort and the Lord’s commitment to this task is the best example of the practice of karma yoga. Realised souls who have no anxiety about the results of their actions assist Him in this regard when they continue to work in this world not for their selfish ends but for the general welfare of all.

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