Srimad BhagavadGita

It is said that a mumukṣu (aspirant of mokṣa) practising karma yoga must give up all karmas which fetch things other than mokṣa.

The most common doubt that arises is: The śāstras mention rewards even for nitya, naimittika karmas and nivṛtti dharmas (dharmas to be followed by a seeker of liberation which include abstaining from lying, etc). So, these should also be given up implying that we shall pass our time as we please.

Clarification: This doubt is cleared in the current śloka. A mumukṣu steadfast in sattva guṇa must confine to the execution of all nitya, naimittika karmas meant for him per his varṇa and aśrama and only those kāmya karmas whose execution is possible for him. Since the rewards of these kāmya karmas are opposed to mokṣa, only they must be given up. For a mumukṣu established in karma yoga, since execution of nivṛtti dharmas is a requirement as well as a means to mokṣa, their performance should not be given up. Therefore he will not incur the blame of behaving as per his will.

Kṛṣṇa says, "O Arjuna! As a mumukṣu, you have a right to desire only with respect to the nature of the action and not on the short lived rewards of those actions like heaven, etc. Do not at any time take doer-ship for the karmas or place expectation on their rewards. At the same time, you should not resort to inaction too."  

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karmanyeva adhikāraste

    karmanyeva (In the nature of the action) scope of action is the complete execution of nitya, naimittika            karmas and execution of kāmya karmas based on one's own capacity. 

    te adhikāraḥ (you have a right to desire) In Vedārtha Saṃgrahaṃ Bhagawad Rāmānujā gives the meaning

for the word adhikāra as, svakīyatva buddhiḥ hi adhikāraḥ (the attitude that 'this is applicable to me',

itself is the adhikāra or right) 

With the words 'karmanyeva adhikāraste', Kṛṣṇa tells Arjuna that, 'O Arjuna, you who is mumukṣu with an abundance of sattva guṇa must be interested only in the nature of the action (execution part) and not in the rewards mentioned in the śāstras for these actions .

As per the śāstras the rewards reaped for proper execution of nitya, naimittika karmas are 

• Earning the eligibility to perform certain other karmas.

•     Exhausting one's accumulated pāpams (effects of bad deeds) 

•     Avoiding the sin incurred for not executing them.

•     Attaining higher planets like prajāpati's abode.

Regarding kāmya karmas, it is known that each kāmya karma yields a different reward. Without any desire for these rewards, with a desire for mokṣa alone, you who is a mumukṣu must only be interested in the action part of the karma. The 'eva' signifies exclusivity. What must be done is told here. All that has to be excluded is told next.

mā phaleṣu kadācana (You do not have a right to desire for the trivial rewards like heaven, etc, designated for those actions) A mumukṣu pursuing the practice of karma yoga should not place his interest in these short lived rewards. Performing the actions with a desire for any reward other than mokṣa will bind a person to this saṃsāra. However, performing the same set of karmas as a devotional offering to the Lord will lead to mokṣa (the highest objective of human pursuit). Therefore a mumukṣu must have a great liking towards executing these karmas in this way for attaining his desired goal namely mokṣa. 

mā karma phala hetur bhūḥ (you should not at any time take ownership of (become the reason for) either the karma or its reward) For the compound 'karma phala', if we consider it to be in the ṣaṣṭhi (case 6) tatpuruṣa samāsa where the second term is of priority, then the meaning will have to be interpreted as 'reward of the action'. The meaning of these words and the previous 'mā phaleṣu kadācana' will be the same, resulting in the flaw of repetition. Therefore this samāsa should not be considered. Also, taking into consideration the discussion picked up next by Kṛṣṇa about non-doership, it is appropriate to interpret these words as 'do not become the cause of karmas and their rewards' as per dvandva samāsa where both the terms are given an equal priority. Therefore the meanings are elaborated separately.

  mā karma hetur bhūḥ (Do not become the reason for the action)

  Q: Is it justified to first instruct that, 'you only have a right to perform your karma (duty based action)' and

instruct in the end that, 'do not get attracted to the idea of abstaining from work' with the instruction in

between that 'you should not be the cause of the action'?

  A: The instruction given here is to not mentally consider yourself as the cause of the action. This will       

eliminate the feeling of doer-ship. Therefore there is no contradiction between the first and third           

instructions and the middle one.

  mā phala hetur bhūḥ (Do not become the reason for the reward)

It means that you should not initiate actions driven by a strong desire for their rewards.

  Q: Both 'mā phaleṣu kadācana' and 'mā phala hetur bhūḥ' seem to convey the same meaning. Will the flaw of

repetition not arise?

  A: 'mā phaleṣu kadācana' instructs that expectation should not be placed in the rewards of yagnas like

jyotiṣṭoma which are delivered in the next lifetime, eg: heaven. 'mā phala hetur bhūḥ' instructs that

expectation should not be placed in the rewards delivered in the same lifetime, eg: satisfaction of hunger by

the act of eating. Therefore there is no flaw of repetition.

  Q: If he is not supposed to be the reason for the rewards obtained in the same lifetime like satisfaction of

his hunger, etc, then he must give up his desire to earn for the procurement of food material

and eating both of which are a means to satisfy his hunger. Will this not lead to deterioration of health and

inability to perform karma yoga with this body? 

  A: The instruction does not literally mean that he should not be the reason for the reward. The intention

behind the instruction is to say that he should not mentally consider himself as the reason for the reward

which is 'his satisfied hunger' in this case. Hence the doubt is cleared.

Therefore the instruction is that 'you should not become the reason for either the karma or its reward'.

Q: When, in reality, he is a reason for both the action and the reward, how can he think that he is not? Like

the Cārvāka philosophy which believes that there is no cause to any effect, he will have to believe that there

is no cause behind the rewards of these karmas. If this is believed then the purpose of executing

the means is lost. Assuming that mokṣa will also be attained without any reason, execution of karma

yoga as its means will also have to be given up?

A: Here the scope of the instruction should be limited to the fact that he should not consider himself as a

reason for either the action or the reward. It does not mean that there is no cause at all. This is because, the

sattva, rajo and tamo guṇas become the reasons for the rewards of karmas. It is going to be explained

in the third chapter that one must constantly remember that Sarveśvara is the reason for these rewards of

karmas. asaktyā lokarakṣāyai guneṣvāropyakartr̥utām | sarveśvare vānyasyoktā trutīye

karmakāryatā || (One must perform karmas without attachment towards any reward other that mokṣa, only

for the welfare of the world knowing well that due to association with the three guṇas he is acquiring this

sense of doer-ship and assuming that this sense of doer-ship due to the three guṇas too is motivated by the

all pervading Bhagawān), Sri Yāmunācārya in his Gītārthasaṃgraham also states that this is going to be

explained in the third chapter. From all of the above it is clear that an effect is not generated without a cause

and therefore giving up karma yoga as a means to mokṣa on this pretext is not correct.

Q: The question still remains unanswered as to why he should not give up karma yoga as a means to

mokṣa when he is not the cause for any reward?

A: The intention is not to say that he is not at all the reason. It is to convey that since there are five reasons

including himself for obtaining the reward of an action, he cannot assume that he alone is the sole reason for

the reward. Moreover this one fifth doer-ship of his too is not his original characteristic but an act by him due

to the play of the three guṇas. Therefore just as someone who does a great favour says that he did not do

anything, it is not wrong for him to say that he is not the reason and Paramātma alone is the reason even

though he has some doer-ship. In fact this small percentage of doer-ship too is under Paramātma's control.

parāttu tacchuteḥ Brahma Sūtra 2.3.20 asserts this. Therefore the above question is answered.

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ | ahaṃkāra vimūḍhātmā kartā’ham-iti manyate

B.G 3.27 (One who is in body consciousness assumes that he is the doer of all the actions performed by the

three guṇas of material nature namely sattva, rajas and tamas) and adhiṣṭhānaṃ tathā

kartā karaṇaṃ ca pṛthag-vidham|vividhā capṛthak ceṣṭā daivaṃ caivātra pañcamam || śarīra-

vāṇ manobhiryat karma prārabhate naraḥ |nyāyyaṃ vā viparītaṃ vā pañcaite tasya hetavaḥ ||

B.G 18.14, 18.15 (For any karma performed with the mind, speech or body which is either prescribed or

forbidden by the śāstras, five things are responsible 1) The body which is referred to as

adhiṣhṭhānam- the dwelling place, 2) The jīva, 3) The karmendriyas (action oriented organs) and the

indriya (organ) called the mind which performs a different endeavour. 4) The five prāṇas namely Prāṇa,

Apāna, Udāna, Vyāna and Samāna each meant for a different function. 5) The fifth and the most important is

Paramātma), These ślokas from the Bhagawad Gītā which elaborate on them, appear in later chapters.

From all of the above, the conclusion is that he must perform his karmas with the mental disposition that he is

not the reason for either the action or the reward and that he should not give up on their performance.

mā te saṇgo’stvkarmaṇi O Arjuna! Do not be stubborn about not fighting the war as declared by you earlier na yōtsyāmi B.G 2.9 (i will not fight at all). As instructed to you so far, keep your focus only on the performance of your prescribed duties which includes fighting the war.