Karma The Most Misunderstood Principle

Excerpts from Gurudev’s talks on the Bhagwad Gita

The third chapter begins with confusion.

Arjuna said, “Oh, my dear Krishna, you said, “Drop everything, don’t do anything!” At the same time you are saying, “Do it!” Tell me one thing, one definite thing. You keep me in limbo. What should I do? You said, “action”, you glorify action, “You should act!” and then you say, “No, like a turtle, you withdraw everything inside, focus on yourself and meditate, be silent, be quiet. Take refuge in yoga, be unanimous.’ Then, the next moment, you say, “Come on! What would people think about you? They will think you are a coward, and you are running away from the battlefield. You are not doing your duty, come on, wake up! Do your duty.” Another time, you say, “Relax!” You have no control over the action; it’s all ‘Cause and Effect. Everything happens on its own.”

Arjuna says, “I am so confused! Please tell me the right thing to do. When you say that you are the epitome of satisfaction, in your depth is all joy, then why are you asking me to fight this war? Why are you putting me through this horrible fight? Why are you putting me in this complicated world and making me deal with this? I am ready to give up everything today and go to the Himalayas and sit there and meditate. I don’t want anything. I can eat fruits from the trees. I want nothing, but you are saying completely opposite things. I am already confused; you are confusing me even more. I have come to you, not to get more confused, I want some clarity, but you are leading me into more confusion.”