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Chapter 3
Link:-In response to Arjuna's question, why the Lord was urging him to rake such a dreadful action as, warfare, He replied, "No one can ever remain even, for a moment without performing action." "Then He explained that he who, restraining the organs of action, thinks of the sense-objects, is a hypocrite, while he who engages himself in action without expecting any reward, is superior. Now in the next verse, He orders Arjuna to perform his allotted duty.
niyatam kuru karma tvam karma jyayo hyakarmanah
sarirayatrapi ca te na prasiddhyedakarmanah
Do perform thy prescribed duty, for action is superior to inaction. Besides even the maintenance of the body would not be possible for thee, by inaction. 8
Comment:-
Niyatam kuru karma tvam:- A man is permitted to perform two types of actions—those as laid down in the scriptures such as, fasts and worship etc., and the allotted duty according to one's caste, order of life, nature and circumstance, such as eating food, doing business, constmction of a house and guiding a person who has lost his way and so on. A man cannot perform all actions as laid down in the scriptures, thoroughly. But he can very easily abandon the forbidden actions; non-performance of prescribed actions is not very harmful. Abandonment of forbidden actions, such as falsehood, theft and violence etc., is very beneficial. When he abandons forbidden actions, actions sanctioned by the scriptures, ,are automatically performed by him.
In the Discipline of Action, action according to one's caste and sanctioned by the scriptures, is one's allotted duty, whether it is terrible or mild. Here Lord Krsna explains to Arjuna, that as a Ksatriya (member of the warrior class) it is his duty to fight (Gita 18/43). Though the action involves violence and bloodshed, yet it is his allotted duty. In the second chapter also, the Lord told him that having regard for his own duty he should not falter (Gita (2/31). In fact 'svadharma' (One's own duty) and 'niyatakarma (allotted duty), both are one and the same. For Duryodhana being a member of the warrior class, it was his duty to fight, yet it was not his allotted duty, as being unjust he wanted to usurp the Pandava's kingdom. For him, it was not a righteous and prescribed, duty.
Karma kayo hyakarmanah:-The Lord, in this verse is, answering the question put in the first verse, by using the same term 'jyayah' (superior). There, Arjuna put the question why He was urging him to perform the terrible action of waging the war, when according to Him knowledge was superior to action. In response to his question the Lord declared, a person following the path of action,'to be superior to person, following the path of inaction. Thus, Arjuna wants to escape the battle, while the Lord exhorts him to fight, as it is his allotted duty. Therefore, the Lord in the eighteenth chapter declares, "One should not abandon the duty suited to one's nature, even though it may be easy" (18/48), because by abandoning it, one is exposed to sin and one continues to be attached to it. Therefore, performance of allotted duty, is superior to renunciation of actions. Performance of actions without attachment, is far superior to those performed with attachment, because by doing so, affinity for actions is totally renounced. Therefore, the Lord in the first half of this verse, orders Arjuna to perform his allotted duty without attachment, while in the second half He declares that maintenance of the body would not be possible by inaction either.
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