CHAPTER 4, TEXT 12: The steadily devoted soul attains unadulterated peace because he offers the result of all activities to Me; whereas a person who is not in union with the Divine, who is greedy for the fruits of his labor, becomes entangled.
There are four levels of motivation for any activity (Bhaktivinoda Thakur, Chaitanya Sikshamrita):
Love
Duty
Profit
Fear
Here's an example:
Going to work -
Love: I love teaching. I love my students. I love my subject matter.
Duty: My job is to teach. I'm responsible for these kids' education.
Profit: I'm here for the money (even though it ain't much) and for paid summers off.
Fear: If I don't go to work to teach, I will lose my paycheck, I'll lose my home, I'll go hungry, I'll lose my WiFi...
Any of this sound familiar?
For the most part, humans operate out of Profit and Fear. Sometimes we level up to Duty, maybe even to Love. But mostly, we're either in it for the money/rewards or we're terrified of what will happen if we don't do our job/do the needful.
That's just life, right?
In fact, one could say, hey, what's the problem with doing something for the money? Krishna knows this is how human beings operate, that's why He makes the declaration in this verse that to be greedy for the fruits of one's labor makes a person becomes entangled.
Now we see that entanglement is the problem.
When we're entangled, we're not free.
And the soul wants freedom.
Most of all, the soul wants freedom to love.
At the end of the day, when we look at the four kinds of motivation, let's all admit that if we could, we'd do everything out of love. I love my job, I love my family, I love my car, I love throwing out the trash...
But we're not there.
So the Bhagavad-gita emphasizes doing things at least out of Duty, because that's one step away from Love.
But let's all admit where we're really hanging out: Profit and Fear.
And so Krishna is so wondrous, so amazing, that He says that if we just remember Him and offer our endeavors to Him, even if it's out of Profit or Fear, He is pleased. After all, everything belongs to Him and He is everything: "All that exists is a product of Krsna's energy, and Krsna is all good." We can't go wrong if we keep Krishna in our hearts.
So no matter what activity I do, from cooking a meal to putting gas in the car to managing a business, when I keep Krishna in my heart He elevates all of my activities. Prabhupad writes: "Activities in Kṛṣṇa consciousness are on the absolute plane; they are transcendental and have no material effect. One is therefore filled with peace in Kṛṣṇa consciousness." This makes sense, for if an action does not entangle us further, we're free, and if we're free, we're at peace.
Prabhupad then writes the beautiful, beautiful secret of Krishna consciousness: "[the] realization that there is no existence besides Kṛṣṇa is the platform of peace and fearlessness." Whether I'm motivated to act out of Love, Duty, Profit, or Fear, if I can choose this one little shift in consciousness - everything belongs to Krishna, let me keep Him in mind, let me offer my action to Him - then I am free. I am at peace. What's more, to remember Krishna is in and of itself an act of Love.
I was in the middle of writing this post while cooking dinner. I was excited to make a delicious soup for myself and my husband. But then I remembered this principle. So before we ate, I offered the soup to Krishna with a little more attention. Just a little.
I felt peace.
And a tinge, just a glimmer, of Love.
Full purport for Chapter 5, Text 12 by Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/5/12/
There are four levels of motivation for any activity (Bhaktivinoda Thakur, Chaitanya Sikshamrita):
Love
Duty
Profit
Fear
Here's an example:
Going to work -
Love: I love teaching. I love my students. I love my subject matter.
Duty: My job is to teach. I'm responsible for these kids' education.
Profit: I'm here for the money (even though it ain't much) and for paid summers off.
Fear: If I don't go to work to teach, I will lose my paycheck, I'll lose my home, I'll go hungry, I'll lose my WiFi...
Any of this sound familiar?
For the most part, humans operate out of Profit and Fear. Sometimes we level up to Duty, maybe even to Love. But mostly, we're either in it for the money/rewards or we're terrified of what will happen if we don't do our job/do the needful.
That's just life, right?
In fact, one could say, hey, what's the problem with doing something for the money? Krishna knows this is how human beings operate, that's why He makes the declaration in this verse that to be greedy for the fruits of one's labor makes a person becomes entangled.
Now we see that entanglement is the problem.
When we're entangled, we're not free.
And the soul wants freedom.
Most of all, the soul wants freedom to love.
At the end of the day, when we look at the four kinds of motivation, let's all admit that if we could, we'd do everything out of love. I love my job, I love my family, I love my car, I love throwing out the trash...
But we're not there.
So the Bhagavad-gita emphasizes doing things at least out of Duty, because that's one step away from Love.
But let's all admit where we're really hanging out: Profit and Fear.
And so Krishna is so wondrous, so amazing, that He says that if we just remember Him and offer our endeavors to Him, even if it's out of Profit or Fear, He is pleased. After all, everything belongs to Him and He is everything: "All that exists is a product of Krsna's energy, and Krsna is all good." We can't go wrong if we keep Krishna in our hearts.
So no matter what activity I do, from cooking a meal to putting gas in the car to managing a business, when I keep Krishna in my heart He elevates all of my activities. Prabhupad writes: "Activities in Kṛṣṇa consciousness are on the absolute plane; they are transcendental and have no material effect. One is therefore filled with peace in Kṛṣṇa consciousness." This makes sense, for if an action does not entangle us further, we're free, and if we're free, we're at peace.
Prabhupad then writes the beautiful, beautiful secret of Krishna consciousness: "[the] realization that there is no existence besides Kṛṣṇa is the platform of peace and fearlessness." Whether I'm motivated to act out of Love, Duty, Profit, or Fear, if I can choose this one little shift in consciousness - everything belongs to Krishna, let me keep Him in mind, let me offer my action to Him - then I am free. I am at peace. What's more, to remember Krishna is in and of itself an act of Love.
I was in the middle of writing this post while cooking dinner. I was excited to make a delicious soup for myself and my husband. But then I remembered this principle. So before we ate, I offered the soup to Krishna with a little more attention. Just a little.
I felt peace.
And a tinge, just a glimmer, of Love.
Full purport for Chapter 5, Text 12 by Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/5/12/
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