Buddhiyoga in Geeta - Chapter 5 - Karmayoga

5. Karma Yoga - The Yoga of Selfless Action
5.1. Intro
Practicing Karmayoga means to engage in actions that lead to the attainment of Yoga. The question is, “who can practice Karmayoga, when, where and how?”

The Hindu society has always identified a yogee as someone who stands apart from the ordinary folks and the society, in that he/she is in some esoteric sense “superior” by their virtue or nature or lifestyle. A “yogee” receives special adulation and veneration from the society. True, as Karma-yogees they ought to be honored. However, in the sense that Krishna explained to Arjun in Geetaa, the designation yogee is not a reserved honorific title for the few who are ahead on this path. Making it so has created a gulf between the “commonfolk” and the “yogees”. This has had the most unfortunate deleterious influence on the Hindu religion of making the “commonfolk” practitioners of a ritualistic religion, with a “promise” that somehow in the next life they will get a chance to rise to a higher level. Their right and ability to practice yoga in any walk of life at all times are stripped away. What a bum deal for the commonfolk served up by those who should have known better.

Karmayoga, or for that matter any yoga practice, is for absolutely anyone without prejudice. It is for anyone who has committed the worst crimes, but who repents and wants to turn around and take the upward path of yoga. This is not my opinion. This is stated explicitly in Geetaa 9:30-31. And yoga is also for one who has attained to the highest goal (Geetaa 6:3) and wants to remain at the height. And it is for everyone in between these two extremes who wants to make progress toward the ultimate goal of Self-Knowledge. These verses don’t need any interpretation, just simple reading and commonsense understanding.

Even so, it must be remembered that yoga practice is not a one-size-fits all proposition. That is, one must do what one is capable of doing and improve oneself gradually. The Hindu proposition is that this journey takes many lifetimes, with progress resuming from one life to the next.

The example of bodybuilding is appropriate here. No one starts lifting weights at 200lbs; you have to build up your strength to reach that level and go even further. Note that in bodybuilding, you don’t lift weight that you can lift easily, rather you lift a little more, enduring a little pain. As the body becomes stronger that the higher weight is now piece-of-cake, you step up to the next level. This stepwise process of enduring pain and becoming able to lift the bigger weight painlessly with practice finally reaches an individual limit beyond which you cannot really rise with given physique. Remember, however, that not too long ago, bodybuilding was for wrestlers and boxers and football players. Now it has been demystified and is now most commonly known and practiced as health and fitness exercises. Remember too, that when you take up the rigors of fitness exercise, you take the advice and guidance of someone who is much further along, otherwise you risk injuring instead of strengthening yourself.

The similarities to the bodybuilding are:
· Yoga has immense practical value. It’s is for everyone to practice to gain better mental and emotional health.
· Yoga builds character in the worldly sense and self-awareness leading to Self-Knowledge in the not-so-worldly sense.
· Yoga practice makes painless and enjoyable what ordinarily seems to be painful. In worldly sense, it builds mental health and strength.
· Yoga practice spreads happiness wherever you practice it.
· Yoga has no adverse side effects, and has only felicitous effects on you, on those around you and on the society at large.

You know by now that the yoga practice I am talking about is not the TM (Transcendental Meditation) yoga in vogue today. TM is merely a subset of the whole realm of yoga practices. There is a lot more to yoga than TM. I don’t mean to minimize the importance of TM. True sannyaasees have kept this science of Dhyaana yoga alive for millennia and we owe them a huge debt of gratitude for that. However, since not everyone is able or inclined to practice conventional Dhyaana yoga under proper guidance, does that leave them to either forget about the whole yoga business or reduce them to practicing a ritualistic religion in the hope of some day rising above it?

5.2. Core Principle of Karmayoga
A Yogee according to Geetaa 6:29-32 is someone who sees self in all and all in self. This seeing is not a mere claim or a pronouncement of equality of all. It is the ultimate reality a Yogee can witness and experience. This becomes evident in the Yogee’s totally altruistic behavior in that everything is thought and done for the benefit of others. This is so since the Yogee has already attained the blissful realization, and helping others to take steps towards the same goal remains his only motivation. This he can achieve by guiding the seeker on the path of Self-Knowledge or by working to diminish the misery of the downtrodden so that they can have the luxury of looking beyond their immediate needs.

When I was discussing this with a Christian friend of mine, he remarked, “this is very idealistic and therefore unrealistic. It may be something to strive for, but which can never be attained”. I begged to defer. The Hindu philosophy makes demands on us to reach a reachable goal and not just to keep some imaginary goal that somehow leads us on a socio-politically correct path.
Each of us is selfish to some extent – more or less. One extreme obviously is the Yogee in whom the selfishness has dwindled to zero. The other extreme is characterized in Geetaa Ch 16 as one of demonic nature. According to Geetaa, a demon should be identified by nature and behavior and not by looks. I had given in Ch 2 earlier a very condensed version of the description of demonic nature, according to Geetaa. If there is one single attribute that stands out above all in the demonic nature, it is selfishness and its numerous forms - self-centeredness, self-gratification, self-aggrandizement. In addition, there is total disregard for the well being of anyone else unless the well being is also self-serving. All other vices emanate from this ego-centered view and treatment of the world. It’s hardly any surprise that this is the exact opposite of a Yogee’s nature and realization.

In this life, we can choose to be as we are and live a good life in the conventional modern sense. Or we can choose to do more. We can choose to make conscious efforts to make ourselves better persons. Hindu philosophy throws us this challenge. And it gives us the guidelines of Karmayoga to help us succeed.

Karmayoga, to repeat, is all action yoked to the goal of attaining Yoga. Any action necessarily has a worldly motivation and subsequently a worldly result. Selecting and undertaking any action with the higher goal of attaining Yoga is Karmayoga. The above discussion of the selfishness spectrum, from the low demonic all the way up to the Yogic, should readily suggest that any activity consciously done to reduce our selfishness at all is Karmayoga. Karmayoga is a process. It is deliberate decision and conscious execution of such actions. If you see a hint of Buddhi-yoga in this, that’s not by accident, but more from that angle later.

Yoga terminology for this process is Yajnya (sacrifice), Tapa (austerity) and Daana (charity). These three aspects of yoga practice have been relegated to religion, although they transcend religion as understood in the conventional sense. Krishna’s advice to Arjun in Geetaa also transcends religion, yet every effort is made to corral it within the confines of religion. I don’t mean to diminish the value of religion in human society. However, we must not allow religion to obscure the enormous benefits of yoga practices that go to the core of being human.

There is one common element in Yajnya, Tapas and Daana. You give something to receive something. However these words are not used for worldly transactions; there are many other words that would do a more fitting job. These words are used for those actions that have a spiritual connotation - not that the actions are spiritual, but rather the primary motive is spiritual.

5.3. Traditional Yajnya, Tapas and Daana
Let me first dispense with the conventional Yajnya, Tapas and Daana that have been hijacked by ritualistic religion. After that, I will discuss how Krishna tried to rescue these from the clutches of ritualism and return them to the realm of true human Dharma and yoga practices. Once again, I do not mean to condemn the religious observance of these activities, but only want to reveal a far bigger scope of these activities that tradition has hidden so well.

5.3.1. Yajnya – Ritual Sacrifice
Yajnya has been practiced in India for thousands of years as a ritual of offering sacrifice unto gods. Typically, done by kings and other royalty for special occasions or for asking special favors from gods, yajnya was also a daily ritual for the brahmins. The vedic practice was replete with yajnya rituals for all occasions. Yajnya was performed to please the gods of rains and the gods of crops. Yajnya was performed to beget a son or to overcome family calamity. Yajnya was performed by kings to proclaim their might and to establish themselves as emperors.

You have read the story of King Dasharath performing a yajnya to beget a son, after which his four glorious sons - Raama, Laxmana, Bharata and Shatrughna – were born. You know the story of Yudhishthir performing the Raajasuya yajnya which proclaimed him as the mightiest and most righteous among kings in the then India. It was after this yajnya that Duryodhan set in motion the events that led up to the great war. There are countless other stories of yajnya ritual in Hindu scriptures.

In medieval India, as you may read in Indian history, King Harsha, from the now Central India region, performed a yajnya every year to give away all wealth accumulated in the kingdom’s treasury. Sadly, he was more of an exception than the rule. For the most part, a yajnya was performed only to please gods through rituals for some benefit here or hereafter.

5.3.2. Tapas
Tapas, austerity, has been practiced also for thousands of years in India for gaining control over own sense faculties and over desires. Tapas was conventionally practiced in the solitude of forest or in general a place away from the bustle of the society. Tapas was performed mostly by yogees as a requisite to attain Self-Knowledge. As a rule, one doesn't have a motive of worldly gains for performing Tapas. And then there are instances of kings like Raavana, et al, who performed severe tapas – penance – to gain boons from gods to attain invincibility. These are the exceptions in the practice of Tapas, and Geetaa (Ch 17) clearly states what category such people fall in.

Tapas, on the downside, is left to the realm of yogees who have renounced gainful worldly activities and have devoted themselves to the attainment of Yoga. This has separated “yogees” who practice tapas from “commoners” who do not. Thus, although the tapas practice has not been distorted by ritual, it is very restricted to a select few. This in my thinking also comes under the “hijacked by ritual religion" label.

5.3.3. Daana
Daana, charity, has been practiced world-over in all religions, and no modern religion has any claim to its origin. Daana means giving away something that is yours to someone else who would benefit from it. In its simplest form, you give money to the poor and needy and in modern times to charity organizations that perform charitable services for no monetary gain. Other kinds of giving are giving your time, your physical efforts, your knowledge, etc. Any further elaboration on this would be redundant.

In Hindu religion, daana has pretty much been restricted to giving to brahmins who perform religious ceremonies on all special occasions. Informally, charitable deeds have always been done for those who suddenly find themselves in dire circumstance. On this count, I am compelled to give you my personal observation, or bias if you will, that the poorer you are the more readily you extend your helping hand to the needy. The more you possess, the higher is the tendency to guard the wealth. When you hear of rich giving away, just think of what portion of pocket-change they are giving away. When I say rich, I mean anyone who puts money in savings (this includes me) and forever worries about future. If I give away $1000, it hardly puts a dent in my personal lifestyle. When a Ted Turner gives away $1B over ten years, he can simply give away the interest on $1B for ten years and then still keep his $1B. Beware of posturing versus giving.

Among the obscure stories from Mahaabhaarat is the story of a mongoose, whose body had turned golden only on one side, when he accidentally rolled in the flour that spilled when a brahmin family gave away all their food to another starving family. This half-golden mongoose came to Yudhishthir, where the latter was performing a great yajnya after the great war, hoping to turn the rest of the body golden. The moral of the story was that the poor brahmin family giving away their meager daily food to a starving family was superior by far to Yudhishthir’s enormous charity at the ritual yajnya.
Daana, in modern times, is changing – increasing - to some extent, but not as much as it should nor in the way it ought to.

5.4. Yajnya, Tapas and Daana in Karmayoga
Now let us turn our attention to how Krishna, millennia ago, explained what yajnya, tapas and daana are really about. As stated before, these are yoga practices performed to elevate one’s own nature to get closer to that of a Yogee. This benefit must come at some cost. As in bodybuilding, this character building requires some sacrifice to get the benefit. The word Yajnya is the most generic of the three and encompasses the other two. Thus yajnya stands for certain sacrificial activities under the yajnya banner as well as tapas and daana.

Remember once again that all these three essentially require giving up something to get something. Also remember that to really get the benefit of giving up, it must be at least slightly painful. Then again per bodybuilding scenario, if you keep lifting the weight you can lift easily, it may keep you fit without increasing your strength. Similarly, giving up painlessly will maintain the giving habit and nature, which is better than not having a giving nature. I am unable to speculate the spiritual benefits of just maintaining nature as opposed to elevating it.

I am going to discuss Yajnya, tapas and daana in the reverse order. But before that, I need to give you a summary of three levels of human nature and three levels of activities according to Geetaa (and of course Vedic and Hindu philosophy in general). This puts the three-fold Karmayoga practice in the perspective of what you ought to do, what is just OK and what is definitely to be avoided. This is important since there is a logic to the consequences of actions that even modern psychiatry can appreciate, and perhaps endorse.
5.4.1. Sattwa, Rajas, Tamas – The Three Gunas or Levels of Nature
Note first of all that “rajas” and “tamas” are in singular form and not plural form. (Their vowel pronunciation rhymes with “hubbub”.)

The Hindu philosophy divides human nature into three levels. There is no counterpart in Western thought or vocabulary for these levels. To quote Swami Chinmayaananda, “It is indeed difficult to find adequate rendering for the word guna in English. The tradition of thought in the West has nothing similar to these…”

The concept of Sattwa stands for pure, good, wholesome, luminous. Tamas is just the opposite, i.e., impure, harmful, unwholesome, dark. The Rajas in the middle is indeed in the muddle, i.e., given to ceaseless chasing of worldly possessions, desires and happiness.

Each of us has a combination all these qualities and therefore cannot be simply placed in any single category. However, it is up to us to grow from the bad qualities towards good qualities. There is no division here between worldly and spiritual efforts; they are inseparable. As a matter of fact all efforts are worldly and their results are worldly as well as spiritual.
Let me dwell a little bit upon "the spiritual". All religions grant that we come into this world with nothing material and leave with nothing material. Hidnu religion states that we bring with us a baggage of 'karma' or past deeds as well as unfulfilled desires. What we leave with is up to us - we can leave spiritually richer or poorer. Spiritual effect means unburdening ourselves of our unfulfilled desired and is by all modern scientific standards unprovable. However, its wholesome effect on our worldly nature and behavior is visible. Hindu religion characterizes our nature and behavior in terms of the three levels and states that it is within our power to systematically raise our behavior and nature to higher levels.

5.4.2. Tamas
This part of our nature is given to ignorance, lack or neglect of discrimination between good and evil, selfishness, being prepared to harm others for personal gain, etc. The extreme selfishness discussed earlier in this chapter represents one hundred percent Tamas quality.

Along with selfish desires comes the readiness to do anything to fulfil them. Endless worries and insecurity engulf such a person, for there are innumerable real and imagined obstacles in the way. You can paint for yourself a bleak picture of what the person is capable of doing in order to attain the heart’s desires. The point is that no deed is low enough to get what the heart desires.

Our task is to understand the symptoms of tamas and the root cause, and to work diligently to eradicate the root cause. The main taamasik characteristics are injury to others, offensiveness, laziness, delusion, unlawfulness, deceit, vulgarity, malice, inflexibility, despondency, procrastination. (This list is derived verbatim from Geetaa and is already given earlier Chapter 2.) Our task is to be forever vigilant to eliminate these from our own nature, thoughts and actions.

5.4.3. Sattwa
To repeat, this is the opposite of tamas. This part our nature is given to purity and goodness, altruism as second nature, hankering for Self-Knowledge. The Saattwik characteristics are humility, integrity, nonviolence, forgiveness, truthfulness, purity of thoughts and actions, stability, self-restraint, etc. as already listed in Chapter 2 before. Our task is to increase the Sattwa element in our nature, thoughts and actions.

5.4.4. Rajas
This is the predominant attribute in humans. This is primarily given to endless pursuit of worldly happiness. The million dollar question is, “Is there anything else worth striving for?” Each one of us is free to go with our own answer. For me, the answer depends heavily on the sound advice of so many great ones that passed this way before me.

Rajas provides the dynamic force for all worldly activities. It’s the desires that drive people to act. A desire can be merely to earn the daily bread or to be the next billionaire. It is indeed very difficult to judge that this dynamism of the rajas is undesirable. However, remember that it’s all relative. Whereas tamas is the most undesirable and sattwa is the most desirable, rajas really powers the progress from tamas to sattwa. Whereas rajas creates worldly happiness, it is also responsible for equal amount of unhappiness. We need to strive for Self-Knowledge while working within the confines of this life. Yet we must act in a world full of happiness and sorrow, pain and pleasure, ups and downs.

Rajas is characterized by attachment, possessiveness, ego, thirst of pleasures and happiness, desires, greed, discontent, etc. None of these is bad per se, in that these prod people to work productively and sustain a society and bring prosperity. To the extent that not everyone is far along on the yoga path, the rajas qualities rule the minds of people. The objective then is first not let this nature rule over your mind, but rather to exercise a restraint over these tendencies, and then to evolve to overcome these tendencies without losing the enthusiasm for productive work that brings prosperity and happiness to all.

The operative words are exercising restraint. This needs the practice of Karmayoga as discussed in this chapter. The first step is to turn our attention outward and take up practices that involve giving or giving up something in order to strengthens our will and character. Note that each of the three types of giving – daana, tapas and yajnya – can be practiced at the three levels described above. The practice focuses on completely avoiding tamas level and on evolving from the rajas to the saattwik level.
5.4.5. Daana
Daana is giving some personal possession, be it tangible like money or intangible like physical efforts or knowledge.

Taamas daana is that which is given with no due consideration for timeliness or place, or for whether the recipient is deserving. In addition, tamas daana is given with contempt for the recipient and with an overbearing attitude. The appropriateness of time, place and recipient depends greatly on personal judgment. We must not spin our wheels too much on this aspect, since for the most part our heart guides us well. We must not worry about making a mistake, i.e., not act out of fear of a flawed judgment. We exercise the judgment we have, and observation, experience and practice make us better. This also hints at Buddhiyoga which we will discuss later.

It is most important to rid ourselves of the offensive and overbearing attitude. In other words, we must practice giving with a very humble attitude and we must honor the recipient, as if the recipient is doing us a favor in giving us a chance to practice Karmayoga. . Call this the first lesson in Karmayoga. I will leave it to you to fill in the details regarding different types of giving, i.e., money, other possessions, your time, your efforts, your knowledge, etc.

Raajas daana is given either to return a favor or expecting a benefit in future. It is also given with a little pain of parting with what is given away. When we give to charity, typically there is no expectation of reward. In Hindu religion, however, one is asked to give in charity in order to accumulate good deeds that are rewarded later in this life or hereafter. Such motivation would also fall in the Raajas daana category.

In modern times, the impediment comes mainly from the feeling of pain of parting with our possessions. It is difficult to give away what would come in handy for ourselves later. Overcoming the feeling of pain by rejoicing in the happiness the recipient derives from the giving is the key to this Karmayoga practice.

Saattwik daana is given without returning favor or without any expectation of reward, and it is given with due consideration of the time, place and worthiness of the recipient. Most importantly, saattwik daana is given because one ought to give. Although this is not elaborated further in Geetaa, the reason is clear in the total context and I venture to give it here. We come into this world with nothing, and we leave it without taking anything with us. This is true regarding material things. In that sense, we are merely temporary keepers of what we regard as possessions. It then behooves us to put these possessions to a good use that elevates our nature. If giving has a benevolent impact on our nature, then we ought to give without needing any additional motivation. According to Hindu philosophy, we come into this world with unfulfilled desires and leave it with unfulfilled desires, reflected in our nature. Thus the only lasting benefit, by way of reduction in desires, is on our nature evolving for the better.
5.4.6. Tapas - Austerity
Geetaa gives us three types of austerity – physical, mental and verbal - and then its three levels. Tapas or austerity is to exercise self-restraint. Self-restraint weans us away from being egocentric and helps us place others before us. This in turn leads us towards the goal of “seeing self in all and all in self”. Let us first consider the three levels of austerity.

Taamas austerity is done with self-torture and deluded understanding of what austerity is about, or it is done to harm or destroy others. The self-restraint is perhaps so hurtful that it must distract oneself from the real goal of austerity. I cannot speculate further on this.

Raajas austerity, like raajas daana, is in more common currency. It is done with the ulterior motive of gaining respect and honor and veneration from others. It is done ostentatiously and is ill-founded and unsteady. This will become clear as we discuss the three types of austerity.

Saattwik austerity has but one goal, namely self-improvement. To practice the three types of austerity without any ulterior worldly motive and with extreme faith is called saattwik. We are back to the dreaded “faith”. Note however, that this faith is in the success of the process of practicing austerity. This means that to gain the real benefit of austerity, you must have faith that it will succeed. Why need faith? Why can’t austerity just succeed in elevating our nature without this additional burden of faith? The answer brings us back to Buddhiyoga. All yoga practice requires constant vigilance of our Buddhi, to make sure that we are not straying from the path that leads us to the ultimate goal. This requires that our Buddhi deliberately accepts the goal, charts the path and consciously keeps us on the path.

Let us now consider the three types of austerity.

Exercise of Physical austerity includes treating the elders and wiser with respect, purity (cleanliness), uprightness, celibacy and nonviolence.
Exercise of Verbal austerity includes inoffensive speech, truthfulness, pleasant and beneficial speech and study of scriptures.
Exercise of Mental austerity includes serenity of mind, gentleness, silence, self-restraint and purification of inner self.

You should read more about each of these in more authoritative books, such as one by Swami Chinmayaananda - and there are numerous others as well. However, these discussions only tell you the ideal level of these types of austerity. I will direct your attention to practice by common folks like you and me on the yoga path. The practice will necessarily be flawed. The goal is to make the practice progressively more flawless.

Note first of all that the above practices are austerities. You are reminded that you are going to give something to receive something.

Take the example of truthfulness. Speaking the truth is an austerity because it is not painless. Speaking the truth can cause pain or discomfort. It can cause monetary loss or loss of face and dignity. Thus taking up this practice is a difficult proposition. However, when you can practice truthfulness without regard to pain or discomfort, you have made a great leap. However, you still need to be mindful of not causing harm to other innocent parties. Perhaps you have read in your philosophy course readings the many exceptions to the rule when telling a lie is the right thing to do. Is this bending the rules or a necessary evil? Can you live with the consequences of your truthfulness? This is not an easy challenge and that’s why it’s an austerity. This is discussed a little more in another chapter.

Let’s visit the flawed nature of our practice, and see why we must not despair and must persevere. We find ourselves compromising the truth every now and then. Does that mean we should give up on this futile exercise? We can either come to terms with the “fact” that such ideal truthfulness is not for us ordinary folks. Or we can determine to reduce untruthfulness in our speech and behavior. It cannot be easy nor painless, and that’s exactly why it is called an austerity. It is painful, and builds character; it improves character. It is a difficult Karmayoga practice. It is not an either-or proposition that either you are truthful or you aren’t. It is a lifelong pursuit to become progressively more truthful in thought and in action. This is true for each of the different types of austerity.

5.4.7. Yajnya

Yajnya encompasses tapas and daana. We have already discussed tapas and daana. Now we will discuss yajnya alone. In the most fundamental and perhaps somewhat abstract way, “Brahman is yajnya, Brahman is what is offered, Brahman is the offerer and Brahman is the act of offering...” (Geetaa 4:24). Coming down to the simpler human levels “offering wealth (daana), performing austerity (tapas), offering yoga (Karmayoga or Dhyaanayoga), offering study and knowledge are the different kinds of yajnyas (Geetaa 4:28).” In addition, “some offer unto gods (to please them) and some unto the Brahman (for yoga). Some offer the objects of senses (retreat from the presence of sense objects) and some others offer restraint over sense organs (in presence of their objects) (Geetaa 4:25-26).”

As I admitted before, I am least qualified to comment on the variety of yajnyas. But I am confident enough to argue these are the different types of yajnyas that Krishna explained to Arjun as part of yoga practice. This discussion goes to the core of the yoga practice and overwhelms the traditional ritualistic practices that have short-sighted goals.

Actually earlier, even at the start of the yoga discussion (after concluding the opening Saankhya discussion), Krishna dealt a direct blow to the ritualistic yajnya (Geetaa 2:42-44). In these three verses, Krishna categorically denounced the ritual yajnya performed to please gods and to attain heavenly pleasures, stating that performers of such yajnyas cannot ever be established in yoga by such practices.

In short, Krishna was very unequivocal about reforming the understanding of yoga practice. Krishna stated in Adhyaaya 4 that, “I had in ancient times given the yoga knowledge to Vivaswaan, who gave it to Manu, who gave to Ikshwaaku, and so on. This yoga was known by the Raajarshis as it was passed on from generation to generation. But in the powerful torrent of time, the knowledge had disappeared, therefore, I am telling you this secret ancient yoga because you are my devotee and dear friend (Geetaa 4:1-3).”

The word Raajarshi is the most instructive in the above verses. At all times in India, there has never been a dearth of true yogees and rushis (seers of truth). Even in modern India, there are such yogees and rushis, but you will never know since they do not participate in the parade and charade. From the ancient times until now and hereonafter, the yogees can give us the knowledge and guidance if we seek it. However, it is the leader, kings in olden day, whose task its is to actually lead people on the path of yoga. In the practice of yoga lie prosperity, progress, security, peace and tranquility.

Raajarshi = Raajaa + Rushi, i.e., King (leader) who is the Seer of Knowledge. Krishna is very clear about this point that it is the king whom the people emulate. In Mahaabhaarat times, Maharshi Vyaasa was the wisest of all, but his advice always went unheeded. The point is that people follow the leader. It is a fortunate land where the leader or the king knows the yoga path and can lead the people on it.

Vyaasa had exclaimed at one point that, “I am shouting with raised hands and at the top of my voice, but nobody listens to me. Wealth and desires can be attained by following Dharma, then why isn’t it followed.” Dharma is the path duties, the path of yoga. And Vyaasa made the point that prosperity, happiness, security, all these can be had while following the yoga path, then why don’t people follow it?

Why indeed? The reason then was that the kings were not following it and people followed the kings and not the Knowers. Krishna’s edict to Arjun was that it was his burden to follow the yoga path, not only for himself but for those who would follow him. In Adhyaaya 3, Krishna had said that, “you shouldn’t unsettle the Buddhi of the ignorant (through argument); you should instead stay on the yoga path and thus induce others to tread that path (by your example) (Geetaa 3:26).”

This is no less true for leaders today. What we see today (in India) are politicos who are hungry for power, wealth and status on one hand and those who are trying to force on the nation a very mistaken notion of Hinduism on the other. This is just an aside. But I still believe that discarding religion is not the solution, but rather practice of yoga is the solution. If we only understand Geetaa and yoga correctly, existence of a variety of modern religions is hardly an impediment. Yoga is not a property of one religion. Its practice is not confined to Hinduism. As stated in old scriptures, “Truth is but one, the sages speak of it in various ways.” The limitation is that of human speech and expression and not that of the Truth itself. Any religion that helps its followers practice yajnya, tapas and daana in their own language and tradition is no less than any other. And they all do as far as I know. It’s the competitive nature of leaders who have the urge to prove superiority of one over another that creates friction and conflicts.

The bottom-line is that the yoga practice for the masses is not difficult to understand nor difficult to begin to practice. It is not the exclusive playing field of any one religion. For Hindus, it is sufficient to understand the yoga practice in all its beauty like that of a many-faceted brilliant diamond, and to begin to adopt the practice in even small way in everyday life.

As Krishna stated right at the start of the yoga discussion (after concluding the opening comments on Saankhya) that, “once started, (yoga) effort is never lost, has no adverse effect, and even the slightest practice protects one from the great fear (of regression towards oblivion) (Geetaa 2:40).”