"Just obey, don't ask why!" This is how elders usually admonish children when they ask questions. "Obey your guru", the scriptures say. Do not question, do not hesitate to do as you are told. The rule of obedience may hold good in certain specific contexts but to blindly follow such strictures will be to our own peril. To impose the rule of obedience on small children who are unable to discern between right and wrong, who have no experiences to learn from is correct. If a child asked not to cross the street on its own disobeys, it may prove fatal for the child. But to prohibit them from asking questions is wrong. Indian tradition expects the rule of obedience to be followed without questioning, even from adults. By questioning the tenet of obedience, I do not mean any disrespect to the elders. They are after all senior in age and from their vast repertoire of experiences, are wise to the ways of the world. But we cannot live our lives, build our principles, take up professions or even marry, blindly based on what they say, irrespective of whether they are right or not. Also, what was right for them need not be right for us. As to ‘obedience to the guru’, the moral calibre of our teachers today cannot be compared to that of sages and seers of yesteryears. Even otherwise, I personally feel that instead of blind obedience to the guru, people should be encouraged to question him. After all, it was by seeking, that the sages of yore were able to find the truth, Brahman, Nirvana, whatever name you call it. So it is not unquestioning compliance but a teacher’s guidance when sought, which will aid our quest, spiritual or otherwise. By simply obeying, we will never learn to make our own decisions. Not only that, a stronger argument is … [Read more...]
The Gita’s precept: Right to action, not to the fruit
"Karmanye vadhikaraste maa phaleshu kadachana Maa karmaphala heturbhoor maa te sangostvakarmani" Thus has Sri Krishna said in Chapter 2, Shloka 47 of the song divine, "Srimad Bhagavad Gita". A literal translation is as follows: "You have a right to perform the prescribed work, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your action. Never consider yourself the cause for the results of your activities, and never be attached to inaction." This is a very popular shloka oft repeated and quoted by people in various contexts. This teaching which Lord Krishna gave Arjuna in the battlefield of Kurukshetra is applicable to all of us in the battlefield of life. Very often, instead of concentrating on our work, we worry about how the work will turn out. This worry turns out be a distraction and affects the outcome. Sometimes we also feel that inspite of the work we put in, we may not achieve the required result. So instead of taking that risk, we prefer to skip the work itself to avoid disappointment. Many in the West as well as people in India have reviled this principle as a fatalistic one, which preaches that one should have an attitude of resignation and passivity and let whatever happen, happen. This attitude, they say will lead to demotivation, for people work with an objective and will not be ready to put in effort without the expectation of a reward. Nothing is farther from the truth. This shloka exhorts us to work to the best of our ability, irrespective of the outcome. It lays stress on the work itself, the fruit of the work is just a by-product. It asks us not worry whether the action will succeed or fail. It also tells us … [Read more...]
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