niyatasya tu sannyaasaha karmano nopapadyate |
mohaattasya parityaagastaamasaha parikeertitaha || 7 ||
Indeed, the giving up of an obligatory action is not appropriate. Giving it up out of delusion is declared to be taamasic.
niyatasya : obligatory
tu : indeed
sannyaasaha : giving up
karmanaha : action
na : not
upapadyate : appropriate
mohaat : out of delusion
tasya : it
parityaagaha : to give up
taamasaha : taamasic
parikeertitaha : is declared
Shri Krishna moved the discussion on karma yoga ahead by categorizing the three types of tyaaga, which means giving up or renunciation. He says that when we give up an obligatory action, when we do not perform an obligatory action out of delusion, out of incorrect or error prone knowledge, such renunciation is known as taamasic tyaaga or taamasic renunciation. He says that such behaviour is inappropriate and is not in line with the teachings of karma yoga. Not doing one’s duty is forbidden in karma yoga.
Where do one's obligatory duties come from? They come from one’s stage in life or aashrama, and one's profession or varna. A householder is obliged to attend to the needs of his spouse, his parents and his children. If he does not attend to his sick parents, or does not help with his child's homework, it is termed as taamasic behaviour. A businessman should strive to generate healthy profits from his business, and donate a portion of his wealth to charity. Not doing so is also considered taamasic.
Moha or delusion can create all kinds of negative tendencies in us, as we have seen in prior chapters. It can cause heedlessness and carelessness where we do not pay proper attention to the task at hand. It can cause laziness and idleness where our body becomes inert and dull, where we do not want to get up from bed. It is hard to get oneself out of a state of moha. Unless someone who is not taamasic intervenes, we will remain in a state of tamas for a long time.
No comments:
Post a Comment