Sreyan svadharmo vigunah paradharmat svanusthitat;

Svadharme nidhanam sreyah paradharmo bhayavahah — (3.35)

‘Better is one’s own dharma, though imperfect, than the dharma of another well performed; better is death in one’s own dharma; another person’s dharma is fraught with fear.’

Everyone has his or her own dharma, or way of life and work and human relations. According to one’s psychological disposition, a person has a particular bent of mind and work capacities. That is one’s dharma.  Sri Krishna says; better to die in one’s own dharma, than to live in somebody else’s dharma. That dharma is good for that person, this is good for you. Find out your own dharma based on your own mental disposition. Sreyan svadharmo vigunah, ‘even though one’s own dharma is not so high quality, still it is the best for oneself.’ This is a teaching based upon individual identity of every human being, like the individuality of one’s thumb impression. Similarly, there is a psychic individuality. That is based on a certain bent of life, attitudes, reactions, likes and dislikes. All these constitute one’s individuality; let one respect it and not imitate somebody else; don’t be ashamed of yourself. This sloka refers to this need of our part to have faith in ourselves, confidence in ourselves, in one’s own psychological disposition. One can change it for the better but should not exchange it, should not cast yourself in the mould of somebody else.

Source: Universal Message of the Bhagavad Gita by Swami Ranganathananda

Karmanyakarma yah pasyed akarmani ca karma yah;

Sa buddhiman manusyesu sa yuktah krtsnakarmakrt­­­­­--- (4.18)

'One who sees inaction in action, and action in inaction, is intelligent among human beings, he or she is a yogi and a doer of all action.'

This is a very high level of thought in the whole Gita. 'One who sees inaction in action, and action in inaction, is intelligent among human beings, he or she is a real yogi and the most intelligent person and the doer of all action.' Karmani akarma yah pasyet, 'seeing inaction in action'. How can we see that? Looks contradictory, but it is not so; in human experience this can be perfectly realized to see inaction in action, and action in inaction. Sa buddhiman manusyesu, 'he or she is the most intelligent of persons', sa yuktah, 'he or she is a yogi', that is, the state we have to achieve eventually, when we realize our true nature.

This idea is echoed very beautiful in Chinese thought, in Taoism and partly in Confucian thought. There they call it, 'no work'. 'No work' is real work. Work is no work at all. It is a question of agency and attachment. When these two are not there, work ceases to be work, it becomes a play, it becomes spontaneous, it becomes natural. So, that is how the idea of work when there is effort, struggle, and tension. When you become thoroughly detached, then all that tension goes away. You are working, but you feel that you are not working. What a beautiful idea! Even in normal life, you can see a baby is sick at night and the mother is keeping awake to tend the baby's body. She doesn't feel the strain of that work at all. When there is such love, none will feel that strain. But a paid person will not have the same experience, because there is no such spontaneous love there. With a little spiritual development, work ceases to be burden, ceases to be drudgery. I have used a word which is very current in this modern context. Increasingly, today's industrial civilization is teaching people that work is drudgery. Joy must be found outside work. That is why too many holidays. As soon as Friday evening comes, millions people running out for a holiday. These five days were all drudgery. Let us have joy outside the five days. That seems to be the modern theory. In fact, so many Western writers have written on the subject. I once read an English writer writing thus in a paper:

People leave London on Friday afternoon, go by car, on the way there are so many cars to negotiate, you become angry, you create trouble, then go to seaside, so many people are there, you don't have vacant place there, you get angry there also, and when you finally return on Monday morning or Sunday night, you are more tired than you were when you left on Friday evening. This is happening all over the advanced part of the world. You can see plenty of it on the Mediterranean coast.

It will happen here in India also, because we separate joy from work. Work as a drudgery, Sri Krishna will not allow that attitude. There is joy in work also. From one joy to another joy is alright. But from drudgery to joy is not at all alright. Work can be full of joy, provided there is love in the heart. Then everything becomes fine. You can carry a heavier burden if there is love in the heart. That is one lesson that we must learn. People who are posted to the defend country in the Himalayan frontier, if they have the spirit of love for the nation, they will do their work happily and efficiently. Similarly, our administrative officers do devoted service when posted to faraway districts. By attachment you rarely do very great work and remain sane.

While working, you are not only working but also expressing your personality in work. In work when you express your personality, it is a wonderful spiritual experience. The Gita is trying to explain that idea, which work itself, is a spiritual education. If you want joy on a holiday, you can do so, not because work is drudgery. Gita will not allow it. Find joy in work. What a beautiful idea! Even the simplest work, you can find joy in it, because you have put spiritual value into the work. Work itself is just an external action. But it is my mind that gives value to the work that I do. I inject that value into work; then I find it is fine and quite pleasant.

Source: Universal Message of the Bhagavad Gita by Swami Ranganathananda

Na Karmanamanarambhat naiskarmyam puruso’snute

Na ca samnyasanadeva siddhim samadhigacchati – 3.4

"By non-performance of action, none reaches inaction; by merely giving up action, no one attains perfection"

This is a very clear simple statement. Na Karmanamanarambhat naiskarmyam puruso’snute, ‘true naiskarmya, actionlessness, cannot be attained by non-performance of action’. Let me do nothing, then I shall attain actionlessness—that can never be; na ca samnyasanadeva, ‘not even by renouncing action’, siddhim samadhigacchati, ‘One is going to get spiritual perfection’.

First, you begin an action, and then you give it up. That is called samnyasana; the other is, karmanam anarambha, ‘by not beginning any action at all’. It is very important thought that is contained in this verse, and it has wide ramifications also for society. Now, you enjoy a quiet hour after you spent some time in hard work. The whole day you work, in the evening you get relaxation in meditation or other higher spiritual practices. You enjoy it. The whole day you are lazy, no work to do, you want to enjoy that meditation! Is that possible? It is like a person who is unemployed, and you tell him: ‘I give you one month’s holiday’! What is the use of a holiday for an unemployed person? An employed person can enjoy a holiday. But, many of our people have not learnt this lesson yet. Real holiday-enjoyment can be experienced only after a period of hard work.

First, karma then comes naiskarmya. Sri Krishna’s statement has reference to all of us, especially in India, that all enjoyment of actionlessness is possible after pursuing action, expressing your energy in action and endeavour. So, he said, Na Karmanamanarambhat naiskarmyam puruso’snute‘ by non-performance of action, none reaches inaction; by merely giving up action, no one attains perfection’.

Source: Universal Message of the Bhagavad Gita by Swami Ranganathananda