Gita Acharan

‘ W hat is karma ’ is Arjuna’s next question. This is in response to Krishna’s assurance that one realises akhilam-karma (all aspects of karma , akarma and vikarma ) when one strives for salvation by taking refuge in Him (7.29). Krishna replies, “separation (sacrifice) of cosmic energy capable of creation ( bhuta-bhava-udbhava-karo-visargah ) is called karma ” (8.3). This is a difficult explanation to comprehend, and the interpretations complicate the issue rather than providing clarity. Usual interpretations of karma suggest it to be noble deeds, creation or yajna , but all of them fail to satisfy what Krishna means. While Krishna’s reply regarding ‘ karma ’ operates at the level of ‘being’, we interpret it at the level of ‘doing’. That’s why our understanding of ‘what we do is karma ’ falls short, as different people keep doing different things at different times. On the other hand, any definition should be valid for every point in time - be it past when humans didn’t exist, pre...