Every work is a mixture of good and evil. This world of ours is a relative plane. You must
therefore strive to do such actions that can bring maximum of good and minimum of evil. If you
know the secret of work, the technique of Karma-Yoga, you will be absolutely free from the taint of
Karma. That secret is to work without attachment and egoism. The central teaching of the
Bhagavad-Gita and the Yoga-Vasishtha is non-attachment to work. Lord Krishna says to Arjuna:“O Arjuna, work incessantly. Your duty is to work always. But do not expect fruits. The lot of that
man who expects fruits is pitiable. He is the most miserable man in the world.”
Generally people have various motives when they work. Some work in society for getting
name and fame, some for money, some for getting power and position, and some others for getting
enjoyments in heaven. Some build temples and churches with the idea that their sins will be washed
off. Some perform sacrifices for getting children. Some sink wells and tanks so that their names will
be remembered even after their death. Some lay out gardens and public parks with the idea that they
will enjoy such lovely parks and gardens in heaven. Some do acts of charity with the idea that they
will be born in the house of a Henry Ford or a Rockefeller in their next birth.
The greatest service that one can render to another is the imparting of Knowledge of Self.
Spiritual help is the highest of all. The root cause for all suffering is ignorance (Avidya) only. Cut
the knot of Avidya and drink the sweet Nirvanic Bliss. That sage who tries to remove the ignorance
of men is the greatest benefactor in the world. If you remove the hunger of man, it is after all a
temporary physical help. It is removal of physical want for three or four hours. Then again the
hunger manifests. The man remains in the same miserable state. Thus it is safe to conclude that
building of hospitals, poor-houses, dharmasalas or choultries for distribution of free food, clothes,
etc. is not the highest kind of help, though they are absolutely necessary. I say this is not the highest
kind of help, because I ask: How long can these last? Miseries have to be eradicated once and
forever. The world will remain in the same miserable state even if you build millions of hospitals
and feeding-places. There is something that can put an end to all these miseries, sufferings, worries
and anxieties, and that something is Knowledge of Self.
From – SRI SWAMI SIVANANDA
