Shrimad Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 18: Mokṣha Sanyasa Yogam Verse 46:
In God’s Creation, No Soul Is Useless According To His Perfect Plan All Living Things Will Gradually Become Flawless
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यत: प्रवृत्तिर्भूतानां येन सर्वमिदं ततम् |
स्वकर्मणा तमभ्यर्च्य सिद्धिं विन्दति मानव: || 18.46||
yataḥ pravṛittir bhūtānāṁ yena sarvam idaṁ tatam
sva-karmaṇā tam abhyarchya siddhiṁ vindati mānavaḥ || 18.46||
Shloka Translation
BG – Ch. 18- Ver. 46:
By engaging in one’s natural trade, one worships the Creator who created all living things and is responsible for the universe as a whole. A person can easily reach perfection with such work performance.
Explanation
No soul in God’s creation is unnecessary. All living things will gradually become flawless according to His divine plan. We all functioned as minute cogs in the enormous wheel that was his plan. And he only expects us to perform to the level of competence he has bestowed upon us. Therefore, we will take part in his divine design for our purification if we can just carry out our swa-dharma in accordance with our nature and place in life. Our labour itself turns into a form of worship when performed with devotional attention.
Based on our prior karmas and abilities, every one of us has a unique swa-dharma. However, if we carry out our inherent responsibilities, putting aside our desire for self-gain and rising above the momentary enjoyment and suffering that come our way, we shall purify ourselves and advance to the next level of dharma. In this way, the soul gradually progresses from its current level of coarse consciousness to a state of divine consciousness by carrying out the necessary tasks and refraining from avoiding them.
Verse & what we can learn
According to Shri Krishna, we should offer Ishvara our duty-filled performance as a sacrifice. Only then does it produce the samsiddhi, the ultimate success, the perfection that was before mentioned. If not, simply carrying out our duty will lead to paapa and punya, merits and demerits, which would further ensnare us in the cycle of samsara.
All of our activities need to be infused with bhakti, or devotion to Ishvara. In other words, bhakti yoga and karma yoga must coexist. The enormous bundle of preferences, aversions, and anxieties known as the ego that stands in the way of emancipation is diminished when duties are performed with devotion to Ishvara.
Even in our everyday lives, acts carried out in adoration of someone or something evoke a distinct emotion. They enable us to access energies we didn’t know we had. However, giving acts to Ishvara has the impact of lessening enjoyment, or bhokta bhaava, which is the pursuit of deeds, motivated by, likes and dislikes. The sensation of kartaa bhaava—the idea that I must take action to make up for some incompleteness—is diminished by selfless service. There is no room for human will because we become instruments of Ishvara’s will.
Ishvara is the beginning of all beings, and the cause of intelligence. Like the clay in a clay pot, he is likewise the material cause, the substance through which everything is made. We shed all fear of the future when we offer our acts to Ishvara, the universe’s creator and sustainer, since we view everything that comes our way as prasada, a gift from Ishvara. Therefore, there is no personal preference, no personal will, and no fear. Doership, preferences, dislikes, and anxieties are all expressions of the ego. After then, it gradually dries up.
To acquire knowledge and to implement that knowledge in life one needs to be mentally and physically active and healthy and for that daily meditation is a great tool.
There are various types of meditation like Buddhist meditation, heartfulness meditation, mindfulness meditation, meditation for stress, and each meditation benefits are countless. There is also numerous meditation techniques for beginners which help in practicing daily meditation so go ahead and start your journey towards a peaceful and balanced life.
In the next shloka Shri Krishna explains about Swadharma and duties.
Let’s learn to live with “The Gita” via Meditation Affinity…