57. Inaction, In-action, and Beyond action

In the fourth chapter of the Bhagavadgītā, Kr̥ṣṇa discusses karma-akarma-vikarma. There are various interpretations for these terms (and the related verses) by different commentators. Here we will base our discussion on Śāṅkarabhāṣya.

Kr̥ṣṇa opens up the topic by saying "Even scholars are confused in recognizing karma and akarma" (4.16) indicating that the concept is not straightforward. In the subsequent verse he adds "vikarma" to it, and further emphasizes that the nature of karma is very complex (4.17).

The word "karma" refers to śāstravihita karma — activities prescribed by the śāstras for your role in the society. This includes nitya-naimittika karma (sandhyāvandana, agnihōtra etc.) that everyone should perform along with the specific activities as per their varṇa and the stage of life (āśrama).

"Vikarma" refers to niṣiddha or forbidden karma. For e.g. as discussed earlier, following paradharma is vikarma. Similarly, if someone in student life performs activities prescribed for householder life (mixing up of the āśrama dharma), it is vikarma. And karma such as stealing is a vikarma for anyone.

"Akarma" requires some explanation. Usually, the prefix "a" or "niḥ" in Saṁskr̥ta signifies negation (like the "un" or "im" in English). For e.g. anitya means impermanent. But in spiritual teachings these prefixes sometimes indicate not mere negation, but transcendence. For e.g. nirguṇa does not mean "devoid of guṇa", but means "transcendence from guṇa" (guṇātīta). If a simple example has to be given: movies are projected on a screen, but the screen transcends all the movies. The difference between negation and transcendence is that in negation there is absence, whereas in transcendence there is a leap to a higher context that supports the lower context but is untouched by it.

Thus the word akarma (or naiṣkarmya) can mean two things: 1) Inactivity (or actionlessness) 2) Transcendence from karma. Throughout the Gītā both the connotations are used by Kr̥ṣṇa and we should be careful to identify them. As a rule whenever he condemns it he is referring to "inactivity" (e.g. 2.47), and whenever he appreciates it he is referring to transcendence (3.3; 18.48).

In fact, he had laid the foundation for the karma-akarma discussion in the beginning of the third chapter. The phrase "naiṣkarmya sthiti/siddhi" is popularly used as a synonym to ātmajñāna[1]. Therefore, when Arjuna questions him as to why he should engage in karma if jñāna is the ultimate goal, although Arjuna did not explicitly use the word naiṣkarmya, Kr̥ṣṇa, as though reading Arjuna's mind, clarifies "One cannot attain naiṣkarmya by simply refraining from karma" (3.3). Here he is pointing out that naiṣkarmya means not negation of karma, but transcendence from it. In the fourth chapter he is addressing the same with special attention.

What does transcendence from karma mean? How is ātmajñāna a state of naiṣkarmya? We can look at it from two angles.

1) What we call as karma is basically amplification. For e.g. a car is designed in such a way that if I move my foot, an entire car moves. Movement is amplified several million times. Similarly, if we take this a step backward, it is the minute activity of the neurons that is amplified as the movement of the foot. If we take this further backward, as per some modern theories, it is the extremely minuscule spacetime events that cause neural firing. Thus karma is getting amplified in several levels. But it cannot be that it is an endless chain of smaller and smaller activity; there has to be an end, and the natural mathematical end to this is stillness. This is what the scriptures conclusively affirm too; our true nature is stillness. But it is not inert stillness; it is the source of all karma! When we thus realize our true nature to be absolute stillness, we transcend karma. We would be in naiṣkarmya although there is karma on the surface.

2) In ātmajñāna, extremes meet. De-identification from all specific entities leads also to identification with the whole existence at once[2] (our problem is that we are in between — identification with only a few particular things); and all-inclusive identification too implies transcendence from karma. Karma means an interaction of two entities. Any system has parts and when we are identified with certain parts only, we see activity (interaction with other parts). But when we embrace the whole system at once, karma is transcended. For e.g. I say I eat food as I see myself as a specific body. But the body is a piece of earth, so is the food I am eating. One part of earth is eating another part of earth. From the perspective of earth as a whole no eating is happening; the net effect is nil[3]. Therefore an ātmajñāni, as he has an all-inclusive identification with the cosmos, transcends karma. He sees that the consumed, the consumer, the process of consumption etc. are all the same reality (4.24)

Now we are ready to take on a riddle like statement from Kr̥ṣṇa:

कर्मण्यकर्म यः पश्येत् अकर्मणि च कर्म यः ।

स बुद्धिमान् मनुष्येषु स युक्तः कृत्स्नकर्मकृत् ॥४.१८॥

karmaṇyakarma yaḥ paśyēt akarmaṇi ca karma yaḥ |

sa buddhimān manuṣyēṣu sa yuktaḥ kr̥tsnakarmakr̥t ||4.18||

Meaning: He who sees akarma in karma and karma in akarma, he is wise among men; he is a Yogi and performer of all actions.

Here there are two parts:

a) Seeing akarma in karma — here akarma is being used in the profound sense, i.e. transcendence from karma. When someone has realized his true nature, he sees himself as absolute stillness and is identified with nothing (or is identified with the entire existence). Hence for him there is no karma at all even if he is engaged in a lot of karma from a mundane standpoint (4.20).

b) Seeing karma in akarma — here akarma is being used in the simpler sense, i.e. inaction. For someone who has not realized his true nature, "I am not doing" is also happening out of a strong individuality and doership. Thus, this "not doing" is a doing; it is karma in the disguise of akarma (3.6).

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[1] Jñāna, Bhakti, Yōga and Naiṣkarmya are four names of the same enlightened state from the perspective of the four streams of yōga — Jñāna yōga, Bhakti yōga, Rāja Yōga and Karma yōga.

[2] "When you attain jñāna, you will see all the beings within yourself" (4.35)

[3] Homework for readers — "the entire Universe considered at once does not have a weight" — ponder over this and use it as an example here.