Verses – Karmanye Vadhikaraste (January 2010)

Indian literature is very broad and deep. There are many verses, dohas, and mantras that communicate the essence of Hinduism in short and concise ways.

This year, we will cover some of the most common Hindu verses as part of our monthly assignments.

Kids will study the following verse from Gita this month:

karmany evadhikaras te
ma phalesu kadacana
ma karma-phala-hetur bhur
ma te sango ‘stv akarmani

Translation: You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.

Meaning: Lord Krishna tells us that we have full control over our action, but no control over the results of our action. A farmer has control over how he works his land, yet no control over the harvest. But he cannot expect a harvest if he does not work his land with best effort and with tools he has.

Action should be done sincerely without worrying about its results. The results of the action will be greater if we put all attention and energy into the action itself and do not allow our energy to be diverted by thinking of results. The result will depend on energy put into action. Lord Krishna asks us not to worry about results during the course of action. This does not mean that we should not care about results. But we should not expect only positive results all the time.

The secret of living a meaningful life is to be very active, and do our best without thinking of our own selfish motives or even the results. A Self-realized person works for the good of all.

We should do our best at the present moment and let the future take care of itself. Please visit http://www.gita-society.com/childrengita.htm#2 for additional information on this topic