Summary:

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 18: A person established in self-knowledge has no purpose in worldly action or inaction, being free from dependence on any being for fulfillment. Maturity is determined by choosing Īśvara-sṛṣṭi (universal order/larger picture) over jīva-sṛṣṭi (personal comfort zone/preferences) in decision-making. Dealing with challenges in every role requires recognizing where responsibility ends and others' free will begins. Duty differs from obligation by transforming external obligations into meaningful responsibilities arising from values and enthusiasm. Managing spillover between roles means addressing issues directly in the relationship where they belong to prevent unhealthy pressure transfer. Dealing with conflict between roles requires evaluating each circumstance anew rather than defaulting to same choice. The universal solution in dealing with conflicts in roles involves taking stands for what's right versus what's comfortable or obligatory, maintaining big picture perspective.

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 19: Until self-knowledge is established, continue performing dharmic actions while transforming your relationship to results through karma-yoga. Actions should be performed as yajña (offering) to Īśvara, with complete immersion in the process rather than fixation on personal rewards. This escapes the “vulturous attitude” of constantly scanning for personal gains, which reinforces incompleteness and strengthens individuality. Dharma and adharma should guide actions instead of personal likes and dislikes, recognizing dharma as Īśvara's expression. 

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 20: Janaka and other wise rulers attained liberation (saṁsiddhi) through karma-yoga while fulfilling their worldly duties, proving renunciation of action isn't necessary for mokṣa. After liberation, they continued their roles as prārabdha while acting without personal pressures or concern of losing their status in the society. For the ajñānī, free will is guided by survival needs, prārabdha, and attempts to remove sense of smallness through personal gain. For the jñānī, free will operates through survival needs, prārabdha, and loka-saṅgraha (world welfare) guided by compassion rather than personal gain. The jñānī's body-mind becomes an instrument to serve, recognizing free will operates at the body-mind level while the Self remains actionless (akriyā). Actions should be performed with Īśvara-arpaṇa-buddhi, considering their impact on environment and others' well-being.

---

Revision:

In V16, Krishna reminded us that refusing to participate in a universe of mutual benefit, choosing to live solely for sense pleasures (indiryārāma) in a selfish manner (aghāyu), is living a wasteful life. So he calls us to convert any traces of victim mode, into taking accountability.

Then V17 says, the result of taking accountability is becoming qualified for knowledge, leading to jñāni, one who delights in the self as the self. 

NEXT VERSE: Now that you've taken accountability, let's talk about what that means…

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 18:
What is My Duty? Handling Conflicts in Roles We Play

न एव तस्य कृतेन अर्थः न अकृतेन इह कश्चन ।
न च अस्य सर्व-भूतेषु कश्चित् अर्थ-व्यपाश्रयः ॥ ३-१८॥
na eva tasya kṛtena arthaḥ na akṛtena iha kaścana ।
na ca asya sarva-bhūteṣu kaścit artha-vyapāśrayaḥ ॥ 3-18॥

For that person (who revels in the self), there is indeed no purpose here in this world for doing or not doing action. Nor does such a person depend on any being for any object whatsoever.

Intro

Verse shows how a wise person relates to, manages and performs duty…

What Determines Maturity of Your Response to Anything?

Sometimes our likes and dislikes align naturally with Ishvara's universal order, producing no conflict. However, often personal preferences (jiva-srsti) clash with what the situation requires (Ishvara-srsti).

EG: Arjuna's decision to not fight arose from his personal likes and dislikes (comfort zone) — while what was expected of him was to fulfill his warrior duty.

So what determines maturity is which order wins more often in decision-making:

• 1. Jīva-sṛṣṭi: Following comfort zone and personal preferences
  2. Īśvara-sṛṣṭi: Analyzing the larger picture and responding appropriately even when uncomfortable

Īśvara-sṛṣṭi is properly going about one's svadharma — meaning your duties are not blind obedience to others' demands, but finding options that honor your self-interest and well-being of the other.

Example: Consider a daughter who holds resentment toward her mother for being treated as less favored in childhood. When her mother needs home care, she finds herself torn between two conflicting impulses: “My mother never favored me, why help her!” versus “I'm a daughter and have responsibility”. The wise approach isn't black-and-white (either complete subservience to others' requests or going along only with what suits you). Instead, she might fulfill her svadharma while protecting her emotional wellbeing by limiting the amount of time she stays with her mother. This middle path honors both her responsibility and her legitimate need for emotional boundaries.

How to Deal with Challenges in Every Role

Each person plays multiple roles simultaneously as a parent, child, friend, employee, citizen, and more.

Roles come with challenges because each relationship involves people with different perspectives, needs, and expectations. For example, you might love your parents deeply, yet still feel irritated at times or believe they favor your sibling. Similarly, you may adore your spouse but find certain habits annoying. With children, you might feel they don't follow your guidance despite your best intentions for them.

Solutions:

1. 1. You need to recognize where your responsibility ends and others' free will begins. It takes pressure of mingling in areas you shouldn’t. EG: Express your views clearly but give others freedom to make their own choices, because you’d want the same freedom given to you.
   2. Recognize, while the role remains, the script changes.
      • Examples:
        • Parents: You may have to set boundaries with parents as they may have a hard time letting go of the script that they're supposed to be your advice giver. After a certain age, parents script needs to change from advice-giving to offering guidance only when asked. If they're unable to, you need to set boundaries by stating what's acceptable/unacceptable.  
        • Couples: Spouse roles remain. But as both evolve, the script changes. For instance, from working-mom to stay-at-home-mom. From honeymoon to deeper connection.
      • Script nullifies the role: Sometimes a change within the script, voids your role. For instance, a script (story line) within a long time relationship shows it's no longer in your interest to stay in it. Your decision relinquishes the “friend” role. Or after age 65, your role of employee is not required because the script has changed.
      • Distortion of your script: Sometimes your script may get distorted or go out of line of what's ethical. For example, suppose your parents were controlling when you were small. Now as an adult, you’re controlling them, without realizing. This prevents them living the life they want. So your new script is to establish clarity between care and control. Controlling in name of care only makes them unhappy. Adapting the script is keeping with Ishvara-srsti.

Duty vs. Obligation

Some people define “duty” as “obligation imposed from outside which I have to do”. This makes responsibilities feel burdensome and mechanical. For instance, caring for aging parents can become a source of resentment if approached merely as an obligation.

Solution: When duties come from your values and enthusiasm rather than imposed obligation, they become meaningful rather than draining. The key is finding ways to make necessary responsibilities enjoyable rather than mere chores. This might mean setting appropriate boundaries with aging parents — showing love and care without becoming completely consumed by their needs — or finding creative approaches to accept responsibilities that align with your deeper values. EG: You might ask to do part of the project that aligns with your core values, rather then accepting any part of the project.

Managing Spillover Between Roles

Spillover occurs when pressure accumulated in one relationship, affects how you behave in another. Happens when we're unable to address issues where they belong.

For example, if you can't stand up to an unreasonable boss, you might release it by shouting at your children at home. Similarly, a person who feels controlled by their spouse might become overly controlling at work.

Solution: Addressing issues directly in the relationship where they belong prevents this unhealthy transfer of pressure, and less need to find scapegoats to unload the pressure.

Dealing with Conflict Between Roles

Sometimes we face conflicts when different roles demand opposing actions. EG: Arjuna’s conflict: Kshatriya duty (fight) vs. family love (spare cousins). Modern conflict: Work meeting vs. child’s exam.

Solution: Sometimes your work meeting is more important, and other times your child’s attention is priority. Thus need to evaluate each circumstance anew, rather than always defaulting to the same choice.

How Krishna Handled Conflicts Between Roles:

Krishna left his hometown Mathura, to build a new city (Dvārakā), as it was under constant attack by Jarāsandha. People in his hometown called him a coward. But he knew to retreat was smarter than endless fighting.

Krishna’s retreat from Mathura wasn’t failure — it was strategy. Sometimes quitting a bad job/relationship is the brave choice.

Krishna’s choice seem contradictory at first, but it teaches us that leadership isn't just about doing what others expect of you, but also doing what is actually needed and healthy in the big picture.

Another example is Buddha making a hard decision to leave his family and child to pursue his bigger calling for something much larger then “family”.

In your life, this might look like walking away from a toxic argument or friendship, even if others call you weak or disloyal. It may prove to be better then staying out of your “care”, while feeling you're not growing anymore.

Key Takeaway:

When roles clash, pause and ask, “Am I acting from fear and blind-loyalty (such as in Karna's case with Duryodhana), or what’s truly right?”  We owe people gratitude — but not silence when you realize the other person’s values are no longer supporting yours. In that case, speak up!

Universal Solution in Dealing with Conflicts in Roles:

Take a stand in what's right, versus sticking with what’s comfortable, or out of mere obligation.  EG: Karna in the Mahabharata remained loyal to Duryodhana out of a sense of obligation, even when Duryodhana's actions were wrong. Conversely, a wise person maintains a big picture, not losing sight of what truly needs his attention and for how long.

NEXT VERSE: Speaks about the means by which duty in V18 is done; by Karma-Yoga…

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 19:
Performing Action Without Attachment

तस्मात् असक्तः सततम् कार्यम् कर्म समाचर ।
असक्तः हि आचरन् कर्म परम् आप्नोति पूरुषः ॥ ३-१९॥
tasmāt asaktaḥ satatam kāryam karma samācara ।
asaktaḥ hi ācaran karma param āpnoti pūruṣaḥ ॥ 3-19॥

Therefore, always perform well the action that is to be done without attachment because, by performing action without attachment, a person attains the highest.

The Apparent Contradiction

Kṛṣṇa had previously stated that for the wise (jñānī), no action needs to be done — nothing is gained or lost through action or inaction. Yet here he instructs Arjuna to “perform well the action that is to be done without attachment.”

Resolution: Different Stages, Different Guidance

The contradiction is resolved by recognizing that each teaching serves a different stage of spiritual maturity:

• • For the wise: No action is required since self-knowledge is already established
  • For the seeker: Continue performing appropriate actions while pursuing knowledge

Until self-knowledge (ātma-jñāna) is fully realized, one must continue performing dharmic actions while transforming your relationship to results — converting your concern and agenda for future rewards into a yajña (offering).

Understanding Yajña: From Transaction to Offering

A yajña is like cooking a special meal for someone you deeply admire. The process becomes mindful and joyful because you're cooking as an offering, not ordinary cooking for personal satisfaction. The puruṣa (person) for whom you are offering is Īśvara, because there is only Īśvara.

When Kṛṣṇa says “do actions without attachment to results,” he means: by performing actions with complete immersion and satisfaction in the process itself, the habitual thinking of “this will please me, reward me, validate me” naturally doesn't arise. 

So performing action without attachment refers to the attitude one should have towards the results of one's actions, karma-phala. This means you perform “what is to be done” guided by dharma and adharma rather than by personal preferences, letting go of the idea that every action is supposed to bring you exactly what you want.

Escaping the “Vulturous Attitude”

Karma-yoga liberates you from the “vulturous attitude.” Like a vulture that appears to glide freely but constantly scans downward for prey, most people outwardly perform actions while inwardly fixating on personal gains.

This narcissistic approach reinforces:

• 1. Incompleteness: “Little me needs X to be fulfilled”
  2. Strengthens likes-dislikes: Conditioning programmed by society and external influences
  3. Creates vulnerability: To anger → delusion → memory loss when things don't go your way

Dharma as Your Guide

Instead of being driven by personal likes and dislikes, let dharma and adharma (righteousness and unrighteousness) guide your actions. Recognize that dharma itself is Īśvara's expression.

Note: Karma-yoga requires recognition of a higher order (Īśvara), making it challenging for those who view ethics as merely human constructs or evolutionary byproducts, such as atheists.

The Progressive Path

Karma-yoga prepares the mind (antaḥ-karaṇa-śuddhi) for steadfastness in knowledge. Only a purified mind can receive and integrate self-knowledge, which alone grants mokṣa.

There is a deliberate order: purification through karma-yoga, then knowledge, then liberation.

NEXT VERSE: Speaks about people who have lived life of karma-yoga and attained liberation…

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 20:
Janaka Attained Moksha by Help of Karma-Yoga

कर्मणा एव हि संसिद्धिम् आस्थिताः जनक-आदयः ।
लोक-संग्रहम् एव अपि सम्पश्यन् कर्तुम् अर्हसि ॥ ३-२०॥
karmaṇā eva hi saṃsiddhim āsthitāḥ janaka-ādayaḥ ।
loka-saṃgraham eva api sampaśyan kartum arhasi ॥ 3-20॥

Indeed, by action alone, Janaka and others gained liberation. Also, by merely seeing the desirability of protecting the people from falling into unbecoming ways you ought to perform action.

“Indeed, by action alone, Janaka and others gained liberation.”

Janaka (father of Sita, king of Mithila) and other wise rulers performed their duties as kings — governing, protecting, and engaging in worldly affairs — and attained liberation (saṁsiddhi).

This is Krishna’s example that renunciation of action is not necessary for mokṣa.

Even after moksha, Janaka continued to play the role of king as that was his prarabdha. He’s now able to be play the role of king even better because he isn’t acting out of personal pressures to perform, isn't tormented by fear of his status, nor agitated by sense of smallness.

Relationship Between Free Will and the Ajñānī (ignorant person):

Free will is guided by:

1. 1. 1. Need for survival of body-mind
      2. Prarabdha which makes your body-mind perform roles (svadharma)
      3. Repeatedly thinking of new ways to remove sense of smallness imposed by the body-mind upadhi. Even loka-sangraha / loka-kshema (world welfare) is for the sake of self, to feel bigger/better/divine about oneself.

Says “I (body-mind) have free will”.

Relationship Between Free Will and the Jñānī (liberated):

Free will is guided by:

1. 1. Need for survival of body-mind
   2. Prarabdha which makes the jnani’s body-mind perform roles (svadharma)
   3. Decisions are done for sake of loka-sangraha / loka-kshema (world welfare – what can I give? – in what way can I contribute?). Guided by compassion, not personal gain.
      • This can be shown by logic: An ajnani does everything for sake of gaining freedom from limitation. So actions are arising from jiva-srsti. Conversely, the jnani has discovered one’s limitlessness, which nothing in the world can top, because every reward/experience is time-bound. So whatever decisions comes from jnani's body-mind, has to be largely arising from Ishvara-srsti program, which is welfare of the world. So jnani’s body-mind becomes an instrument to serve, without standing to get anything out of it. 

Cognitively knows, free will is at level of body-mind. While I (Awareness) don’t have free-will. I am actionless (akriyā). EG: The conscious you who went to bed, remains actionless, yet your mind power projects you as a tiny character who is doing and choosing.

What is the Bases from Which a Jnani’s Body-Mind Acts?

• • A jñānī may teach Vedanta not because “I must,” but because prārabdha aligns with their natural inclination. Ādi Śaṅkara wrote commentaries not for himself, or to be recognized, but to guide seekers. After Janaka’s moksha, he continued to rule not because he “wanted” to, but because that was his prārabdha.
  • A jñānī may choose to engage in actions for societal benefit, but without attachment, as they see the world as mithyā, like a dreamer helping dream characters.

“Arjuna, perform action by protecting the people (or whatever your role is)”

Do your part in the world for the larger good. Do it with an “Ishvara Arpana buddhi”. Meaning while acting, do so with understanding the whole universe is nothing but Ishvara, and my actions are offering to alter of the Lord.

How to develop an Ishvara-arpana-buddhi? Ask, “What impact will these actions have on the environment and others? Is this action accounting the well-being of the people it'll reach?”. 

NEXT VERSE: Shows how society is influenced by people like Janaka and jnani's…

—

Course was based on Swami Dayananda (Arsha Vidya) home study course.

Recorded 29 June, 2025