Tamala Krsna reading Translation and Purport: 47: "You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Neither consider yourself the cause of action, nor should you be attached to inaction [Bg. 2.47]."
Purport: "There are three considerations here: prescribed duties, capricious work, and inaction. Prescribed duties means activities in terms of one's position in the modes of material nature. Capricious work means actions without the sanction of authority; and inaction means not performing one's prescribed duty. The Lord advised that Arjuna not be inactive, but that he be active in his duty without being attached to the result. One who is attached to the result of his work is also the cause of the action. Thus he is the enjoyer or sufferer of the result of such action. As far as prescribed duties are concerned, they can be fitted into three subdivisions: routine work, emergency work, and desired activities. Routine work in terms of the scriptural injunctions is done without desire for results. As one has to do it, obligatory work is action in the modes of goodness. Work with results becomes the cause of bondage, and so such work is not auspicious. Everyone has his proprietary right in regard to his duties, but should act without attachment to the result. Thus such disinterested obligatory duties helps to lead one to the path of liberation. Arjuna was advised by the Lord to fight as a matter of duty without attachment to the result. His nonparticipation in the battle is another side of attachment. Such attachment never leads one to the path of salvation. Any attachment, positive or negative, is cause for bondage. Inaction is sinful. Therefore fighting as a matter of duty was the only auspicious path to salvation for Arjuna." 48: "Be steadfast in your duty, O Arjuna, and abandon all attachment to success or failure. Such evenness of mind is called yoga [Bg. 2.48]."Duty means
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Now, we manufacture our duty, that is another thing, but according to śāstra, just like Kṛṣṇa says, cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ [Bg. 4.13]. Duty means according to this cātur-varṇyaṁ, four varṇas and four āśramas
Festival Lectures
Philosophy Discussions
Syamasundara: He says that duty is one's individual obligation to obey the categorical imperative by choosing the morally right action. In other words, duty means it is my duty to choose the morally right action, free from emotion.
Prabhupada: Therefore, as soon as you say duty, duty should be prescribed by some higher authority. In that sense, this system is very scientific: brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra. It is very scientific. For brahmana, these are the duties; a ksatriya, these are the duties. Every duty may appear different, but because it is a command of the Supreme, by discharging these duties on different platform, he is serving the Supreme. If Krsna says, "All right, I see you are a brahmana. Your duties are like this," "I see you are a ksatriya. Your duties are like this," "I see you are a vaisya. Your duties are like this..." But Krsna says catur-varnyam maya srstam [Bg. 4.13]. I have divided, so Krsna gives duty, that "Your duty is this, your duty is this, and your duty is this." And if he faithfully serves the duty, that means he is serving Krsna. The duties may appear different, but because he is serving Krsna, he is going to perfection. Just like in our institution, I am the head man, so I may say, "You paint. You preach. You type. You do this." So the duties may be different, but by discharging duty, you are serving me; therefore you are perfect. Similarly, duties are given by the Supreme. Because I see that you are a sudra, you cannot discharge the duties of a brahmana. That is not possible. So you do your duty like this. So superficially it may seem that a sudra's duty is inferior to the brahmana's duty, but if the sudra is performing his duty in accordance to the order of the Supreme, then he is also serving. The service is the main point. The same example of our body, that the duty of eyes, seeing, it is different from the duty of the legs, walking. But walking and seeing, both of them are being utilized for the whole body; therefore all of them are useful. So there cannot be any fixed-up duty, neither is everyone able to follow the same principles. Therefore this varnasrama-dharma is very scientific. That is to be understood.Prabhupada: That duty means to take orders from authority. That is real duty. Otherwise, I cannot create my duty.
Syamasundara: If I accept the authority as my duty...
Prabhupada: The orders of the authority.
Syamasundara: The orders of the authority as my duty, then my conscience keeps me following that order. My conscience.
Prabhupada: Yes. If you agree.
Syamasundara: Yes.
Prabhupada: Authority means we agree to follow.
Syamasundara: Yes.
Prabhupada: Just like we follow Krsna. Krsna says, "You give up everything. Surrender unto Me," we accept that. So similarly, that is the duty. Now I may accept Krsna, you may accept Christ, but that doesn't matter. But duty means what the higher authority orders, you must follow. That is duty.
Syamasundara: And if I am aware what is that duty...
Prabhupada: You will be aware as soon as you approach the higher authority. He'll give you order, "Do this," "Do not do this."Syamasundara: So the standard of what ought to be is that one should fulfill one's duty to Krsna.
Prabhupada: That is good, that is moral, real morality.
Syamasundara: So Krsna uses the same terminology that one should fulfill his duty and if this is the what ought to be.
Prabhupada: Duty means superior order. That is duty. You cannot manufacture your duty.
Syamasundara: His idea is a little impersonal because he says that we discern what ought to be from the forces of nature around you, reality unfolding.
Prabhupada: Then he abides by the forces of nature. That is nature is superior. He does not know beyond nature there is another superior being, that is God. That is his lack of knowledge. That is the difficulty. If you are not perfect, where is that philosopher?
Syamasundara: He sees an intelligence acting in nature.
Prabhupada: Anyway he accepts the superiority of nature, superior position of nature. He accepts it. So but beyond the nature there is a... the Supreme Personality Godhead. Mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10]. Under My direction nature works. So he has no vision to see the background of nature.Prabhupada: That means I can manufacture my own duty, you can manufacture your own duty. There is no standard. But our standard is, Krsna says, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam sar... [Bg. 18.66], whatever you, rascal, whatever you have manufactured, give it up. The Bhagavata says that dharmah projjhita atra kaitavah, that all cheating type of religious system is kicked out. Here is the religious system, satyam param dhimahi [SB 1.1.1]. What is that satyam? Om namo bhagavate vasudevaya. Everything is clear. And where is that clear understanding? Simply speculating. That is the difference, the Vedic standard knowledge and this speculative philosophy. So, so far we are concerned, we refer to the Vedas, sabdah pramanam. Sabdah means Vedas, sabdah brahman. So whatever action we do, if it is approved by the Vedic injunction then it is standard and confirmed.
Hayagriva: Now duty, we get back to the same thing. He writes, "True atheism consists in refusing to obey the voice of one's conscience until one thinks one can foresee the success of one's actions, and thus elevating one's own judgment above that of God and in making oneself into God. He who wills to do evil in order to produce good is a godless person."
Prabhupada: Now if you do not know what is God, then how you will verify your duty is nice, all-good? What is the order of God, who is God, then where is your duty? You simply manufacture your duty. So everyone can do that. So what do you mean by duty? Duty means the order given by some superior and you follow, you do it. That is duty. But if you have no superior order, if you have no conception who is the superior, what is his order, then where is your duty? Simply by mental imagination. Is it? Does he say it like that?Correspondence
1973 Correspondence
Page Title: | Duty means |
Compiler: | Syamananda, Visnu Murti |
Created: | 7march08, |
No. of Quotes: | 4 |
Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=3, Con=0, Let=1 |