We are not asked here to renounce the fruits-of-actions as such nor to ignore them, but we are only warned to renounce our MENTAL SLAVERY and INTELLECTUAL CLINGING to the “expected-fruits.” Only when we get preoccupied with

the expected fruits of our actions do we come to exhaust ourselves, and thus become inefficient in our activities. Forsaking (tyaktwa) our clinging (Sanga) to the fruits-of-action (Karma-phala), we are advised to strive for and to achieve the welfare of the society.

A true painter never willingly sells his masterpiece! To him, that piece of canvas upon which he has lavished long periods of effort, is now by itself a complete reward, even if he be starving!! As compared to the satisfaction and joy that it gives to the painter, he feels that even all the wealth in the world would but be too little a payment for it. If a mere finite piece of art could thus give to an ignorant man of agitations and desires, such an invaluable joy, how much more intense must be the diviner joys of a perfect saint working in the world of names and forms? Indeed, the Self-realised Ones, after their experience of the Infinite Reality as their own Self, become perfectly independent of everything else.

Again, the anxiety for the fruits-of-action, the sense of discontentment and the feeling of dependency upon the things and beings of the world — all belong to the misconceived notion of the ego-centre. The ego in us is the sufferer of all the above-mentioned incapacities and inabilities. When the seeker-after-Truth rediscovers his ego to be the Infinite Truth, the limited ego ends its career of sorrow, and naturally, the agony and the incapacities of the imperfect ego also end. The reflection of the sun in a cup of water can be broken up when the water in the cup is shaken. But when the water is poured out, the reflection also ends, and no more can the sun in the sky be shaken by any known method.

Such an individual, who has rediscovered the Self, “THOUGH SEEMINGLY ENGAGED IN ACTIVITY,” does not do anything.

The body, mind, and intellect act in the world-of-objects, but not the All-pervading Self — the Life — in us. Without ‘Life’ the body cannot function; but when the body functions, ‘Life’ as such cannot be said to function. Therefore, one who is established in the Self, though he engaged himself in action, cannot be said to do any action. The train may move but it would be incorrect to say that the steam is moving.

It is generally a doubt in the students that, even if all the reactions of the past actions have ended at the time of Self-re-discovery, when such a prophetic Master undertakes activity in the world, he would, perhaps, be initiating new actions of sins and merits for the enjoyment of which he may again have to take up births. This false idea has been completely eradicated in this stanza. After the God-experience, when the saint functions in the world outside, “THOUGH ENGAGED IN ACTION HE DOES NOT DO ANYTHING.”EVERY ACTION HAS A REACTION. NATURALLY, EVEN THE BODILY ACTIONS OF A SAINT SHOULD HAVE SOME REACTION. THIS IS THE ORDINARY ARGUMENT. TO NEGATE THIS ASSUMPTION THELORD SAYS:

With the help of the above-mentioned wisdom, tyaktva, having given up the idea of agentship; and phala-asangam, attachment to the results of action; he who is nitya-trptah, ever-trptah, ever-contented, i.e. has no hankering for objects; and nirasrayah, dependent on nothing-. Asraya means that on which a person leans, desiring to achieve some human goal. The idea is that he is dependent of any support which may be a means of attaining some coveted seen or unseen result. In reality, actions done by a man of Knowledge are certainly inactions, since he is endowed with the realization of the actionless Self. Actions together with their accessories must be relinquished by one who has become thus, because they have no end to serve. This being so, api, even though; he remains abhi-pravrttah, engaged as before; karmani, in actions-getting out of those (actions) being impossible-, either with the intention of preventing people from going astray or with a view to avoiding the censure of the wise people; sah, he; eva, really; na karoti, does not do; kincit, anything, because he is endued with the realization of the actionless Self. [From the subjective standpoint of the enlightened there are no actions, but ordinary people mistakenly think them to be actions, which in reality are a mere semblance of it.] On the other hand, one who is the opposite of the above-mentioned one, (and) in whom, even before undertaking works, has dawned the realization of his identity with Brahman, the all-pervasive, inmost, actionless Self; who,being bereft of solicitation for desirable objects seen or unseen, has renounced actions along with their accessories, by virtue of seeing no purpose to be served by undertaking actions meant to secure some seen or unseen result, and makes effort only for the maintenance of the body, he, the monk steadfast in Knowledge, becomes free. Hence, in order to express this idea the Lord says: