The conches still echo faintly across the battlefield. The armies wait, yet the true war at this moment is within Arjuna’s heart. His despair has been pierced by Krishna’s words, yet confusion lingers like a mist. He has heard that wisdom is higher than action, that the soul is eternal, that detachment is peace. And still, his mind asks: if knowledge is supreme, why then act? If renunciation leads to freedom, why wage war?
Krishna knows this doubt. He sees Arjuna’s struggle, the tug-of-war between duty and escape. And so, He speaks with clarity, His voice thunder and nectar.
Arjuna, you ask why you must act if wisdom is supreme. You think action and knowledge are separate, but I tell you, they are one. None can remain without action, not even for a moment. For all creatures are compelled to act by the qualities of nature. To sit idle, pretending to renounce, is delusion.
Even the maintenance of the body requires action. To breathe, to eat, to live — all are acts. You cannot escape action, but you can transform it. Act not for reward, not for gain, not for selfish desire. Act as sacrifice, act as offering, act as dharma. This is Karma Yoga, the path of selfless action.
Arjuna listens, his brow furrowed. Krishna continues, weaving truth into his heart.
Long ago, in the beginning of creation, I declared that humanity must live through action and sacrifice. Through sacrifice, the world is sustained. The gods are nourished, and in turn they nourish you. Thus the cycle of harmony is preserved. But he who hoards, who acts only for himself, who eats without offering — he lives in sin, wasting the gifts of life.
But the yogi, the one who acts without selfishness, offering all deeds to the eternal, is untouched by karma. He acts, but he is free. His hands move, but his heart is steady. He is like the lotus that grows in water but is unstained by it.
Arjuna’s eyes rise slightly. These words strike his heart. Krishna’s voice grows firmer, carrying the strength of the eternal law.
Do your duty, Arjuna. For action is better than inaction. Without action, even the maintenance of your body is not possible. Perform your duty with discipline, for duty performed without attachment leads to freedom.
Remember this: It is better to perform your own dharma, however humble, than to perform another’s dharma, even if glorious. To die in one’s own duty is better than to live in another’s. To abandon your dharma is peril.
Arjuna feels the fire of these words. Yet still, he whispers, But Krishna, why do men act against their will, even when they know what is right?
Krishna’s gaze deepens. Desire and anger, born of passion, are the enemies. They drive a man to act against his own will. They are insatiable, like fire that cannot be quenched. Therefore, discipline yourself. Control the senses. Master desire. Crush anger. Rule yourself, and you will be free.
The armies wait. Time itself seems suspended as Krishna pours eternal wisdom into the heart of His disciple. His words are not only for Arjuna, but for all who struggle in life, torn between fear and duty, between selfish desire and higher truth.
Arjuna, remember — even I, the eternal, act. Though I have nothing to gain, no duty to fulfill, still I act, to uphold dharma and guide the world. If I did not act, the world would fall into ruin, men would abandon their duties, and chaos would reign.
Therefore act. Do not seek reward. Do not fear failure. Do not crave success. Act with discipline, act as offering. In such action lies freedom, in such selflessness lies peace.
Arjuna’s breathing steadies. He sees before him his teachers, his kin, his enemies, yet he also sees deeper — he sees the truth that action is unavoidable, that escape is delusion, that dharma must be done. Krishna’s words pierce the fog of sorrow.
The true yogi is not he who renounces action, but he who acts without selfishness. To renounce action is to flee. To act with detachment is to conquer. Be such a yogi, O Arjuna.
Krishna’s words fall upon the battlefield like a rain that nourishes the parched earth. The silence between the armies is no longer of dread, but of waiting for destiny. The seed of courage begins to stir within Arjuna’s soul.
Closing Reflection in Krishna’s Voice
O listener, hear this truth. Your life too is a battlefield. You may wish to escape your duties, to flee from struggle, to renounce the effort of living. But you cannot escape action. Every breath, every step, every choice is karma.
So act with clarity. Act with discipline. Do your dharma, not for reward, not for applause, not for fear, but because it is right. Offer your action as sacrifice, as service, as devotion. Be like the lotus — in the world, yet untouched by it.
This is Karma Yoga — the path of freedom through selfless action. Walk it, and you shall know peace.
Soft Call to Action
If Krishna’s words brought clarity to your path, support this Dharma work with a symbolic offering of eleven dollars. Or unlock the Dharma Vault, through the link. Walk this journey fully, with Krishna’s wisdom as your eternal guide.