‘Ethics in Vedanta’ is a series of blogs we will be publishing from the book, ‘The Choice is Yours‘ by Swami Chinmayananda. Our choices should be based on some ethics and values. Here we understand what are the ethics mentioned in Vedanta. After reading and understanding each value we will be better equipped to make the ‘Right Choice.’

The world is bound by actions other than those performed for the sake of sacrifice.
Do thou, therefore, O son of Kunti, perform action for the sake of it alone, free from all attachments.
 – (Bhagavad Gita III:9)

Everywhere around us, from the twinkling stars to the flowing rivers, nature serves the world in yajna spirit of sacrifice. The sun shines, but demands no appreciation from anyone. Rains fall, rivers flow, plants flower, trees bear fruits – all serve the world inorder to make it what it is, and yet none of them seems to demand even a passing recognition from the people and creatures benefited by them. They all perform their duties, as though showing us how to attain fulfilment in the very performance.

The whole world of cosmic powers and natural phenomena functions instinctively in the service of others. Even before life appeared on the face of the Earth, the elemental forces had prepared the field through their constant activities. As life developed and evolved at all levels, one can easily recognize different degrees of yajna activities, which maintain the harmonious existence of living beings. 

This “law of seva” is instinctively followed by every sentiment and sentimental member of the cosmos. Man alone is given the freedom to act as he likes, and to the extent he disobeys this universal law of sacrifice, to that extent he suffers, because he, with his arrogant and egoistic actions, brings a discord to harmony around him. But when individuals in a community cooperatively strive, without ego or egocentric desires, the cosmic forces that constitute the environment will cherish them in return. In short, when man works with the yajna spirit, the outer circumstances miraculously change their pattern to become conducive to the common will of the community that strives for the good of all.

This “law of seva” was set in motion by nature at the beginning of creation; in short, it is a natural law. One who understands nature’s laws and lives in harmony with them will be benefited by nature. The more we seek and probe into the secrets of nature, the more nature reveals her laws, and by obeying them, we increase our harmonious existence with the phenomenal world.

The concept of yajna stems from the recognition of one supreme divinity that is at once the core of all and yet transcends the universe of names and forms. All are but the one infinite Self – Brahman. This perception of the play of one Self, both as matter and spirit – both as ourselves and the world around us – is the true vision of the Lord of the Universe. By dedicating ourselves to the service of the nation, the community, the home, and the individuals around us, we are dedicating ourselves to the one infinite Self, who expresses through all. Thus by seeing Brahman everywhere and His play in all activities, the devoted servant is never bound by the results of his actions, but he attains the intimate experience of the Self divine.

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