WORK AND CO-OPERATION
Swami Chidananda
You and I have been working, we must work. Till our last breath we shall be doing some work or the other. If not in an official sense or if not in a formal sense, we shall be working, for even breathing is considered as an activity. Without some activity, without a bit of some work, we cannot imagine our day going. So work is an inseparable part of our living. We come to the second part of the title, Co-operation. The question of Co-operation comes up when more than one person is involved in the work and there too till our last breath we are with others. No one is alone at all; No one is in an island. Thus relatedness to people and work are part of our life. So we take these two – Work and Co-operation and as an advance summary of what I shall in detail present. I may say that riding ourselves of motives and divisive identification, alone brings true work. It makes possible true Work and true Co-operation. Otherwise all work apparently done in not much sense of Co-operation brings us back to square one. At the end of it all we find our hands have mere ashes.
We shall see that working and working together becomes truly meaningful when we put Love and Goodness as the very starting point, when we have this loving heart and unconditional goodness as the very foundation. To put peace, love, freedom, goodness etc. at the end of the road and say that ‘we shall employ wrong means and arrive at right end’, is foolishness. A means is never separate from end. Apparently it is a harsh truth; however when one embraces the truth, truth is never harsh. When one is caught in the false and has resistance to any movement out of that false, truth becomes very harsh. Good advice also becomes very unpalatable. That’s because we are attached to a groove of thinking, we are so prompted, so driven by a certain pattern of thinking and acting. There is certain impatience about us and we say, ‘allow me to complete this, allow me to finish this whole thing and then talk to me about the right way’. This is karma aasakti an attachment to karma.
Bhagavad Gita describes this in the context of the quality called rajas. Everything in the world is driven by these three qualities – sattva, rajas and tamas.
- Sattva—insight and equanimity
- Rajas—restlessness and activity
- Tamas—insensitivity and inaction.
In the context of rajoguna (restlessness and activity), the Bhagavad Gita has to say aarambhah karmanaam àwithout much understanding we get going with activity. It’s like you are on the road, sitting next to somebody in his car and you ask him, ‘where are we going?’ and he says, ‘don’t ask, you will find out after some distance, I too don’t know, but we got to keep on going’. Somebody is climbing a ladder and you ask ‘where are you climbing?’ he says ‘don’t disturb me, we’ll figure it out when we reach there’. If you do it with true sportiveness, that’s wonderful. But if there is an attachment to a certain idea that I shall arrive at such and such place and actually you have no understanding of what you are doing, in all likelihood you are in for great disappointment.
So once more we are looking at our outlook to work and our understanding of co-operation keeping in mind possible obstructions right within us, which abort the true activity and bring about disorder. None of what we are talking here is anything new. In the language of Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna had again and again pointed out that a desire prompted activity, while it has certain glitters and charm, comes across as dynamism but many a times is actually the womb of pain, womb of sorrow. So desire (selfish) prompted activity apparently wonderful, but is the cause of pain. Love prompted activity alone is truly harmonizing. In the good old language, Love prompted activity is called nishkaama karma. Literally translated as activity devoid of selfish desire, upon being put in so called positive language is activity prompted by love, activity prompted by true goodness.
Desire prompted activity is lower but you and I from our birth are caught in desire. I would throw light on the universal human conditioning. Universal when I say means in Asia or Europe, in America or Africa, among the very rich who are born with the silver spoon and among the very poor this conditioning is same. The sense of incompleteness and having to prove oneself, having to achieve something and in the light of that achievement put up a façade, put up an image and that becomes a wild goose chase.
No wonder work takes place in this world of ours, in the world we have created through coercion, compulsion or a gentle word called persuasion. By coercing, compelling and persuading work is got done. Sometimes the compulsion comes from outside, other time the compulsion is from within and we need to wonder, can we work in the absence of compulsion? That could be work out of love. Love is not a compulsion, love is our nature. We are at peace with love; we are at home with love. Compulsion on the other hand makes us do a lot but we are never at home. So we would be waiting, ‘once I make enough money and once I reach a certain position, I am done, I just want to give up all these’.
Isn’t it a sad truth that, what we see around in the world – Nobel Prize winners, Olympic gold medalist, Presidents, Prime ministers, eminent people from Hollywood or Bollywood and you name it, are all on one hand stealing so much of attention. They are in lime light but on the other, in their privacy looking for peace. Very often we hear about a Hollywood star looking for peace among the Himalayan mountains. So what do people from at a distance look at them? We look at them with envy – ‘if I could be him/her’. Only those who wear the shoes know where the pinch is. I think Shakespeare had said, “Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.” But you and I tend to be foolish. We think ‘all that is fine but for a day I would like to wear the crown’. We are after this peculiar self contradicting pleasure, which once more shows that alas! Humanity lives in great confusion. This is the human conditioning to which all of us are subject.
It is up to everyone, it is up to the person to really live differently. A certain willingness to change has to arise in a natural way and willingness to change arises, scientifically speaking only when there is a very intense recognition that, ‘this way is not for me to live’. When I am fooling, more than fooling X or Y, more than fooling my religious organization, the way I am living is such, I am fooling myself. This self deception should become evident to us. And in that becoming of very evident of the self deception one says, ‘no matter what, I am going to live in the right way, without any presumption, without any motive which holds an achievement at the end of the road as a glittering promise but actually acts like a thorn in our flesh.’ From early childhood you and I are carrying certain patterns of thinking which like thorn in our flesh paining us and continues to pain us, is no other than the self centered motive.
If it is not hope of reward or fear of punishment, what would prompt working? Generally we feel we are at a loss unless there is some reward. Why would you work? Love is fine, but if there is no reward I would rather lay back. Is it really so? How about our seeing a problem intensely? We see there is starvation and we are truly perturbed. Unfortunately very few are truly perturbed about any genuine problem of humanity. Because most of our energy is dissipated in our concerns about psychological and self created problems. We are in such hurry, we are so impatient and we reason it out ‘oh, I feel very concerned about it but you know may be I shall write a cheque and send’. Some such thing we do. Many a time we don’t do it also a thought passes by and we say, ‘that’s good I am a virtuous person and I thought of helping them’. May be like a counterpart to work and the thought of work—here could say some people feel clear conscience by rendering help, many other feel clear conscience by thinking of helping. Just thought of helping, gives them great satisfaction. Its right in us here and this is not intended to blame or condemn oneself, it is to become aware. We are in great hurry, we are not sure and life goes on. And what are we achieving? What are we fulfilling? Some goals that has been set against the backdrop of very poor understanding of life. Some goals that have been put before us through conditioning—he did it, I would like to do it; he got it, I would like to get it. I guess this is how we have to move towards—I imitate you, you imitate someone else, a whole lot of blind following takes place. No wonder, Mundakopanishad calls this general human behaviour as blind leading blind.
As we observe life we find this is such a true commentary on our own living. So if there is a problem, we directly see and with no dissipation of energy in all kinds of associated questions, we are able to protect and preserve that basic concern, it can prompt us to work. Let us say there is starvation and you and I are concerned. We now think of it— if you and I upon being concerned which follows from seeing the problem, start thinking—how shall we do this? And suppose God forbid we start arguing or disagreeing each other about the way of doing it, on some symbols—whether we go and serve food there with this banner or that banner flying high and then I say, ‘if you are going to put your banner up than I am not coming and you say, so do I, I will not come if you are going to raise your banner.’ we fight between each other and we don’t go there at all.
Your way, my way, secularly or religiously too humanity has shed a lot of blood on all kinds of insistence on the way—on the banner and that is exactly kaama the personal desire. I shall help you, if you put my name somewhere—so terrible!
So can we go about living life without mixing up issues? In Vedanta or spirituality, if it is truth that we see as the source of true peace, nowhere else but in Truth there is peace. Can we seek that Truth, doing away with all the externalities? But this clever mind of human beings which you and I are, always like a clever attorney makes a case for all externalities, to arrive at that truth certain steps are necessary—some symbol, some clothes, some name, some title, some superiority, some authority, bow down here and enjoy other bowing down at another place. A structure is made and the clever thought, the intellect, makes a case for whole lot of structures and in this complicated structure many a times unknowingly lot of new divisions come about.
Spirituality structured and certain powers & rights, liberties & privileges as well as certain commitments & pressures all packaged into various levels from the Pope down to the new initiates, from mathaadhipati to new brahmachaari who has joined the ashram—all is structured and the clever intellect makes a very detailed case for all this. And then you have the statements like—these are made by Swami Vivekananda—when he was asked about hypocrisy in religions. He said, there is hypocrisy in religion, but I would say even if one person in thousand becomes a genuine seeker, the world will be up lifted. His faith, his love, his belief is admirable but practically the ground reality is, we find, countless religions and sub divisions of religions are all come about and we don’t know whether the world is saved or the world is moving towards the greater order because of all these structures.
In work what corrupts and what dilutes our passion for work itself, as an example we took starvation and you and I would like to do something—what comes in the way of our just doing it? We find thoughts about, who would recognize? Who would care? Nobody cares for it. People criticize, people make fun of it and this is not the time to do these things and so on. So desiring recognition, desiring some acknowledgment, desiring an approval from A or B, fearing disapproval, fearing criticism with all this there is a dilution of the basic force of Love. The basic force of Love gets weakened; the light of Love as though gets dim. Now you can see, how thought, of which humanity is proud is at once its enemy also. Many a times in this world, it is some mad-cap who goes and does the service not the educated one, because educated ones have lot of thinking.
What is thought? In the movie ‘Titanic’ there is a scenario—towards the end of the movie. The ship is broken to pieces and through some life-boats, everybody is helped to reach the shore but then there is a noble(rich) man there, he protests even at that moment, even when it is the question of life or death. When the captain says, ‘please get in this life-boat which is about to leave.’ He makes a face and says, ‘you mean I have to get in the same boat where those servants are?’ See what thought does. Even when his life is in question and he keeps in mind class distinction or some caste distinction. ‘Isn’t there another boat for Noble class?’ The man was used to all through years protesting and the air about him doesn’t leave even on such occasion.
Thought comes in the way of our working in a simple way, relating in a simple way. So can we come upon a silent mind? Not silent out of tiredness. That is a sleepy silence. Isn’t there a silence that you and I can arrive at when we see the horror of our own selfishness and say, ‘I don’t care for this fame anymore, because this doesn’t make sense’. Not because book says don’t seek fame, when you conform to a book. ‘A mere scholarship doesn’t help’ says, the old classic bhajagovindam –love God, love of God alone saves you and scholarship. And our mind immediately says, ‘yes, I should not go for scholarship’ then perhaps you have not seen how seeking to be a scholar actually is shallow and hollow, but the book is saying. We are talking of shedding, a letting go of the desire to be a scholar. A letting go of that desire upon seeing that it just is not necessary. It could happen through total surrender to God. ‘All knowledge that I need to get will come to me, I need not stuff myself with books’ and then say, when will I read this?’
If there is a profound insight, where one truly knows that God will give to me all knowledge, I don’t have to read a single book, I have love for God and then pillar and posts, trees and stones will speak to me, I will learn from everything. Then one sheds…what we are talking is very much like paraabhakti effectiveness and etc in the name of all these the rotten things deep in me is staying intact and as long as that doesn’t go, all this dynamism is of no use. I become another destructive force. Of course with a façade of do-gooder. I am a do-gooder outwardly but deep inside I am seeking a gratification. Earlier I sought material image, now I could be seeking a moral image.
The true selflessness is when one doesn’t seek to become selfless. When you seek to become selfless, the thought comes in the way. Instead, see the horror of selfishness and don’t think anymore—should I be selfish? Or should I be selfless? To sip a little bit of water, you need not remember your name, your credentials. Do I have to say, ‘Who am I?’ Drinking a sip of water is very simple. There you need tongue and mouth and perception of water – cold or hot, sweet or salty and as it goes down your system is perception and there is no conception. You don’t conceive especially about yourself, who you are?
But when it comes to work and co-operation and a whole lot of thoughts come up and they come in the way of actual action. Is it possible for us to be in direct contact with the problem with least dissipation of thoughts and comparison, motive etc?
We know phalaasakti attachment to reward, result. Very often we have a very limited view of that. We say, ‘we should be working without attachment to the result.’ That’s what Bhagavad Gita seems to tell us. And we will say, “As Sri Krishna has said so I shall push myself to work.” Very dim and it is more in language of ‘should’ and ‘should not’. Actually I want to win but this Gita says don’t worry about winning, what a terrible thing! In west they say winning is not everything, it is the only thing. And my heart likes that but I joined this Gita classes and I am in soup now like that there is so much of confusion.
These thoughts which I am sharing with you is not about future at all, it is about carrying the thought ‘now’ and it is about noticing the thought ‘now’. Whether there really is future? God knows, we never know how long our life is, young and old die. Or why to talk of death, many a times so many situations entirely change. So we know in small and big ways, a lot of things, the actual events don’t take place at all. Life takes another turn. Someone gave the definition “Life is what happens when you are busy with other plans.”
So advanced understanding of letting go of our concern for success or failure is actually this awareness of, how selfish concern dilutes, weakens and comes in the way of our love and goodness. ‘I am not able to do my days work with love and goodness, because I am concerned about my image, will be better at the end of this work as my image in other’s eyes and my eyes etc. This concern for my image is taking away, what is most precious to me, LOVE. I wish to live in love, not any compartmentalized love. True love is that defies any compartmentalization. True love is a sense of well being, where there is no fear, no insecurity, where you accept yourself as you are and you accept the other human being as he or she is, with no interruption or intervention of calculativeness that is love.
What is love? àWhen we are actually giving to each other much happiness. When we don’t see each other as we are but we see each other through memories and some account that is kept in these memories and images coming, these images assuming larger and larger size, they grow and they edge out, push out the way for objective thinking.
Can we be attentive to a problem, physical-emotional, to others or to us? In fact where there is denial of love whether it is others or oneself, let us be concerned about it. Where there is hunger, whether it is others or ourselves, let us be concerned about it, because it is a problem. Let us stay alert against intervention of all kinds of man created thought processes, phalaasakti being one of them, seeking credit, seeking one-upmanship etc. are problems; awareness of these problems, the ways, the means, the system etc. seeing all these dilutes come in the way. A direct concern of the problem on the part of all of us, a tremendous direct concern for the problem proper, brings forth work and brings forth co-operation. Whereas fear of punishment and hope for personal reward causes diversion, they cause dilution and blurring of our vision. They cause so much of unhappiness.
In conclusion
- Ordinarily work is prompted by desire or fear and seeking of power, position and importance, fearing that such power, position may not come to us.
- Ordinarily team building is also facilitated by reward and punishment. Both team work and individual work is done with fear or desire. One sees how this is an endless affair. The root cause, the basic problem is not at all solved by this. One only ends up in an external improvement, which is not of much value.
- For a mutation, for a radical change, one eliminates this thought created desire and fear and just does what is to be done. The silent mind acts upon the issue on hand with just the necessary memory, data, or information or skill and no other thing and upon finishing; the silent mind is back to literal silence.
- Thus rather than a calculative mind, the complaining, comparing, regretting and priding mind, there is a mind which comes in contact with a problem, facilitates activity and goes back to silence.
Harih Om !