Action done in a spirit of offering for a purpose larger than oneself. More than a ritual of pouring offerings into fire.
9 results
Read the glossary entry for यज्ञ →
Article
Work feels heavy when it is only for us and every effort is counted. The Gita says to do work as an offering, and explains how giving and receiving keep life going.
Level: Simple English 6 min Work as Sacrifice
Article
What is action, what is wrong action and what is inaction? Gita 4.16 to 4.24 explained in order: how a person can act all day and not be bound, through five marks and a vision of the act as an offering.
Level: In Depth English 9 min Karma and Akarma: Acting Without Being Bound
Article
Why does the Gita say all work except sacrifice binds? Gita 3.9 to 3.16 verse by verse: the meaning of sacrifice, the wheel of giving and receiving, the thief, and a life lived in vain.
Level: In Depth English 14 min Work as Sacrifice
Article
A close reading of Gita 3.9 to 3.16: what sacrifice means, why the one who takes without giving is called a thief, where the readings differ, four objections answered, and the questions the verses raise.
Level: Deeper English 19 min Work as Sacrifice
Article
Chapter 3 rejects non-action as an exit and chapter 4 praises it as the mark of the wise. A close reading of Gita 4.16 to 4.24: two senses of akarma, five marks, and the act seen as an offering.
Level: Deeper English 11 min Karma and Akarma: Acting Without Being Bound
Quick summary
Right action, wrong action and non-action are told apart in Gita 4.16 to 4.24. It shows how one can work all day and still not be bound.
English 9 min Karma and Akarma: Acting Without Being Bound
Quick summary
Why does work feel like a burden, and what does it mean in Gita 3.9-16 to make work a sacrifice? See how work done for a good larger than oneself frees instead of binds.
English 12 min Work as Sacrifice
Hub
What is action, what is wrong action and what is inaction, and how can a person act all day and not be bound? Gita 4.16 to 4.24: five marks of the free actor and the act seen as an offering.
Hub
Why does work feel like a load, and what does the Gita mean by work as sacrifice? Start here: work done as an offering frees, and life runs on giving and receiving.