''Nishkama Karma'' (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Brahmic family, Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that ...

: ''Niṣkāmakarma''), self-less or desireless action, is an action performed without any expectation of fruits or results, and the central tenet of

Karma Yoga Karma yoga (), also called Karma marga, is one of the three classical spiritual paths mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita, one based on the "yoga of action", the others being Jnana yoga (path of knowledge) and Bhakti yoga (path of loving devotion ...

path to liberation. Its modern advocates press upon achieving success following the principles of

Yoga Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...

, and stepping beyond personal goals and agendas while pursuing any action over greater good, which has become well known since it is the central message of the ''

Bhagavad Gita The Bhagavad Gita (; ), often referred to as the Gita (), is a Hindu texts, Hindu scripture, dated to the second or first century BCE, which forms part of the Hindu epic, epic poem Mahabharata. The Gita is a synthesis of various strands of Ind ...

''. In

Indian philosophy Indian philosophy consists of philosophical traditions of the Indian subcontinent. The philosophies are often called darśana meaning, "to see" or "looking at." Ānvīkṣikī means “critical inquiry” or “investigation." Unlike darśan ...

, action or

Karma Karma (, from , ; ) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called ...

is divided into three categories based on their intrinsic qualities or gunas. Nishkama Karma belongs to the first category, the ''

Sattva ''Sattva'' (Sanskrit: सत्त्व, meaning ''goodness'') is one of the three '' guṇas'' or "modes of existence" (tendencies, qualities, attributes), a philosophical and psychological concept understood by the Samkhya school of Hindu philo ...

'' (pure) or actions which add to calmness; the Sakama Karma (Self-centred action) comes in the second '' rājasika'' (aggression) and Vikarma (worst-action) comes under the third, '' tāmasika'' which correlates to darkness or inertia.

Nishkama Karma in the workplace

The opposite of ''Sakama Karma'' (action with desire), Nishkama Karma has been variously explained as 'Duty for duty's sake' and as 'Detached Involvement', which is neither negative attitude nor indifference; and has today found many advocates in the modern business area where the emphasis has shifted to ethical business practices adhering to intrinsic human values and reducing stress at the workplace. Another aspect that differentiates it from Sakama or selfish action, is that while the former is guided by inspiration, the latter is all about motivation, and that makes the central difference in its results, for example, Sakama Karma might lead to excessive work pressure and workaholism as it aims at success, and hence creates more chances of physical and psychological burnouts. Moreover, Nishkama Karma means a more balanced approach to work, and as work has been turned into a pursuit of personal excellence, which results in greater personal satisfaction, which one would have otherwise sought in job satisfaction coming from external rewards. One important fallout of the entire shift is that where one is essentially an ethical practice inside-out leading to the adage, ‘Work is worship’ show itself literally at the workplace, leading to greater work commitment, the other since it is so much result oriented can lead to unethical business and

professional ethics Professional ethics encompass the personal and corporate standards of behavior expected of professionals. The word professionalism originally applied to vows of a religious order. By no later than the year 1675, the term had seen secular appli ...

, as seen so often at modern workplace. The central tenet of practicing Nishkama Karma is

mindfulness Mindfulness is the cognitive skill, usually developed through exercises, of sustaining metacognitive awareness towards the contents of one's own mind and bodily sensations in the present moment. The term ''mindfulness'' derives from the Pali ...

in the present moment. Over time, this practice leads to not only

equanimity Equanimity is a state of psychological stability and composure which is undisturbed by the experience of or exposure to emotions, pain, or other phenomena that may otherwise cause a loss of mental balance. The virtue and value of equanimity is ...

of mind as it allows the practitioner to stay detached from results, and hence from ups and downs of business that are inevitable in any business arena, while maintaining constant work commitment since work has now been turned into a personal act of worship. Further in the long run it leads to cleansing of the heart but also spiritual growth and holistic development.

Nishkama Karma in the Bhagavad Gita

Nishkama Karma has an important role in the ''

'', the central text of

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

, where

Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...

advocates 'Nishkama Karma Yoga' (the Yoga of Selfless Action) as the ideal path to realize the Truth. Allocated work done without expectations, motives, or thinking about its outcomes tends to purify one's mind and gradually makes an individual fit to see the value of reason and the benefits of renouncing the work itself. These concepts are described in the following verses:

Nishkama Karma in the Kural

The concept of Nishkama Karma is spread across various chapters of the ''

Tirukkural The ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'' (), or shortly the ''Kural'' (), is a classic Tamil language text on commoner's morality consisting of 1,330 short couplets, or Kural (poetic form), kurals, of seven words each. The text is divided into three books wit ...

'', with the essence being elaborated in the last five chapters of

Book I ''Book I'' is an album by Pastor Troy and The Congregation, released in 2000. Critical reception AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more th ...

in particular. Accordingly,

Valluvar Thiruvalluvar commonly known as Valluvar, was a Tamil poet and philosopher. He is best known as the author of the ''Tirukkuṟaḷ'', a collection of couplets on ethics, political and economic matters, and love. The text is considered an exc ...

insists that all worldly attachments be renounced gradually and in right time. This can primarily be noted in couplets 341 and 342 of Chapter 35.

Nishkama Karma in the workplace

Nishkama Karma in the Bhagavad Gita

Nishkama Karma in the Kural

See also