What is Karma Yoga? Karma Yoga means the path of action without attachment. In other words, without getting entrapped in happiness-sorrow, continuing to perform karma with a sense of duty is Karma Yoga. Who is a Karma Yogi? A karma yogi is one who performs his right action as his ritual in the practical world. Karma yoga (also means Karma marga) is the best yoga described by the Lord Krishna. Karma is natural. Without karma, no one can live in this world. Without doing karma, no one can survive. Karma is the fundamental of our life. As long as we do our karmas, we can live in this world. Arjuna is a warrior whose behavior is ruled by impulses and basic instincts. He lacks the soul consciousness. He is religious, but not spiritualist. He is confused by contradictions. Lord Krishna enlightens him the way out of the confusions through Karma Yoga. He advises Arjuna to perform his duty detached from the thoughts of the consequences. Similarly, many of us confused in our lives before performing our duties while pondering about the outcomes. We forget our right karmas and wander in the middle of the crossroad of our lives. Consequently, we witness our failures and downfalls. And eventually, we grumble and blame our fates. Therefore, perform your karma without thinking about any result. Detach yourself from the consequences. Your foremost duty is to perform your karma (Dharma). But not to flee from your karma. Let your karma decides the outcome. Don’t try to meddle yourself into it. Always remember that only your karma leads you to the path of joy, happiness, success and peace and vice versa. Perform your Karma Yoga and become a Karma Yogi!

Bhagavad Gita is the condensed form of all the 108 Upanishads put together. Bhagavad means the Brahman and Gita means song. If one needs a literal translation of Bhagavad Gita, then it is ?the song of the Brahman'. Bhagavad Gita consists of 700 verses, mostly addressed by the Brahman, wherein He imparts the supreme knowledge to one of His creations. Brahman in this context is Lord Krishna, the incarnation of Vishnu or Narayana and the disciple is Arjuna, one amongst the five Pandavas. Since they were fathered by the king Pandu, they are called Pandavas. Pandavas are five brothers, each of them representing the five basic elements of the universe. It must be remembered that these five elements rule the five chakras, muladhara to vishudi. The verses of the Gita are in the form of questions and answers. Arjuna, the warrior clears his doubts from Krishna in the midst of a battle field. Krishna represents the Brahman, Arjuna represents soul and battle field represents the sensory organs of the gross body. The teachings of Krishna in Bhagavad Gita are practical and easy to follow. The concept of life is explained in these 700 comprehensive verses in 18 chapters. If one decides to follow the teachings of Krishna, he is not reborn. Even during this birth, if the sermons of Krishna are followed, one will not feel the miseries and sorrows. The cause and source of sufferings and the ways and means of getting rid of them are expounded. After all, it is the teaching of the Brahman Himself.

Karma Yoga, the Yoga of Action, comprises the first of three major sections of the Bhagavad Gita. It is the most practical teaching of the Gita that emphasizes perfection in action as a means to live a fulfilled life, and also, to connect with the higher. The Bhagavad Gita contains the essence and analysis of the Vedas and the Upanishads - ancient Indian spiritual texts that are at the heart of Indian spiritual tradition. It presents us with a solution for completely eradicating sorrow from our lives. About The Author GK Marballi works in the technology industry and is presently based in New York City. He received his bachelors degree in commerce from the University of Mumbai, and his MBA from Harvard Business School.

Yoga is many things to many people. However, the basics of yoga are worth understanding given its popularity and the benefits of the practice. This includes understanding yoga's roots, its origins, its development within and outside India as well as the research involving yoga as an integrative therapeutic modality. The author introduces the topic of yoga to healthcare officials, practitioners, skeptics, and a range of curious people in between. For yoga practitioners and those interested in the practice, The Politics and Promise of Yoga: Contemporary Relevance of an Ancient Practice outlines a condensed view of traditional yoga practices and provides a glimpse into the origin of yoga within Indian history and philosophy. The author hopes that policymakers will be interested in this evidence-based scientific practice so that it can be systematically incorporated into mainstream biomedical systems around the globe. This book also serves to confirm existing knowledge and historical nuances about yoga and also addresses contemporary debates and politics which revolve around the practice.

The articles contained herein were originally contributed to the 1981 Annual Number of the Vedanta Kesari. All these articles included in this book "Yoga: Its Various Aspects" are based on not only theoretical knowledge but also practical experience of the writers in this sublime field. This symposium also highlights some of the more well-tested paths of Yoga and provides detailed instructions regarding what to do and what not to do. Hence these essays will help the earnest readers to attain efficiency and harmony in outer life and profound peace within.

"The book defends the thesis that the concept of self-cultivation philosophy is an informative interpretive framework for comprehending and reflecting on several philosophical outlooks in India, the Greco-Roman world and China. On the basis of an understanding of human nature and the place of human beings in the world, self-cultivation philosophies maintain that our lives can and should be substantially transformed from what is judged to be a problematic, untutored condition of human beings, our existential starting-point, into what is put forward as an ideal state of being. We are to do this by undertaking a set of therapeutic or spiritual exercises guided by some philosophical analysis. The self-cultivation philosophies in India are expressed in: the Bhagavad Gītā; the Sāṃkhya and Yoga philosophies of Īśvarakṛṣṇa and Patañjali; and teaching of the Buddha and his followers Buddhaghosa and Śāntideva. The philosophies originating in Greece, with subsequent development in the Roman period, are the most prominent Hellenistic approaches: the Epicureanism of Epicurus, Lucretius and Philodemus; the Stoicism of Chrysippus, Epictetus and Seneca; and Pyrrho and the Pyrrhonism of Sextus Empiricus. The self-cultivation philosophies from China are the early Confucian outlooks of Confucius, Mencius and Xunzi; the classical Daoist perspectives of the Daodejing and the Zhuangzi; and the Chan tradition of Bodhidharma, Huineng and Linji"--

Yoga has arisen as a light of balance and self-discovery in a world characterized by hectic routines, increased stress, and a search of holistic well-being. The term ‘yoga’ denotes more than just a physical workout regimen; it represents a profound journey of connecting the body, mind, and spirit in order to reach harmonious harmony. Yoga, which is rooted in the rich tapestry of Indian philosophy and spirituality, has an impact on many aspects of human existence, including physical education, spiritual growth, and even the earliest foundations of thought.

A Princeton Classics edition of an essential work of twentieth-century scholarship on India Since its first publication, Philosophies of India has been considered a monumental exploration of the foundations of Indian philosophy. Based on the copious notes of Indologist, linguist, and art historian Heinrich Zimmer, and edited by Joseph Campbell, this book is organized into three sections. “The Highest Good” looks at Eastern and Western thought and their convergence; “The Philosophies of Time” discusses the philosophies of success, pleasure, and duty; and “The Philosophies of Eternity” presents the fundamental concepts of Buddhism, Brahmanism, Jainism, Sankhya and yoga, and Tantra. This work examines such areas as the Buddhist Tantras, Buddhist Genesis, the Tantric presentation of divinity, the preparation of disciples and the meaning of initiation, and the symbolism of the mandala-palace Tantric ritual and twilight language. It also delves into the Tantric teachings of the inner Zodiac and the fivefold ritual symbolism of passion. Appendices, a bibliography, and general and Sanskrit indexes are included.

This book presents an analysis of the foundations organised by the Birla family in India. Several generations were involved in the renovation and establishment of sanctuaries, temples and other sacral buildings. As a result, between 1933 and 1998, nineteen Birla Mandirs were established, mainly in northern and central India. All the temples have the capacity to surprise with their various decorative motifs, not seen in other places, which – apart from their aesthetic function – above all bear important symbolic content. Therefore, is it possible to treat the Birla Mandirs as a specific medium – the carrier of a particular message that is not only religious, but with a significance that permeates other layers of social and political discourse. This message, as the authors of the book claim, have a bearing on the socio-political thought of India – supported by the creation and propagation of ideas related to identity and a national art. It also conveys the idea of hierarchical Hindu inclusivism which, although considering all religions as equal, treats Hinduism in a unique way – seeing within it the most perfect form of religion, giving man the opportunity to learn the highest truth. The book also examines whether the temples founded by the Birla family and the religious activities undertaken therein apply the concept of “inventing” tradition, and whether traditions created (or “modernised”) in contemporary times are a way of enhancing the appeal of the message conveyed from temple to society. “The Vastness of Culture” is a series of publications presenting cultural studies and emphasizing the role of comparative research and analyses that reveal similarities, differences and intercultural influences. In our publications, cultures and civilizations are in a state of constant flux, engaging in dialogue, creating new understandings, competing for meaning under the influence of global content, without any clear boundaries, but with a vastness that forces questions to be raised.

For serious yoga practitioners curious to know the ancient origins of the art, Stephen Phillips, a professional philosopher and sanskritist with a long-standing personal practice, lays out the philosophies of action, knowledge, and devotion as well as the processes of meditation, reasoning, and self-analysis that formed the basis of yoga in ancient and classical India and continue to shape it today. In discussing yoga's fundamental commitments, Phillips explores traditional teachings of hatha yoga, karma yoga, bhakti yoga, and tantra, and shows how such core concepts as self-monitoring consciousness, karma, nonharmfulness (ahimsa), reincarnation, and the powers of consciousness relate to modern practice. He outlines values implicit in bhakti yoga and the tantric yoga of beauty and art and explains the occult psychologies of koshas, skandhas, and chakras. His book incorporates original translations from the early Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Yoga Sutra (the entire text), the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, and seminal tantric writings of the tenth-century Kashmiri Shaivite, Abhinava Gupta. A glossary defining more than three hundred technical terms and an extensive bibliography offer further help to nonscholars. A remarkable exploration of yoga's conceptual legacy, Yoga, Karma, and Rebirth crystallizes ideas about self and reality that unite the many incarnations of yoga.