Does the Gita’s instruction that we work without expecting results mean that we work without salaries?
Krishna says do your duty without expecting results does he mean that we should do our job without expecting salaries is it impractical or is my understanding of results as salary incorrect not only is the idea that results is equivalent to salary inadequate inappropriate here but also the idea that we shouldn't expect results is not exactly what Krishna is telling the exact Sanskrit over there is Adhikaraste Karmanyeva Adhikaraste Ma Phaleshu Kadachana so Karmanyeva Adhikaraste on the karma certainly Adhikar you have right but Ma not Phaleshu the fruit Kadachana anytime so what this verse is saying that we do not have a right to the fruits now what exactly does this mean when you say we don't have right to the fruits this Bhagavad Gita is spoken in the battlefield and Arjuna is going to fight soon after the Gita gets over and it is actually intended so that Arjuna will fight and if Arjuna is not aiming to win the war then what will be the motivation to fight certainly we can say that it is duty that is true but even while we are doing duty it is natural to some extent to expect some results when parents do the duty of taking care of the children they expect the children to become good human beings and attain success in life similarly when a war is fought it is natural to expect results so the key thing which the verse tells is that we should not think of ourselves as the doer in terms of being the producer of the results the remaining two parts of the verse say do not think that you are the producer of the result so what this means is that we are not the only producer of the results because there are other places where the Bhagavad Gita tells Arjuna that you should become the doer 11.33 and Arjuna also confirms this when he says in 18.73 that so therefore the idea of the Bhagavad Gita is definitely not that we should be utterly unconcerned about the results the idea is that we should not think that we are the sole producer of the results there are higher factors involved by which we get the results and if we become too obsessed with the results then not only will that detract from our capacity to do the work effectively just like if a person running a marathon just keeps looking at the finishing line doesn't think about how he is running or whether he is running at all or not similarly obsession with the result can distract us from effectively working and more importantly it can very easily keep us only in material consciousness even if in some cases by visualizing the result by being attracted to the result some people may say that we will be able to work better even if that happens still that will keep us in material consciousness and the whole purpose of the Bhagavad Gita is to rise above material consciousness to spiritual consciousness and the reason why duty is performed is because through detached performance of duty if we are doing it at the level of Karma Yoga then Gyan arises and if we are doing it at the level of Bhakti Yoga then Bhakti arises that means if one has Atma Gyan and with Atma Gyan one performs the duty for the sake of purification then through the purification one acquires knowledge, one gets realization that I am not the body and the soul that comes when one is detached that's how at the level of Karma Yoga the detached dutiful work leads to knowledge and if we are doing it with the understanding that Krishna is God and we are His servants and we try to render that duty as a devotional service to Krishna with whatever devotion we have then our devotion to Him will increase and devotion itself brings jine atyash vairagyam yanam jayadahaitukam in 1.2.7 in the Bhagavatam it is described that Bhakti brings about knowledge and renunciation also so essentially the message of the Bhagavad Gita is that we elevate our consciousness and for the elevation of consciousness we perform the duty so at a material level we are concerned that we do our best so that we can get the best result so as devotees when we are doing our jobs now we want to do the jobs well because we are representing Krishna at some level or the other because people know us as devotees and devotees should be seen as responsible individuals competent responsible individuals that's what will attract people to Krishna consciousness and then whatever work we are doing we do it well because we are offering the fruits of the work to Krishna in whatever way and whatever capacity according to our circumstances it may be but the primary idea is that the results can be not just salary the results can be various things whatever form the result may take we don't think that we are the sole producer of the results because we understand that this body is a machine which is not in our control alone in fact it is not at all in our control but to some extent Krishna gives us control through the agency of the demigods according to our karma but at any moment that control can go away and just as the body is not in our control the external environment is not in our control and though we may try to do some work still the result may not come out I may want to speak right now but if my throat gets sore I'll not be able to speak that's my body not being under my control I may want to speak right now but if my computer or the recording device that I use for speaking this answer stops working then again I will not be able to do the work of answering the question so the work that we do there are many factors beyond our efforts that contribute to bringing about that result and an awareness of that and an awareness that we are different from the body and the world that we are operating in that at the level of karma yoga will bring atma gyan and awareness that Krishna is in control of everything will bring about bhakti so that's why the whole mood of the Bhagavad Gita is that we raise our consciousness and the obsession with the results at a material level actually keeps our consciousness riveted and bound to the material level and focusing on doing the duty well without being attached to the results without letting our consciousness be obsessed and locked in the result but focusing on our spiritual identity and our devotional service to Krishna then we can do that same activity in a way that will elevate our consciousness and that is the essential message of the Bhagavad Gita through this verse specifically and overall.