Bhagavad Gita 18.8

duḥkham ity eva yat karma

kāya-kleśa-bhayāt tyajet

sa kṛtvā rājasaṁ tyāgaṁ

naiva tyāga-phalaṁ labhet

 

“This work is painful,” so they say,

And leave it under fear’s sway;

Such renunciation, born of frustration,

Is fruitless, not grounded in realization.

 

My dear Lord, I live in a world of matter, surrounded by people who think that this material world is the only world that matters—indeed, the only world that exists. This external propaganda of materialism is repeated and reinforced internally by my mind.

O merciful Lord, even when I experience the hollowness and shallowness of worldly pleasures—especially those glamorized in media and culture—I tend to think that something is wrong with how I enjoyed them, rather than recognizing that the limitation lies in the pleasures themselves. Thus, I become frustrated at my inability to enjoy, rather than becoming renounced by understanding the unavailability of true enjoyment.

O beloved Lord, with such a mindset, even if I turn away from worldly pleasures, it is because, at that moment, the trouble seems to outweigh the pleasure. But over time, as my mind edits my experiences, I begin to believe again that the pleasure outweighs the trouble, and I relapse. That is why frustration by itself does not lead to renunciation. Even amid frustration, I still believe that the world of matter is what truly matters. Renunciation begins only when I start perceiving that what truly matters lies beyond this world of matter.

O benevolent Lord, please help me process my experiences wisely so I realize that you alone truly matter, and that everything else matters only insofar as it connects me to you and draws me toward you.

***

18.08 Anyone who gives up prescribed duties as troublesome or out of fear of bodily discomfort is said to have renounced in the mode of passion. Such action never leads to the elevation of renunciation.