Bhagavad Gita 18.23

niyataṁ saṅga-rahita

arāga-dveṣataḥ kṛtam

aphala-prepsunā karma

yat tat sāttvikam ucyate

 

Duty done, with no attachment consuming,

Rising about craving and complaining;

With no desire for mundane gain—

That action is pure, free from stain.

 

My dear Lord, whenever I work in this world, it is so easy to get consumed by mundane emotions that range from craving for more rewards to complaining about too much effort.

O omnipotent Lord, you have given me the potency to act. You want me to play my part and accept whatever reward you deem fair for my effort, according to my present and past karma combined. Yet, because of the competitiveness of the outer world and the cravings within my inner world, I often get consumed by greed. Protect me from fixating on maximizing the visible and praisable rewards from my work.

O omniscient Lord, protect me also from the other extreme in my approach to work—complaining about the effort. Remind me that nothing worthwhile is easy, and that endeavor is often the price for contentment. Guard me from the lethargy and apathy that are bred by chronic complaining about how boring or burdensome my allotted work is.

O merciful Lord, let me do my work diligently yet detachedly—gracefully doing my part as my service to you in maintaining my corner of the world; and gratefully accepting whatever results come by your benevolent arrangement. May I rest in the faith that through such a disposition of devotional contribution, I will surely come closer to you, which is the richest and greatest result of all work.

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18.23 That action which is regulated and which is performed without attachment, without love or hatred, and without desire for fruitive results is said to be in the mode of goodness.