3 Lessons to Businesses from The Bhagavad Gita

The Bhagavad Gita (BG) is the flagship scripture of Hinduism. Sanatana Dharma is the original name of this philosophy, which roughly translates to "The Eternal Way". I refrain from using the world religion, because Dharma and religion are not exactly the same, if at all similar. The BG contains teachings that can be applied to life's many scenarios. Conducting business activities is a very common scenario of life.

There is a lot of trade that happens worldwide, either at a macro level or micro level. It's like they say, money makes the world go round. What can we take away from the BG that will help us in our business endeavors? That is precisely what we try to answer in this post. We have identified three lessons which can be applied to business. There are many more, but we start with three.

The Three Lessons

1

BG 4.18: Those who see action in inaction and inaction in action are truly wise amongst humans. Although performing all kinds of actions, they are yogis and masters of all their actions.

In business, you have to give your best effort at all times, at all levels of a corporation. Whether strategizing or running day to day operations, there is a price to pay for the following: distractions interfering with work duties, failure to consider all information at disposal, insincerity on the part of employees who may actually be avoiding work or shunning responsibility. In all of the above cases, the antidote is effort. To realize "action in inaction" always brings your attention to the current point of time, where you may be better off doing something more productive. Even if it’s not work related, it can still be productive

in the sense that it is giving you a respite to recharge your brain. By perceiving that moment of time where you are unproductive or absentminded as action, you quickly scramble to concentrate more or actually do something productive, to get lost in inaction. In other words, see "inaction in action". By not getting attached to the outcome, but by finding joy in getting lost in carrying out your duty, be it at the strategic or operational level, you are inadvertently also being most productive for your business. In reality, it is actual action, which you are perceiving as inaction.

2

BG 2.63: Anger leads to clouding of judgment, which results in bewilderment of the memory. When the memory is bewildered, the intellect gets destroyed; and when the intellect is destroyed, one is ruined.

Maintaining composure is crucial in business, whether it be in customer service, or in the boardrooms. One requires a clear mind bereft of any emotions that may compromise their judgment. It is the chain between anger, memory and intellect that is so beautifully captured in the BG. In that for intellect to blossom, you need to work with all kinds of information perceived hitherto and entertain possibilities hereafter. But the processing of all such information is put into disarray by anger, and thus it must be cast aside. By casting aside anger, you are always playing from a position of strength. You are more focused, more coherent, and in a better position to use whatever intellect you have.

3

BG 6.5: Elevate yourself through the power of your mind, and not degrade yourself, for the mind can be the friend and also the enemy of the self.

This sentence drills down the value of responsibility. By taking full ownership of one’s role, any employee can reduce the burden of any supervisory role. By being proactive in coming up with solutions, and looking at oneself first before blaming first, each and every employee of the organization can be island of self-reliance. This makes the organization structure very smooth, where there is less pointing fingers at others, and more entrepreneurial spirit where the goals of the company and the employee are aligned. But it all starts with taking ownership, by understanding the full power of the mind. You become what you think of. So it's good to think positively. It begins with you.