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freeing yourself from the tyranny of the so-called pairs of opposites. Release yourself from always trying to evaluate and judge everything. Disentangle from your habit pattern of seeing things as good or bad, lovable or hateful, pleasant or painful, and so forth. The tendency to get trapped in apparent opposites is a common and debilitating malady. Instead, remain tranquil and centered in the Self (Atma). Take care not to seek acclaim or acquire earthly objects.
    46  “A reservoir that is necessary during a dry spell is of little use during a flood. Similarly, to the enlightened person even scriptures are superfluous. Yes, live amicably with worldly existence, but know you must transcend it. Prepare yourself for nothing less than union with Divinity itself!
    47  “Work hard in the world, Arjuna, but for work’s sake only. You have every right to work but you should not crave the fruits of it. Although no one may deny you the outcomes of your efforts, you can, through determination, refuse to be attached to or affected by the results, whether favorable or unfavorable.
“The central points of issue, Arjuna, are desire and lack of inner peace. Desire for the fruits of one’s actions brings worry about possible failure — the quivering mind I mentioned. When you are preoccupied with end results you pull yourself from the present into an imagined, usually fearful future. Then your anxiety robs your energy and, making matters worse, you lapse into inaction and laziness.
     
“One does not accomplish great ends in some by-and-by future, O Warrior. Only in the present can you hammer out real achievement. The worried mind tends to veer from the only real goal — realizing the Atma, uniting with Divinity, the True Self Within.
     
“The ideal, Arjuna, is to be intensely active and at the same time have no selfish motives, no thoughts of personal gain or loss. Duty uncontaminated by desire leads to inner peacefulness and increased effectiveness. This is the secret art of living a life of real achievement!
     
    48  “To work without desire may seem impossible, but the way to do it is to substitute thoughts of Divinity for thoughts of desire. Do your work in this world with your heart fixed on the Divine instead of on outcomes. Do not worry about results. Be even tempered in success or failure. This mental evenness is what is meant by yoga (union with God). Indeed, equanimity is yoga!
    49  “Work performed with anxiety about results is far inferior to work done in a state of calmness. Equanimity — the serene mental state free from likes and dislikes, attractions and repulsions — is truly the ideal attitude in which to live your life. To be in this state of mind is to be lodged in the Divine. Pitiful are those pulled by the fruits of their action.
    50  “When you are endowed with this basic detachment, you shed the karmic consequences of both your good and bad deeds, casting aside the inevitable effects of your actions. Never lose sight of the overriding goal, which is to free yourself from bondage during this lifetime, to shed attachment to worldly things, detach from ego, and truly release yourself from the wheel ofbirth and death. When you do this, you actually become one with God.
“I see that you sigh at this breathtaking goal, Arjuna. Know that you can achieve this by first uniting your heart with God and only then pursuing worldly things. Proceed in this order, not in the reverse order, and then your actions will be linked to the very purpose of life — which is, again, union with the Divine.
     
    51  “A yogi is a truly wise person whose consciousness is unified with Brahman (the Godhead). * True yogis are detached. They are not at all concerned about the fruits of their actions and thus have left all anxiety behind. Detachment is the means to convert misery-laden karma (here indicating the entangling consequences of one’s acts) into misery-free living. Detachment is the means for rising above