The goal of life is really knowledge, of the reality of things. We are apt to think that it is pleasure, and seeking pleasure in sense-gratification, we meet with so many disappointments and sorrows that we sometimes almost despair and are led to believe that all life is a vain dream with no sure foundation anywhere. It is an endless chain of cause and effect in which we are involved, and from which only knowledge of how to act without producing reaction can ever free us. Karma Yoga is meant to teach us exactly this, to make clear to us first the causes of our bondage, and secondly the method of getting rid of the causes and to avoid the effects.

NEW YORK TIMES, USA TODAY, and PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BESTSELLER “Full of valuable insights to guide you.”—WILL SMITH “Thoughtful and life-affirming . . . a must-read.”—TONY ROBBINS “This book will put you back in charge of your own life.”—TOM BRADY A new perspective on the overused and misunderstood concept of “karma” that offers the key to happiness and enlightenment, from the world-renowned spiritual master Sadhguru. What is karma? Most people understand karma as a balance sheet of good and bad deeds, virtues and sins. The mechanism that decrees that we cannot evade the consequences of our own actions. In reality, karma has nothing to do with reward and punishment. Karma simply means action: your action, your responsibility. It isn’t some external system of crime and punishment, but an internal cycle generated by you. Accumulation of karma is determined only by your intention and the way you respond to what is happening to you. Over time, it’s possible to become ensnared by your own unconscious patterns of behavior. In Karma, Sadhguru seeks to put you back in the driver’s seat, turning you from a terror-struck passenger to a confident driver navigating the course of your own destiny. By living consciously and fully inhabiting each moment, you can free yourself from the cycle. Karma is an exploration and a manual, restoring our understanding of karma to its original potential for freedom and empowerment instead of a source of entanglement. Through Sadhguru’s teachings, you will learn how to live intelligently and joyfully in a challenging world.

2012 Reprint of 1933 Edition. Exact facsimile of the original edition, not reproduced with Optical Recognition Software. This is a set of lectures by Swami Vivekananda on the subject of Karma Yoga, one of the several yogic paths to enlightenment. Karma Yoga is a mental discipline which allows one to carry out one's duties as a service to the entire world, as a path to enlightenment. By working in the real world, but giving up attachment to work, we can obtain spiritual liberation. Vivekananda discusses the concept of Karma in the Bhagavada-Gita, and singles out the Buddha as a primary example of this form of yoga. Chapters include: Chapter I. Karma In Its Effect On Character Chapter II. Each Is Great In His Own Place Chapter III. The Secret of Work Chapter IV. What is Duty? Chapter V. We Help Ourselves, Not the World Chapter VI. Non-Attachment Is Complete Self-Abnegation Chapter VII. Freedom Chapter VIII. The Ideal of Karma-Yoga

For serious yoga practitioners curious to know the ancient origins of the art, Phillips lays out the philosophy of action, knowledge, and devotion, as well as the processes of meditation, reasoning, and self-analysis, that formed the basis of yoga in ancient and classical India.

The four types of yoga are covered in length in the current book, along with its philosophy, psychology, and practise techniques. It provides a comparison of the four yogas, outlining their similarities and distinctions. By destroying the ego, karma yoga, also known as the yoga of selfless action, aims to address the issue of ignorance. We are tethered to this world by attachment because of the ego, which was born out of ignorance. The practise of bhakti yoga involves inward purification. Bhakti-central yoga's thesis is that love is the most fundamental human emotion. Love is cosmocentric and divinely inspired in its most pure form. Raja-yoga ignites the flame of awareness of the self within in order to reach the Divine.

From ancient times, people of India have practiced spiritual disciplines designed to clear the mind and support a state of serene, detached awareness. The practices for developing this desired state of balance, purity, wisdom, and peacefulness of mind are known collectively as "yoga." "Yoga" means "yoke" or "union" - referring to union with the true Self, the goal described in the Upanishads. The sages distinguished four basic types of people and developed practices that are particularly suitable for each type, in order that each man can attain the desired union with the Self. For rational people, there is the path of Knowledge. For meditative people, there is the path of Self-Knowledge. For naturally active people, there is the path of Selfless Action. For emotional people, there is the Path of Devotion. Editor's Note: In order to be more enjoyable during reading, this book is in 6" x 9" format. In the same spirit, the paper is cream-colored, which causes less fatigue to the eyes than white paper. All our publications are carefully handled both in terms of typography and design.