As one should not take medicine prescribed to someone else, one should stick to his own prescribed duties and not try to take someone else’s
Better to engage in one’s own occupation, even though imperfectly, than to accept another’s occupation and perform it perfectly
Result: Duties prescribed according to one’s own nature are never affected by sinful reaction
aBasis of prescribing occupational duties for different varnas
Based on different modes of nature
bExample of abominable natures (due to contamination by modes) of occupational duties
For a Brahamana – Has to kill animals in sacrifices
For a Ksatriya – Has to be violent to kill his enemies or tell lies for diplomacy
For a Vaishya – However pious he may be, sometimes he has to hide his profit to stay in business or sometimes black-marketing
For a Sudra – Serving a bad master
cHow to avoid abominable nature of different kinds of work and thus purify all the defects of a particular varna
No work (Any of the four varnas) is abominable, if performed in the service of the Supreme Lord
Example of action for the satisfaction of the Lord – Arjuna fighting on the battlefield
No fear of degradation in such action
dConclusion (Supporting Ref. Bg. 3.9)
Everyone should be engaged according to the particular mode of nature he has acquired
Decide to work only to serve the Supreme cause of the Supreme Lord