Offering the job & work to God prayer?

[Jainarayan]

Just a curiosity... OK, overthinking. BG 3.9 says

yajnarthat karmano ’nyatra
loko ’yam karma-bandhanah
tad-artham karma [kaunteya]
mukta-sangah samacara

"In this world all actions [O son of Kunti], unless they are done as an offering to God become causes of bondage. Therefore, work for the sake of God without personal attachments."

My job is rather hard, both physically and believe it or not, mentally. Physical activity is almost non-stop, and the mental stress comes from dealing with sometimes-difficult customers, noise, and sometimes-difficult coworkers.

I know the

oṁ śuklāmbaradharam viśṇum śaśivarṇaṁ caturbhujam
prasanna vadanaṁ dhyāyet sarva vighnopaśāntaye

I was wondering if there's a prayer or mantra specifically to offer one's job duties. Of course I could learn the Bhagavad Gita verse to remember that I should just offer my trials and tribulations to God.

Hmm ...

 

[Aupmanyav]

"yajna arthat karmanah anyatra, lokah ayam karma-bandhanah;
tad artham karma, Kaunteya, mukta-sangah samacara." BG 3.9

Aup.'s translation (what you have posted is Prabhupada's biased translation, will work for you since you are a Vaishnava theist, basically God is not mentioned anywhere in the verse):

"Work done for 'dharma' (duty) is work, otherwise it is bondage in this world; taking that meaning of work, O son of Kunti, engage in virtuous conduct without any attachment."

yajña-arthāt — done only for duty karmaṇaḥ — than work; anyatra — otherwise; lokaḥ — world; ayam — this; karma-bandhanaḥ — bondage by work; tat — of that; artham — meaning karma — work; kaunteya — O son of Kuntī; mukta-saṅgaḥ — without any attachment; samācara — virtuous conduct.

 

[Aupmanyav]

The word 'yaj' derives from worship, sacrifice, but it has a broader meaning also. Whatever you undertake to do is a 'yajna' and has to be completed in that sense. For example, we have 'Shram dana yajnas' in India (donating labor for construction of a road, a school wall or cleaning the beach or a river). An undertaking to teach 10 people to read would be a 'Vidya dana Yajna' (donating your knowledge). The famous Gandhian Vinoba Bhave started a 'Bhu dana Yajna', i.e., if you can spare some land, give it to one who does not have it. He was the natural successor to Mahatma Gandhi

"Another example of this is the 'Bhu dana' (land gift) movement started at Pochampally on 18 April 1951, after interacting with 80 Harijan families. He walked all across India asking people with land to consider him one of their sons and so gave him one-sixth of their land which he then distributed to landless poor.

On 18 April 1951, Bhave started his land donation movement at Pochampally of Nalgonda district Telangana, the Bhu dana Movement. He took donated land from land owner Indians and gave it away to the poor and landless, for them to cultivate. Then after 1954, he started to ask for donations of whole villages in a program he called 'Gram dana'. He got more than 1000 villages by way of donation. Out of these, he obtained 175 donated villages in Tamil Nadu alone."
Vinoba Bhave - Wikipedia

So, 'Yajna' should be understood in its broader meaning. In your case, my sympathies are with you that your work is physically and emotionmally exhausting, but since you have undertaken it, you should do it rather happily than grudgingly. That makes the work even more onerous. Perhaps in time, the Lord will move you from this to some other better work. My best wishes to you

 

[Jainarayan]

"yajna arthat karmanah anyatra, lokah ayam karma-bandhanah;
tad artham karma, Kaunteya, mukta-sangah samacara." BG 3.9

Aup.'s translation (what you have posted is Prabhupada's biased translation (will work for you since you are a Vaishnava theist), basically God is not mentioned anywhere in the verse):

"Work done for 'dharma' (duty) is work, otherwise it is bondage in this world; taking that meaning of work, O son of Kunti, engage in virtuous conduct without any attachment."

yajña-arthāt — done only for duty karmaṇaḥ — than work; anyatra — otherwise; lokaḥ — world; ayam — this; karma-bandhanaḥ — bondage by work; tat — of that; artham — meaning karma — work; kaunteya — O son of Kuntī; mukta-saṅgaḥ — without any attachment; samācara — virtuous conduct.

Actually that was Tapasyānanda's. I like his translations. I also like Mukundānanda's. However, Tapasyānanda doesn't give purports, at least not in the copies of his I have. I replaced his use of Vishnu with God. By and large I dislike Prabhupada's translations, especially his use of "Supersoul" for ātmā in 10.20 in one of his revisions. And his "Supreme Personality of Godhead", for some reason, makes me want to hurt myself. It just grates on my nerves. Though ironically I do understand its meaning and why he uses it.

aham ātmā guḍākeśa
sarva-bhūtāśaya-sthitaḥ
aham ādiś ca madhyaṁ ca
bhūtānām anta eva ca

O Arjun, I am seated in the heart of all living entities. I am the beginning, middle, and end of all beings. - Mukundānanda.

I am the Supersoul, O Arjuna, seated in the hearts of all living entities. I am the beginning, the middle and the end of all beings. - Prabhupada.

O Arjuna! I am the Self residing in the heart of every being. I am their beginning, their life-span, and their end. - Tapasyānanda

This is why I discourage people from relying on only one translation.

 

[Jainarayan]

So, 'Yajna' should be understood in its broader meaning. In your case, my sympathies are with you that your work is physically and emotionmally exhausting, but since you have undertaken it, you should do it rather happily than grudgingly. That makes the work even more onerous. Perhaps in time, the Lord will move you from this to some other better work. My best wishes to you

Thanks. I do like my job, don't get me wrong. I like it except when I don't like it.

अहम् शूरास्मि
aham śūrāsmi

I know I mangled that one, my Sanskrit could start a war making the Kurukshetra War look like just a barroom brawl.

 

[Aupmanyav]

"aham ātmā guḍākeśa, sarva-bhūtāśya-sthitaḥ"

O Arjun, I am seated in the heart of all living entities. - Mukundānanda.
I am the Supersoul, O Arjuna, seated in the hearts of all living entities. I am the beginning, the middle and the end of all beings. - Prabhupada.
O Arjuna! I am the Self residing in the heart of every being. I am their beginning, their life-span, and their end. - Tapasyānanda

This is why I discourage people from relying on only one translation.

OK, in that case, a new translation from Aup. which goes very well with my Advaita view.

"I am the self, O Arjuna, of all that comes into existence; I am the beginning, the middle and ..".
No 'In the heart'. In Sanskrit it will perhaps be 'hridayeshu avasthitah'. Brahman makes up all parts of my body, since nothing else exists.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Your job also is no less than the Kurkshetra war. Every one faces these wars in their life. One should not lay down the arms like Arjuna did in the beginning.

 

[Jainarayan]

Your job also is no less than the Kurkshetra war. Every one faces these wars in their life. One should not lay down the arms like Arjuna did in the beginning.

Absolutely correct. I don’t like giving up… if the cause is worth it. I’ve seen writings comparing the events of The Mahābhārata to our internal struggles … doing what is right v. our personal/selfish interests v. the costs.

 

[Jainarayan]

Btw, for anyone who doesn’t want to look it up or figure it out aham śūrāsmi is my mangled attempt at “I am a warrior/hero”. I first thought of aham kśatriyāsmi but I think Kśatriya refers to the varna, not necessarily being a warrior in a physical sense.

So now I’m getting ready to pick up Gandīva and go fight my own Kurukshetra War (I can be so dramatic ).

 

[Aupmanyav]

Shuraveer believe in action, not in words.

 

[Jainarayan]

Shuraveer believe in action, not in words.

That’s a good word too.

 

[ameyAtmA]

Bhagavad Geeta 9.27
yat karoṣhi yad aśhnāsi yaj juhoṣhi dadāsi yat |
yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kuruṣhva mad-arpaṇam ||

Whatever you do, eat, offer in sacrifice, gift , and any austerities you perform, do that as an offering to Me.