In plain words
For that, my salutation to you,’ they said. Karmānu bandina manuṣyalōkē! The whole world of men is bound by karma itself. What are karmas? We think of what we do with our hands as karma. No. No. Even our breathing in and breathing out is karma. It goes on happening without any effort. The heart beats. Are you making any effort for this? Without any effort, of its own nature, the heart beats on. The blood circulates in the body. What effort are you making for this? There is no need to make any effort. All that happens without effort is karma-upāsana itself. Without air you cannot live even for a moment. Unless the heart beats, you cannot stay alive for a single moment. Unless the blood circulates, you cannot keep the body going in the least. Everything is nourished by karma. It is protected by karma. So we must give karma its due importance. We must not think of karma as something small. Karma is very great. It is the highest. It is the root cause of everything. It is the root and ground. From the mūlādhāra to the sahasrāra, karma goes on. What emerged from this sahasrāra lotus is Prajñāna. Everything happens only through this Prajñāna. Prajñānaṃ brahma. That is what the Veda said. What is Brahman? It is not created by anyone. It is not driven by anyone. It is what goes on all by itself. No one can stand in its way. It is natural. It is innate. It is eternal. It is Satya. It is beyond compare. Such a principle they called Prajñāna.
Today the MBA youngsters are looking after the development of villages. What does rural development mean? It is not only building houses in the villages. Each body is a village. In the village called the body, the legs are a house, the hands are a house, the face is a house; the mouth and the ears are buildings too. What makes us recognise the sameness of them all is constant integrated awareness. When Manas thinks, the legs set off. When Manas resolves, the hands work. When Manas likes, the eyes are able to see. When Manas wishes, the ears are able to hear. So Manas alone is the master of all the senses. The body is at the bottom. Above it, the senses. Above that, Manas. Above that, Buddhi. Above that, the Ātma. What stands closest of all to the Ātma is Buddhi; so, buddhigrāhyamatīndriyam. Manayēva manuṣyāṇāṃ kāraṇaṃ bandhamōkṣayōḥ. Manas alone is the root cause of everything. It is Manas that makes us perform karmas with the body. What enjoys Ānanda through good karmas is Manas itself.