this world and disinterest in material pleasures. Therein lies in fact the highest perfection of renunciation”.
The Lord said: “When you know the truth, you will understand that all beings are an integral part of Me, that they live in Me, and belong to Me. Beings, in the world of conditions (the material universe), are eternal fragments of My Person”.
We are, in truth, minute fragments of Krishna, God, integral parts of his Divine Person. Our true spiritual nature leads us, out of duty to the Lord, to serve him with love and devotion. This devotional service of a spiritual nature, offered to God and expressed with love, brings infinite joy.
This is why we have to offer to the Supreme Lord, Krishna, the fruit of all our deeds, to link all our projects to his own, to give him all that we do, as well as our existence and even our life. Let us act for the sole purpose of pleasing Him. We are, in truth, his eternal servants and handmaids. A bond of love binds us to Him, and we can never be separated from Him.
Man must get rid of self-interested action: this is the instruction of Krishna, God, the Supreme Person. But he must however keep the action which leads to high spiritual knowledge. The revealed writings prescribe a number of methods to accomplish the sacrifice according to the particular results which one wishes: to have a worthy son, to rise towards the paradisiac planets, etc., but any sacrifice whose purpose is to satisfy some personal desire must be rejected. However, the sacrifice made to purify the heart, or for progress in spiritual science, should not be abandoned.
True renunciation is that by which we always see ourselves as an integral part of the Supreme Lord, knowing that we have no right to enjoy the fruits of our actions. Being ourselves only souls or spiritual sparks, tiny fragments of the Divine Person, Krishna, integral parts of the Lord, it is to Him that the enjoyment of the fruits of our acts must return. This is, truly, the consciousness of Krishna or consciousness of God. One who acts in Krishna consciousness is the true renouncer. Performing his acts in such a spirit, he knows satisfaction, because he acts in truth for the Supreme Being. It does not attach itself to anything material; he gets used to finding pleasure in nothing but the spiritual bliss given by devotional service. The renouncer is held to be freed from the consequences of his past acts; but being established in Krishna consciousness naturally reaches this perfection, without even having to embrace the order of renunciation. This state of mind of the renouncing man is called the perfection of union or communion with God. Anyone who thus finds satisfaction in himself does not fear any consequences for his actions.