Bhagavad Gita and Management World Management Lessons from India

The despondency of Arjuna in the first chapter of the Gita is typically human. Sri Krishna, by sheer
power of his inspiring words, changes Arjuna's mind from a state of inertia to one of righteous
action, from the state of what the French philosophers call "anomie" or even alienation, to a state of
self‐confidence in the ultimate victory of "dharma" (ethical action.)
When Arjuna got over his despondency and stood ready to fight, Sri Krishna reminded him of the
purpose of his new‐found spirit of intense action ‐ not for his own benefit, not for satisfying his own
greed and desire, but for the good of many, with faith in the ultimate victory of ethics over unethical
actions and of truth over untruth.
Sri Krishna's advice with regard to temporary failures is, "No doer of good ever ends in misery."
Every action should produce results. Good action produces good results and evil begets nothing but
evil. Therefore, always act well and be rewarded.
My purport is not to suggest discarding of the Western model of efficiency, dynamism and striving
for excellence but to tune these ideals to India's holistic attitude of "lokasangraha" ‐ for the welfare
of many, for the good of many. There is indeed a moral dimension to business life. What we do in
business is no different, in this regard, to what we do in our personal lives. The means do not justify
the ends. Pursuit of results for their own sake is ultimately self‐defeating. ("Profit," said Matsushitasan
in another tradition "is the reward of correct behavior." – Ed.)

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