A human being makes effort, performs purushartha, only for the sake of his ego. If there were no ego, then there would be no need for purushartha. What will he do the whole day long? So he performs purushartha. It is to pass the time that nature has given him the inspiration of purushartha. Nothing is achieved through purushartha, whatever happens is the will of God.
This is known as destiny. Even a race has a destiny. A tree has a destiny. Every individual has a destiny. Everything in this creation has a destiny. And its controller is God. He moves within everything. He lies hidden within every being and is the source of everything. The way the mother holds the hands of her child and makes him write A, B, C, D, in the same way God makes us all do what we do. Whatever good I did, He made me do it; whatever wrong I did, He made me do it. He gave me the inspiration, so I left my home and sought the shelter of my guru’s ashram. I am not the cause behind my success and failure, rise and fall, wins and losses, sin and merit; He is.
What then is my responsibility and accountability? What does my life amount to? Nothing. So just sit down quietly. That is my philosophy, whether you call it Vaishnava, Vedanta or niyativada, fatalism. You can give it whatever stamp you like. Whatever has to happen, will happen. Purushartha is only a way to entertain the mind. It is only a means, a method, to pass the time. You cannot sit silently by yourself all day long, so you do purushartha. But you do not understand this.
People will not believe the truth of all this, because they have egos. They have limits. Therefore, they will go on performing purushartha. Whether I say it, Mira Bai says it or Kabirdas says it, people will continue to act according to their nature. But the truth must be told. Everyone should know the truth, whether or not he is able to imbibe it in his own life. An adulterer should accept the worth of celibacy even if he stays an adulterer. A tamasic person should accept the sattwa, purity, of a sattwic person even if he remains in tamas, inertia. A liar should accept the superiority of truth. In the same way, one who is engaged in purushartha should have belief in the will and resolve of God even if he continues to perform purushartha. I am not saying that you should not perform purushartha. But that does not mean that you should consider it the truth. To merely recognize the glory of purushartha is wrong. Believe that God does everything, yet continue to perform purushartha. In your heart of hearts, know that it is God who does everything. He is the creator, sustainer and destroyer. And know that God is watching every action everywhere like a spy.
What has been born of ahamkara, ego, is paurusha. Paurusha does not only mean hard work; it means for the sake of the Purusha. Who is Purusha? It has been said:
Puri shete iti purushah
One who sleeps in the city is purusha.
It has been said that this body is a palace of nine gates in the middle of an ocean. And the one who lies asleep there is Narayana. Therefore, the work that is done for him is purushartha. To earn for the family and feed them is not purushartha. It means for the sake of Purusha, and Purusha means one who is hidden within.