III: 35

Chapter 3, Verse 35

"Do your duty,
Though it be humble,
Rather than another's,
Even if it be great.
To die in one's duty is life.
To live in another's is death."

Swami Satchidananda:

"No two snowflakes are the same. You too are unique. You have been created with certain abilities that no other person has. That's your Swadharma, your individual path, the inner law of your being. Find out what your Swadharma is. Take stock of your natural inclinations and your capabilities. With some things, it's so natural, like a fish in the water. You just know, 'Ah, that's what I'm meant to be doing.' Remember, there is nothing to gain and nothing to lose. Feel the unseen hand directing your every moment, taking you along from one thing to the next. Know that it is unplanned by you and for the good of all. That's Swadharma. It's the tendency of the mind to think that maybe some other person's work would be better. The grass seems greener over there. Nip that tendency in the bud."

Srila Prabhupada:

"When people are under the spell of the modes of material nature, they are to follow the prescribed rules for their particular situations and should not imitate the duties of others. A Brahmana [member of the priestly class] is nonviolent whereas a Kshatriya is allowed to be violent. For a Kshatriya, it is better to be vanquished following the rules of violence that to imitate a Brahmana who follows the principles of nonviolence.

However, when one transcends the modes of material nature and becomes fully situated in Krishna consciousness, anything can be done. In that complete stage of Krishna consciousness, the Kshatriya may act as a Brahmana and vice versa. In the transcendental stage, the distinctions of the material world do not apply."

Eckhart Tolle:

"The ego plays roles because of one unexamined assumption, one fundamental error, one unconscious thought. That thought is, 'I am not enough.' Other unconscious thoughts follow: 'I need to play a role in order to get what I need to be fully myself. I need to get more so that I can be more. But you cannot be more than you already are, because underneath your physical and psychological form, you are one with Being. In form, you are and will always be inferior to some and superior to others. In essence, you are neither inferior nor superior to anyone. True self-esteem and true humility arise out of that realization. In the eyes of the ego, self-esteem and humility are contradictory. In truth, they are one and the same."