Karma yoga

[5] According to Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita, Karma yoga is the spiritual practice of "selfless action performed for the benefit of others".

[12] A Karma yogi acts and does his or her duty, whether that be as "a homemaker, mother, nurse, carpenter or garbage collector, with no thought for one's own fame, privilege or financial reward, but simply as a dedication to the Lord", states Harold Coward – professor of Religious Studies with a focus on Indian religions.

[17] According to Phillips, Karma yoga applies to "any action in any profession or family activities", in which the yogi works selflessly to others' benefit.

[22][23] The verses 3.6 to 3.8 of the Bhagavad Gita state that the action can be motivated by body or manipulated by external influences.

The spiritual path to the liberated state of bliss is to do the best one is able to while being detached to outcomes, to fruits, to success or failure.

[22][25][26] A part of the premise of "disinterested action" is that the more one acts with the hope of getting rewards, the more one is liable to disappointment, frustration or self-destructive behavior.

[28] The Gita itself is a chapter from the epic known as Mahabharata, wherein a dialogue takes place between the prince Arjuna, and his friend and chariot driver, Krishna, on the brink of a great dynastic war.

Their conversation is prompted by Arjuna as he is engulfed by sorrow and misgivings regarding the oncoming battle in which he has friends and relatives on both sides.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says: "tasmad asaktah satatam karyam karma samacara asakto hy acaran karma param apnoti purushah" Therefore, without being attached to the results of activities, one should act as a matter of duty, for by working without attachment one attains the Supreme.

[30] Other Vedic texts as well as post-Vedic literature of the Mimamsa school of Hindu philosophy mention karma marga, but these contextually refer to the path of rituals.

[34] Later, new movements within Hinduism added raja yoga as the fourth spiritual path, but this is not universally accepted as distinct to other three.

Kriya yoga is found in tantric texts, and believed by its practitioners to activate chakra and energy centers in the body through disciplined breathing practices.