A yogi who apprently "works" for God to please Him, does not really act at all, esoterically speaking, for his actions have no connection with the interest of his own ego.
The problem of "action" and "inaction" becomes simple when one understands that, just as a man is not responsible for the actions of others, so a yogi is not karmically bound by the actions of that stranger, his body. He politely assists the body to achieve its welfare, without personal attachment or identification with the fate that befalls it. It is impossible for a devotee who has merged himself in the vastness of Spirit to consider himself confined to any human personality. What activities a yogi engages in are in the nature of an impersonal "carrying out orders."
A yogi who undertakes complex divine works, such as maintaining a hermitage for his disciples or an orginzation to serve the spiritual needs of mankind, or performing education or charitable activities, is not thereby entangled in any personal karma, provided he has joyfully resigned his will to God's.
His state of freedom in action is in marked contrast to that of a karma-accruing worldly man who may engage in philanthropic activities for the satisfaction of his ego, or for gaining praise from others, or for escaping income taxes!
