Karmanye vadhikaraste, ma phaleshou kada chana,
Ma karma phala hetur bhurmatey sangostva akarmani

This verse is from Bhagawad Gita, where Lord Krishna explains Arjuna to him to perform his duties, as the latter was not willing to fight the epic war of Mahabharata.

Karmanye vadhikaraste, ma phaleshou kada chana – You have the right to perform your actions, but you are not entitled to the fruits of the actions.

Ma karma phala hetur bhurmatey sangostva akarmani – Do not let the fruit be the purpose of your actions, and therefore you won’t be attached to not doing your duty.

In essence, Krishna asks Arjuna to keep on performing his duties without being attached to the result of his actions. “Forsake do-ership,” Krishna says.

What Krishna tells Arjuna is encapsulated in the idea of Karma yog,or the “discipline of action”. The word karma is derived from the Sanskrit kri, meaning ‘to do’.

Karma and Investing

Replace Lord Krishna with the likes of Warren Buffett, Ben Graham, Seth Klarman, or Howard Marks, and this is exactly what they have been teaching investors (the Arjunas) for years – focus on the “karma” – the process and action – and not the outcome.

Consider any field of activity where probabilities play a big role – the outcome is largely unknown – and research has identified a common trait amongst successful performers – they all emphasize process over outcome.