Chapter 14 · Verse 23 · Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga
Bhagavad Gita 14.23
Sanskrit
उदासीनवदासीनो गुणैर्यो न विचाल्यते।गुणा वर्तन्त इत्येव योऽवतिष्ठति नेङ्गते।।14.23।।
Transliteration
udāsīna-vad āsīno guṇair yo na vichālyate guṇā vartanta ity evaṁ yo ’vatiṣhṭhati neṅgate
In plain words
You are gripping something—an outcome, a person, a result you need to happen—and that grip is what's poisoning your peace, not the situation itself. Krishna says: you can love fully, work fully, care deeply, but the moment you stop demanding that life bend to your will, you step into a space where nothing can shake you. That's not coldness. That's freedom.
Word by Word
When you stand as a witness to the dance of nature's three gunas—untouched by their constant play—you have found the eye of the storm where the Self remains eternally still. This is not coldness or detachment from life, but a sacred neutrality that allows you to act without being enslaved by success or failure, praise or blame.
In modern life, this means doing your work with full presence while holding no grip on outcomes—the CEO can lead without anxiety, the parent can nurture without possessiveness, the artist can create without desperation for recognition.
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Bhagavad Gita 14.23 — BG 14.23
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