Chapter 17 · Verse 20 · Sraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga
Bhagavad Gita 17.20
Sanskrit
दातव्यमिति यद्दानं दीयतेऽनुपकारिणे।देशे काले च पात्रे च तद्दानं सात्त्विकं स्मृतम्।।17.20।।
Transliteration
dātavyam iti yad dānaṁ dīyate ‘nupakāriṇe deśhe kāle cha pātre cha tad dānaṁ sāttvikaṁ smṛitam
In plain words
You know the ache of giving and not getting back—the money you loaned, the love you poured out, the help no one acknowledged. Krishna says: the moment you give expecting return, you've poisoned the gift with your own need. Real giving happens when you've already let go, when you serve the actual person in front of you at the actual moment they need it, without keeping score. That kind of giving doesn't empty you—it frees you.
Word by Word
True charity flows not from obligation or expectation of return, but from the natural overflow of a sattvic heart that sees the divine in all beings. When you give to those who cannot repay you—the poor, the struggling, the forgotten—you give purely, without the poison of ego-transaction.
The Gita reveals that sattvic giving requires three alignments: the right person (one truly in need), the right time (when help is most needed), and the right place (where it will bear fruit). In your modern life, this means pausing before you help—asking yourself whether you're giving to serve, or to be seen, remembered, or indebted to.
Listen
Bhagavad Gita 17.20 — BG 17.20
Your Mantra Prescription
This mantra is prescribed for clarity and purpose. Is that what you're going through?
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