Chapter 2 · Verse 47 · Sankhya Yoga
Bhagavad Gita 2.47
Sanskrit
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन। मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि।।2.47।।
Transliteration
karmaṇy-evādhikāras te mā phaleṣhu kadāchana mā karma-phala-hetur bhūr mā te saṅgo ’stvakarmaṇi
In plain words
Do your work well. Then let the result go. That's the heart of this verse.
Most of us tie the two together. We work hard, and then we worry about how it will turn out. Often the worry takes the energy the work needed.
Try this today. Pick one task. Ask yourself, "Which part of this is actually mine?" Usually it's the effort, the preparation, the care. Put your attention there. When the result comes, good or not, learn what you can from it and go on to the next thing.
And look at the last line. Letting go of results isn't the same as giving up. Krishna still asks Arjuna to act.
हिंदी अर्थ
आपका कर्तव्य केवल कर्म करना है, उसके फल की चिंता मत करो। अपने कर्म के फल के लिए आसक्त मत हो और न ही आलस्य में पड़ो।
Word by Word
This is one of the best-known lines in the Gita. It pulls apart two things we usually tie together: the work and the reward.
Krishna doesn't say results don't matter. He doesn't say stop caring.
He says the result shouldn't be your reason for acting. And in the same breath, he says don't give up acting either.
Many readers see this as karma yoga in one line: act fully, without being ruled by the outcome. 48, names the steadiness this builds.
It calls it samatvam, staying even in success and in failure.
Listen
Bhagavad Gita 2.47 — BG 2.47
Your Mantra Prescription
This mantra is prescribed for clarity and purpose. Is that what you're going through?
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