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Chapter 4 · Verse 16 · Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga

Bhagavad Gita 4.16

transformative Karma & Action Jnana & Wisdom Moksha & Liberation

Sanskrit

किं कर्म किमकर्मेति कवयोऽप्यत्र मोहिताः। तत्ते कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात्।।4.16।।

Transliteration

kiṁ karma kim akarmeti kavayo ’pyatra mohitāḥ tat te karma pravakṣhyāmi yaj jñātvā mokṣhyase ’śhubhāt

Word by Word

kim what
karma action
kim what
akarma inaction
iti thus
kavayaḥ the wise
api even
atra in this
mohitāḥ are confused
tat that
te to you
karma action
pravakṣhyāmi I shall explain
yat which
jñātvā knowing
mokṣhyase you may free yourself
aśhubhāt from inauspiciousness
Simplified Perspective

Lord Krishna here addresses the deepest confusion of the spiritual seeker: the paradox between doing and not-doing, between action and renunciation. Even the most accomplished sages have stumbled on this threshold, unable to discern true karma from its opposite.

What Krishna reveals is not a rule but a *recognition*—that right action flows from wisdom, and wisdom itself becomes the liberating sword that cuts through all bondage. When you understand the nature of karma as taught here, you transform your daily work from a burden into a path of freedom.

Listen

Bhagavad Gita 4.16 — BG 4.16

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Sanskrit text from the Bhagavad Gita (public domain). Commentary © Mahakatha.

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