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Chapter 4 · Verse 18 · Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga

Bhagavad Gita 4.18

contemplative Karma & Action Jnana & Wisdom Attachment & Letting Go

Sanskrit

कर्मण्यकर्म यः पश्येदकर्मणि च कर्म यः। स बुद्धिमान् मनुष्येषु स युक्तः कृत्स्नकर्मकृत्।।4.18।।

Transliteration

karmaṇyakarma yaḥ paśhyed akarmaṇi cha karma yaḥ sa buddhimān manuṣhyeṣhu sa yuktaḥ kṛitsna-karma-kṛit

Word by Word

karmaṇi action
akarma in inaction
yaḥ who
paśhyet see
akarmaṇi inaction
cha also
karma action
yaḥ who
saḥ they
buddhi-mān wise
manuṣhyeṣhu amongst humans
saḥ they
yuktaḥ yogis
kṛitsna-karma-kṛit performers all kinds of actions
Simplified Perspective

This verse reveals the supreme paradox of enlightened action: the wise soul perceives inaction within action and action within inaction, transcending the mechanical duality of doing and non-doing. When you act without claiming authorship, surrendering the fruit to the Divine, your restlessness dissolves and purposeful work becomes worship.

The modern spiritual seeker who understands this performs every task—professional, relational, creative—as an offering, freed from the suffocating weight of outcomes and ego-driven striving.

Listen

Bhagavad Gita 4.18 — BG 4.18

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

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