Chapter 4 · Knowledge and Renunciation of Action

श्रीकृष्णŚrī Kṛṣṇa speaks

Text 4.18

कर्मण्यकर्म य: पश्येदकर्मणि च कर्म य: स बुद्धिमान्मनुष्येषु स युक्त: कृत्स्नकर्मकृत्

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

Recitation · Text 4.18
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Word-for-Word Śabda-Artha (14 words)

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Purport Overview & Key Insights

The chapter's most quoted paradox: one who sees inaction in action, and action in inaction, is wise among people and a yogi who has done everything worth doing. What looks like a riddle is a claim about where doership actually sits.

✨ Devotional Takeaway:What reads as a riddle is really a claim about where doership actually sits.