50 lines, each with its Sanskrit. Updated October 2026.
Fifty lines from the Gita, sorted by what you're going through. Copy or share any line.
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन ।मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥
karmaṇy evādhikāras te mā phaleṣu kadācana | mā karmaphalahetur bhūr mā te saṅgo 'stv akarmaṇi ||
Your right is to the work, never its fruits. Don't make the fruit your motive, or cling to inaction.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.47
बुद्धियुक्तो जहातीह उभे सुकृतदुष्कृते ।तस्माद्योगाय युज्यस्व योगः कर्मसु कौशलम् ॥
buddhiyukto jahātīha ubhe sukṛtaduṣkṛte | tasmād yogāya yujyasva yogaḥ karmasu kauśalam ||
A steady mind moves past both merit and sin. So give yourself to yoga: yoga is skill in action.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.50
योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय ।सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ॥
yogasthaḥ kuru karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā dhanañjaya | siddhyasiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā samatvaṃ yoga ucyate ||
Act from steadiness, free of attachment, the same in success and failure. That evenness is yoga.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.48
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
niyataṃ kuru karma tvaṃ karma jyāyo hy akarmaṇaḥ | śarīrayātrāpi ca te na prasiddhyed akarmaṇaḥ ||
Do your duty; action is better than inaction. Without it, you could not even keep your body going.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 3.8
तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर ।असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः ॥
tasmād asaktaḥ satataṃ kāryaṃ karma samācara | asakto hy ācaran karma param āpnoti pūruṣaḥ ||
So always do the work that must be done, without attachment. Working without attachment, a person reaches the highest.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 3.19
यद्यदाचरति श्रेष्ठस्तत्तदेवेतरो जनः ।स यत्प्रमाणं कुरुते लोकस्तदनुवर्तते ॥
yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ | sa yat pramāṇaṃ kurute lokas tad anuvartate ||
Whatever the best among us do, others follow. The standard they set is the one the world lives by.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 3.21
प्रकृतेः क्रियमाणानि गुणैः कर्माणि सर्वशः ।अहङ्कारविमूढात्मा कर्ताऽहमिति मन्यते ॥
prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ | ahaṅkāravimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate ||
All actions are done by the forces of nature, yet the one deluded by ego thinks, 'I am the doer.'
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 3.27
श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् ।स्वधर्मे निधनं श्रेयः परधर्मो भयावहः ॥
śreyān svadharmo viguṇaḥ paradharmāt svanuṣṭhitāt | svadharme nidhanaṃ śreyaḥ paradharmo bhayāvahaḥ ||
Better your own dharma, done imperfectly, than another's done well. Even death in your own is better; another's brings fear.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 3.35
ब्रह्मण्याधाय कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा करोति यः ।लिप्यते न स पापेन पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा ॥
brahmaṇy ādhāya karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā karoti yaḥ | lipyate na sa pāpena padmapatram ivāmbhasā ||
Whoever acts without attachment, offering every action to the Divine, is untouched by sin, like a lotus leaf by water.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 5.10
सहजं कर्म कौन्तेय सदोषमपि न त्यजेत् ।सर्वारम्भा हि दोषेण धूमेनाग्निरिवावृताः ॥
sahajaṃ karma kaunteya sadoṣam api na tyajet | sarvārambhā hi doṣeṇa dhūmenāgnir ivāvṛtāḥ ||
Never abandon the work born of your nature, though flawed. Every undertaking has flaws, as fire has smoke.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 18.48
Krishna's promises, to the world and to those who love him.
यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत ।अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदाऽऽत्मानं सृजाम्यहम् ॥
yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata | abhyutthānam adharmasya tadātmānaṃ sṛjāmy aham ||
Whenever dharma declines and adharma rises, I bring Myself into the world.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 4.7
परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम् ।धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय संभवामि युगे युगे ॥
paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṃ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām | dharmasaṃsthāpanārthāya saṃbhavāmi yuge yuge ||
To protect the good, end the wicked and restore dharma, I come into being age after age.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 4.8
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज ।अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥
sarvadharmān parityajya mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja | ahaṃ tvā sarvapāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ ||
Leave every other support and take refuge in Me alone. I will free you from all sin. Do not grieve.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 18.66
अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां ये जनाः पर्युपासते ।तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां योगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम् ॥
ananyāś cintayanto māṃ ye janāḥ paryupāsate | teṣāṃ nityābhiyuktānāṃ yogakṣemaṃ vahāmy aham ||
Those who think of Me alone and worship Me always, I bring what they lack and protect what they have.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 9.22
पत्रं पुष्पं फलं तोयं यो मे भक्त्या प्रयच्छति ।तदहं भक्त्युपहृतमश्नामि प्रयतात्मनः ॥
patraṃ puṣpaṃ phalaṃ toyaṃ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati | tad ahaṃ bhaktyupahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ ||
A leaf, a flower, a fruit, some water: whatever a sincere heart offers Me with love, I accept.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 9.26
यत्करोषि यदश्नासि यज्जुहोषि ददासि यत् ।यत्तपस्यसि कौन्तेय तत्कुरुष्व मदर्पणम् ॥
yat karoṣi yad aśnāsi yaj juhoṣi dadāsi yat | yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kuruṣva madarpaṇam ||
Whatever you do, eat, offer, give or endure in discipline, do it as an offering to Me.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 9.27
समोऽहं सर्वभूतेषु न मे द्वेष्योऽस्ति न प्रियः ।ये भजन्ति तु मां भक्त्या मयि ते तेषु चाप्यहम् ॥
samo 'haṃ sarvabhūteṣu na me dveṣyo 'sti na priyaḥ | ye bhajanti tu māṃ bhaktyā mayi te teṣu cāpy aham ||
Equal to all, I hate none and favour none. Those who love Me live in Me, and I in them.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 9.29
मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु ।मामेवैष्यसि सत्यं ते प्रतिजाने प्रियोऽसि मे ॥
manmanā bhava madbhakto madyājī māṃ namaskuru | mām evaiṣyasi satyaṃ te pratijāne priyo 'si me ||
Remember Me, love Me, worship Me, bow to Me. You will reach Me. I promise: you are dear to Me.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 18.65
बहूनां जन्मनामन्ते ज्ञानवान्मां प्रपद्यते ।वासुदेवः सर्वमिति स महात्मा सुदुर्लभः ॥
bahūnāṃ janmanām ante jñānavān māṃ prapadyate | vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ ||
After many lifetimes, the wise one comes to Me, knowing Vasudeva is everything. Such a great soul is very rare.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 7.19
On the self that is never born and never dies.
न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः ।अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥
na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṃ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ | ajo nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṃ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre ||
The Self is never born and never dies. Unborn and eternal, it is not killed when the body is killed.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.20
नैनं छिन्दन्ति शस्त्राणि नैनं दहति पावकः ।न चैनं क्लेदयन्त्यापो न शोषयति मारुतः ॥
nainaṃ chindanti śastrāṇi nainaṃ dahati pāvakaḥ | na cainaṃ kledayanty āpo na śoṣayati mārutaḥ ||
Weapons cannot cut the Self, fire cannot burn it, water cannot wet it, and wind cannot dry it.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.23
वासांसि जीर्णानि यथा विहाय नवानि गृह्णाति नरोऽपराणि ।तथा शरीराणि विहाय जीर्णान्यन्यानि संयाति नवानि देही ॥
vāsāṃsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya navāni gṛhṇāti naro 'parāṇi | tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny anyāni saṃyāti navāni dehī ||
As you discard worn clothes for new ones, the Self leaves old bodies and enters new ones.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.22
जातस्य हि ध्रुवो मृत्युर्ध्रुवं जन्म मृतस्य च ।तस्मादपरिहार्येऽर्थे न त्वं शोचितुमर्हसि ॥
jātasya hi dhruvo mṛtyur dhruvaṃ janma mṛtasya ca | tasmād aparihārye 'rthe na tvaṃ śocitum arhasi ||
Death is certain for the born, and birth for the dead. Do not grieve over what cannot be avoided.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.27
अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे ।गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥
aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṃ prajñāvādāṃś ca bhāṣase | gatāsūn agatāsūṃś ca nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ ||
You grieve where grief is not due, yet talk like the wise. Those who know grieve neither dead nor living.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.11
देहिनोऽस्मिन्यथा देहे कौमारं यौवनं जरा ।तथा देहान्तरप्राप्तिर्धीरस्तत्र न मुह्यति ॥
dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṃ yauvanaṃ jarā | tathā dehāntaraprāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati ||
Just as the Self moves through childhood, youth and age, it moves to a new body. The wise stay steady.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.13
ममैवांशो जीवलोके जीवभूतः सनातनः
mamaivāṃśo jīvaloke jīvabhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ
The living Self in every being is an eternal part of Me.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 15.7
On handling your own mind, mostly from chapter 6.
उद्धरेदात्मनाऽऽत्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् ।आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मनः ॥
uddhared ātmanātmānaṃ nātmānam avasādayet | ātmaiva hy ātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ ||
Lift yourself by your own effort, and never pull yourself down. You are your own friend, and your own enemy.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 6.5
बन्धुरात्माऽऽत्मनस्तस्य येनात्मैवात्मना जितः ।अनात्मनस्तु शत्रुत्वे वर्तेतात्मैव शत्रुवत् ॥
bandhur ātmātmanas tasya yenātmaivātmanā jitaḥ | anātmanas tu śatrutve vartetātmaiva śatruvat ||
Master your mind and it becomes your friend. Leave it unmastered and it works against you like an enemy.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 6.6
चञ्चलं हि मनः कृष्ण प्रमाथि बलवद्दृढम् ।तस्याहं निग्रहं मन्ये वायोरिव सुदुष्करम् ॥
cañcalaṃ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi balavad dṛḍham | tasyāhaṃ nigrahaṃ manye vāyor iva suduṣkaram ||
The mind is restless, Krishna, turbulent, strong and stubborn. Holding it seems as hard as holding the wind.
Arjuna to Krishna · Bhagavad Gita 6.34
असंशयं महाबाहो मनो दुर्निग्रहं चलम् ।अभ्यासेन तु कौन्तेय वैराग्येण च गृह्यते ॥
asaṃśayaṃ mahābāho mano durnigrahaṃ calam | abhyāsena tu kaunteya vairāgyeṇa ca gṛhyate ||
No doubt the mind is restless and hard to hold. Yet it is held through steady practice and letting go.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 6.35
यतो यतो निश्चरति मनश्चञ्चलमस्थिरम् ।ततस्ततो नियम्यैतदात्मन्येव वशं नयेत् ॥
yato yato niścarati manaś cañcalam asthiram | tatas tato niyamyaitad ātmany eva vaśaṃ nayet ||
Wherever the restless, unsteady mind wanders, bring it back from there, and rest it in the Self.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 6.26
यथा दीपो निवातस्थो नेङ्गते सोपमा स्मृता ।योगिनो यतचित्तस्य युञ्जतो योगमात्मनः ॥
yathā dīpo nivātastho neṅgate sopamā smṛtā | yogino yatacittasya yuñjato yogam ātmanaḥ ||
Like a lamp in a windless place that does not flicker: that is the mind of one settled in meditation.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 6.19
ध्यायतो विषयान्पुंसः सङ्गस्तेषूपजायते ।सङ्गात् संजायते कामः कामात्क्रोधोऽभिजायते ॥
dhyāyato viṣayān puṃsaḥ saṅgas teṣūpajāyate | saṅgāt saṃjāyate kāmaḥ kāmāt krodho 'bhijāyate ||
Dwell on things, and attachment grows. Attachment breeds desire, and desire, when blocked, turns into anger.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.62
क्रोधाद्भवति संमोहः संमोहात्स्मृतिविभ्रमः ।स्मृतिभ्रंशाद् बुद्धिनाशो बुद्धिनाशात्प्रणश्यति ॥
krodhād bhavati saṃmohaḥ saṃmohāt smṛtivibhramaḥ | smṛtibhraṃśād buddhināśo buddhināśāt praṇaśyati ||
From anger comes confusion, from confusion lost memory, from that the ruin of reason, and with reason gone, you fall.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.63
What a steady person is like, and where Krishna says peace comes from.
दुःखेष्वनुद्विग्नमनाः सुखेषु विगतस्पृहः ।वीतरागभयक्रोधः स्थितधीर्मुनिरुच्यते ॥
duḥkheṣv anudvignamanāḥ sukheṣu vigataspṛhaḥ | vītarāgabhayakrodhaḥ sthitadhīr munir ucyate ||
Unshaken in sorrow, not craving in joy, free of attachment, fear and anger: that is a sage of steady mind.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.56
नास्ति बुद्धिरयुक्तस्य न चायुक्तस्य भावना ।न चाभावयतः शान्तिरशान्तस्य कुतः सुखम् ॥
nāsti buddhir ayuktasya na cāyuktasya bhāvanā | na cābhāvayataḥ śāntir aśāntasya kutaḥ sukham ||
An unsteady mind has no clarity and no focus. Without focus, no peace. Without peace, how can there be happiness?
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.66
आपूर्यमाणमचलप्रतिष्ठं समुद्रमापः प्रविशन्ति यद्वत् ।तद्वत्कामा यं प्रविशन्ति सर्वे स शान्तिमाप्नोति न कामकामी ॥
āpūryamāṇam acalapratiṣṭhaṃ samudram āpaḥ praviśanti yadvat | tadvat kāmā yaṃ praviśanti sarve sa śāntim āpnoti na kāmakāmī ||
As rivers enter the full, still ocean, desires enter the wise. They find peace; one who chases desires does not.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 2.70
बाह्यस्पर्शेष्वसक्तात्मा विन्दत्यात्मनि यत्सुखम् ।स ब्रह्मयोगयुक्तात्मा सुखमक्षयमश्नुते ॥
bāhyasparśeṣv asaktātmā vindaty ātmani yat sukham | sa brahmayogayuktātmā sukham akṣayam aśnute ||
Free of craving for outer pleasures, one finds joy within, and united with Brahman, knows a joy that never ends.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 5.21
On knowledge, on who Krishna is, and on how the Gita ends.
कालोऽस्मि लोकक्षयकृत्प्रवृद्धो लोकान्समाहर्तुमिह प्रवृत्तः ।ऋतेऽपि त्वां न भविष्यन्ति सर्वे येऽवस्थिताः प्रत्यनीकेषु योधाः ॥
kālo 'smi lokakṣayakṛt pravṛddho lokān samāhartum iha pravṛttaḥ | ṛte 'pi tvāṃ na bhaviṣyanti sarve ye 'vasthitāḥ pratyanīkeṣu yodhāḥ ||
I am Time, the mighty destroyer of worlds, come to consume them. Even without you, these warriors will not survive.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 11.32
न हि ज्ञानेन सदृशं पवित्रमिह विद्यते ।तत्स्वयं योगसंसिद्धः कालेनात्मनि विन्दति ॥
na hi jñānena sadṛśaṃ pavitram iha vidyate | tat svayaṃ yogasaṃsiddhaḥ kālenātmani vindati ||
Nothing in this world purifies like knowledge. One made ready by yoga finds it within, in time.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 4.38
श्रद्धावाँल्लभते ज्ञानं तत्परः संयतेन्द्रियः ।ज्ञानं लब्ध्वा परां शान्तिमचिरेणाधिगच्छति ॥
śraddhāvāṃl labhate jñānaṃ tatparaḥ saṃyatendriyaḥ | jñānaṃ labdhvā parāṃ śāntim acireṇādhigacchati ||
One with faith, devoted and disciplined, gains knowledge, and with knowledge soon finds the highest peace.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 4.39
मत्तः परतरं नान्यत्किञ्चिदस्ति धनञ्जय ।मयि सर्वमिदं प्रोतं सूत्रे मणिगणा इव ॥
mattaḥ parataraṃ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya | mayi sarvam idaṃ protaṃ sūtre maṇigaṇā iva ||
Nothing at all is higher than Me. All of this is strung on Me, like pearls on a thread.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 7.7
अहमात्मा गुडाकेश सर्वभूताशयस्थितः ।अहमादिश्च मध्यं च भूतानामन्त एव च ॥
aham ātmā guḍākeśa sarvabhūtāśayasthitaḥ | aham ādiś ca madhyaṃ ca bhūtānām anta eva ca ||
I am the Self in the heart of every being. I am their beginning, their middle and their end.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 10.20
विद्याविनयसंपन्ने ब्राह्मणे गवि हस्तिनि ।शुनि चैव श्वपाके च पण्डिताः समदर्शिनः ॥
vidyāvinayasaṃpanne brāhmaṇe gavi hastini | śuni caiva śvapāke ca paṇḍitāḥ samadarśinaḥ ||
The wise see the same Self in a learned, humble brahmin, a cow, an elephant, a dog, and an outcast.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 5.18
इति ते ज्ञानमाख्यातं गुह्याद्गुह्यतरं मया ।विमृश्यैतदशेषेण यथेच्छसि तथा कुरु ॥
iti te jñānam ākhyātaṃ guhyād guhyataraṃ mayā | vimṛśyaitad aśeṣeṇa yathecchasi tathā kuru ||
I have given you wisdom more secret than any secret. Reflect on it fully, then do as you choose.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 18.63
यत्र योगेश्वरः कृष्णो यत्र पार्थो धनुर्धरः ।तत्र श्रीर्विजयो भूतिर्ध्रुवा नीतिर्मतिर्मम ॥
yatra yogeśvaraḥ kṛṣṇo yatra pārtho dhanurdharaḥ | tatra śrīr vijayo bhūtir dhruvā nītir matir mama ||
Where Krishna, lord of yoga, and Arjuna the archer stand together, there is fortune, victory, wellbeing and lasting justice.
Sanjaya to Dhritarashtra · Bhagavad Gita 18.78
The habits Krishna praises, and the ones he warns about.
त्रिविधं नरकस्येदं द्वारं नाशनमात्मनः ।कामः क्रोधस्तथा लोभस्तस्मादेतत्त्रयं त्यजेत् ॥
trividhaṃ narakasyedaṃ dvāraṃ nāśanam ātmanaḥ | kāmaḥ krodhas tathā lobhas tasmād etat trayaṃ tyajet ||
Desire, anger and greed are the three gates to hell, and they ruin the self. So give up all three.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 16.21
श्रद्धामयोऽयं पुरुषो यो यच्छ्रद्धः स एव सः
śraddhāmayo 'yaṃ puruṣo yo yacchraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ
Every person is shaped by their faith. As your faith is, so you are.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 17.3
अनुद्वेगकरं वाक्यं सत्यं प्रियहितं च यत् ।स्वाध्यायाभ्यसनं चैव वाङ्मयं तप उच्यते ॥
anudvegakaraṃ vākyaṃ satyaṃ priyahitaṃ ca yat | svādhyāyābhyasanaṃ caiva vāṅmayaṃ tapa ucyate ||
Speech that is true, kind, helpful and causes no distress, with regular scripture study, is the discipline of speech.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 17.15
समः शत्रौ च मित्रे च तथा मानापमानयोः ।शीतोष्णसुखदुःखेषु समः सङ्गविवर्जितः ॥
samaḥ śatrau ca mitre ca tathā mānāpamānayoḥ | śītoṣṇasukhaduḥkheṣu samaḥ saṅgavivarjitaḥ ||
The same toward friend and foe, in honour and insult, in cold and heat, joy and sorrow, free of attachment.
Krishna to Arjuna · Bhagavad Gita 12.18
Not in the Gita
Whatever happened, happened for good. Whatever is happening is happening for good. Whatever will happen will also be for good.
Where it comes from: From the popular 'Gita Saar' poster, a modern Hindi summary framed in homes and shops. The line is not in any of the Gita's 700 verses.
What the Gita says
अशोच्यानन्वशोचस्त्वं प्रज्ञावादांश्च भाषसे ।गतासूनगतासूंश्च नानुशोचन्ति पण्डिताः ॥
aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṃ prajñāvādāṃś ca bhāṣase | gatāsūn agatāsūṃś ca nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ ||
You grieve where grief is not due, yet talk like the wise. Those who know grieve neither dead nor living.
In 2.11 Krishna says the wise grieve for neither the living nor the dead, and he makes no claim that every event is good.
Not in the Gita
You came empty-handed and you will leave empty-handed. What is yours today was someone else's yesterday.
Where it comes from: Also from the 'Gita Saar' poster, usually shared as Krishna's words. No verse says it.
What the Gita says
अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत ।अव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना ॥
avyaktādīni bhūtāni vyaktamadhyāni bhārata | avyaktanidhanāny eva tatra kā paridevanā ||
Every being is unseen before birth, seen for a while, and unseen again after death. Why grieve over this?
2.28 says beings are unseen before birth, seen in the middle and unseen again after death, so there is nothing to mourn; it says nothing about possessions.
Not in the Gita
Change is the law of the universe.
Where it comes from: A line from the 'Gita Saar' poster, widely posted as a Gita quote with no chapter or verse.
What the Gita says
मात्रास्पर्शास्तु कौन्तेय शीतोष्णसुखदुःखदाः ।आगमापायिनोऽनित्यास्तांस्तितिक्षस्व भारत ॥
mātrāsparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇasukhaduḥkhadāḥ | āgamāpāyino 'nityās tāṃs titikṣasva bhārata ||
Heat and cold, pleasure and pain come and go through the senses. They don't last. Bear them patiently.
2.14 speaks of heat and cold, pleasure and pain that come and go, and asks Arjuna to bear them patiently; it names no law of change.
Not in the Gita
Why do you worry without reason? Whom do you fear? Who can kill you? The soul is neither born nor does it die.
Where it comes from: The opening lines of the 'Gita Saar' poster. The last sentence echoes 2.20; the questions before it are not in the Gita.
What the Gita says
न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचिन्नायं भूत्वा भविता वा न भूयः ।अजो नित्यः शाश्वतोऽयं पुराणो न हन्यते हन्यमाने शरीरे ॥
na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṃ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ | ajo nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṃ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre ||
The Self is never born and never dies. Unborn and eternal, it is not killed when the body is killed.
2.20 describes the self as unborn, undying and eternal, and it asks no questions about worry or fear.
Not in the Gita
What we think, we become.
Where it comes from: Usually credited to the Buddha, as a loose modern rendering of the Dhammapada's first verse. Some posts online label it Bhagavad Gita 6.5.
What the Gita says
श्रद्धामयोऽयं पुरुषो यो यच्छ्रद्धः स एव सः
śraddhāmayo 'yaṃ puruṣo yo yacchraddhaḥ sa eva saḥ
Every person is shaped by their faith. As your faith is, so you are.
17.3 says a person is shaped by their shraddha, the faith they hold, which is narrower than every passing thought.
Not in the Gita
We are kept from our goal not by obstacles but by a clear path to a lesser goal.
Where it comes from: Written by the American writer Robert Brault, and shared online as Gita wisdom.
What the Gita says
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन ।मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥
karmaṇy evādhikāras te mā phaleṣu kadācana | mā karmaphalahetur bhūr mā te saṅgo 'stv akarmaṇi ||
Your right is to the work, never its fruits. Don't make the fruit your motive, or cling to inaction.
2.47 gives you a right to the action and none to its results, and says nothing about goals or obstacles.
Not in the Gita
Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.
Where it comes from: Shared as a Gita verse on yoga sites, but no chapter or verse of the Gita matches it. It may loosely echo 6.20, which uses the phrase 'the self by the self'.
What the Gita says
उद्धरेदात्मनाऽऽत्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् ।आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मनः ॥
uddhared ātmanātmānaṃ nātmānam avasādayet | ātmaiva hy ātmano bandhur ātmaiva ripur ātmanaḥ ||
Lift yourself by your own effort, and never pull yourself down. You are your own friend, and your own enemy.
6.5 asks you to lift yourself by your own effort and not let yourself sink, since you can be your own friend or your own enemy.
Not in the Gita
Yoga is the practice of tolerating the consequences of being yourself.
Where it comes from: Usually credited to Dinabandhu Sarley, an American yoga teacher, and often captioned as Gita wisdom.
What the Gita says
योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनञ्जय ।सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ॥
yogasthaḥ kuru karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā dhanañjaya | siddhyasiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā samatvaṃ yoga ucyate ||
Act from steadiness, free of attachment, the same in success and failure. That evenness is yoga.
2.48 defines yoga as evenness of mind in success and failure while you do your work, with nothing about tolerating yourself.
Not in the Gita
Trust Krishna. He has planned something better for you.
Where it comes from: A modern social media caption, usually posted over a Krishna picture. No verse matches it.
What the Gita says
अनन्याश्चिन्तयन्तो मां ये जनाः पर्युपासते ।तेषां नित्याभियुक्तानां योगक्षेमं वहाम्यहम् ॥
ananyāś cintayanto māṃ ye janāḥ paryupāsate | teṣāṃ nityābhiyuktānāṃ yogakṣemaṃ vahāmy aham ||
Those who think of Me alone and worship Me always, I bring what they lack and protect what they have.
9.22 promises that Krishna brings what is lacking and keeps what is held for those who think of him with an undivided mind; it makes no promise of a better plan.
Not in the Gita
Radha asked Krishna why he never married her. Krishna said: marriage needs two people, and we are one.
Where it comes from: A modern caption shared widely in Hindi and English posts. Radha comes from later devotional poetry, such as Jayadeva's Gita Govinda, and does not appear in the Gita.
What the Gita says
मन्मना भव मद्भक्तो मद्याजी मां नमस्कुरु ।मामेवैष्यसि सत्यं ते प्रतिजाने प्रियोऽसि मे ॥
manmanā bhava madbhakto madyājī māṃ namaskuru | mām evaiṣyasi satyaṃ te pratijāne priyo 'si me ||
Remember Me, love Me, worship Me, bow to Me. You will reach Me. I promise: you are dear to Me.
In 18.65 Krishna speaks to Arjuna, asking him to keep his mind on Krishna and be devoted, and says 'you are dear to me'.
A single verse and what it means, there when you wake up.
A week of lines for what you're going through, in your inbox.
Send my weekChapter 2 gives the most lines on this page, 14 of 50: 2.11, 2.13, 2.20, 2.22, 2.23, 2.27, 2.47, 2.48, 2.50, 2.56, 2.62, 2.63, 2.66, 2.70. It holds Krishna's first answer to Arjuna, on the self and on the steady mind.
Chapters 3 to 6 are about action and the mind: chapter 3 (3.8, 3.19, 3.21, 3.27, 3.35); chapter 4 (4.7, 4.8, 4.38, 4.39); chapter 5 (5.10, 5.18, 5.21); chapter 6 (6.5, 6.6, 6.19, 6.26, 6.34, 6.35).
From chapter 7 on, the lines turn more to devotion and to who Krishna is: chapter 7 (7.7, 7.19); chapter 9 (9.22, 9.26, 9.27, 9.29); chapter 10 (10.20); chapter 11 (11.32); chapter 12 (12.18); chapter 15 (15.7); chapter 16 (16.21); chapter 17 (17.3, 17.15); chapter 18 (18.48, 18.63, 18.65, 18.66, 18.78). Chapter 1 sets the scene before Krishna teaches, so none of these lines come from it.
Most lines in the Gita are Krishna speaking to Arjuna on the field of Kurukshetra, just before the war. Arjuna has put down his bow, and Krishna answers his questions for 18 chapters.
Two cards here have other speakers, and they are marked. 6.34 is Arjuna telling Krishna the mind is as hard to hold as the wind. 18.78, the last verse of the Gita, is Sanjaya, who has been narrating the dialogue to King Dhritarashtra.
By search, 2.47 and 4.7 lead: karmaṇy evādhikāras te, your right is to the work and never its fruit, and yadā yadā hi dharmasya, Krishna's promise to come when dharma declines. Outside India, 11.32 is close behind, the 'I am Time, destroyer of worlds' line Oppenheimer recalled.
700 verses in 18 chapters, in the text Shankara commented on. The Gita sits inside the Bhishma Parva of the Mahabharata.
Mostly Krishna, speaking to Arjuna. Arjuna asks the questions, for example 6.34 on the restless mind, and Sanjaya narrates the whole dialogue to King Dhritarashtra, closing with 18.78.
It opens 2.47: your right is to action alone, never to its fruits. The verse goes on: do not make the fruit your motive, and do not cling to inaction either.
2.66 says there is no peace for the unsteady mind, and no happiness without peace. 6.35 gives the method: practice and letting go, abhyāsa and vairāgya.
Chapter 2. 14 of the 50 lines on this page come from it, including 2.47, 2.20 and 2.23, because it holds Krishna's first answer to Arjuna's grief.