A core teaching · calming in mood · easy to enter
“Let go of the result; the action itself is the practice.”
If you still cannot do even this while taking refuge in my yoga, then, self-controlled, renounce all fruits of action.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallythen · this also · you are unable · to do · taking refuge in my yoga · renunciation of all fruits of action · then · do · self-controlled
If even devotion-filled practice feels too hard, give up the need to own the results of your actions. Stay controlled and let the work be enough.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Bhakti Yoga" (The Yoga of Devotion).
Verse 11 sits in Chapter 12 of the Bhagavad Gita — Bhakti Yoga, "The Yoga of Devotion". The chapter has 20 verses in total.
You sent the message, then kept checking for a reply that could save or ruin your day. This verse asks you to stop feeding on the outcome and return to the act itself.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts attention from owning results to releasing them after sincere effort.
What this verse means
If even devotion-filled practice feels too hard, give up the need to own the results of your actions. Stay controlled and let the work be enough.
Context & commentary
On Kurukshetra, Arjuna is frozen between duty and grief. Krishna has already offered steadier practices, and now lowers the threshold again: if even that is too hard, renounce attachment to the fruits of action and keep your mind controlled.
Why this verse still matters
You sent the message, then kept checking for a reply that could save or ruin your day. This verse asks you to stop feeding on the outcome and return to the act itself.
“There is relief in releasing the demand that every action must pay you back.”
Explore related themes: vairagya (51 verses), surrender (23 verses)