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. Tap 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.
A shopkeeper who opens on time, serves every customer fairly, and stops counting the till every hour is doing what Krishna asks here. The work gets done, and the day's takings are left alone.
Did you like this verse?
Krishna's next rung down: if devotion-filled work is too hard, give up the fruits of action with self-control.
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
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.
What it looks like today
A shopkeeper who opens on time, serves every customer fairly, and stops counting the till every hour is doing what Krishna asks here. The work gets done, and the day's takings are left alone.
“Do the work with self-control and stop claiming what it earns you.”
Explore related themes: vairagya (51 verses), surrender (23 verses)