कायेन मनसा बुद्ध्या केवलैरिन्द्रियैरपि ।
योगिनः कर्म कुर्वन्ति सङ्गं त्यक्त्वाऽऽत्मशुद्धये ॥
योगिनः कर्म कुर्वन्ति सङ्गं त्यक्त्वाऽऽत्मशुद्धये ॥
Hindi · हिन्दी
कर्मयोगी आसक्तिका त्याग करके केवल ममतारहित इन्द्रियाँशरीरमनबुद्धि के द्वारा केवल अन्तःकरणकी शुद्धिके लिये ही कर्म करते हैं ॥
English
Yogis perform action with body, mind, intellect, and the senses, giving up attachment, only for inner purification.
What this verse means
A true practitioner acts with the body, mind, intellect, and senses, but without clinging to results. The purpose is inner cleansing, not possession.
Context & commentary
On the battlefield at Kurukshetra, Arjuna is still frozen while Krishna explains how action can continue without bondage. The yogi uses body, mind, intellect, and senses, but drops attachment so the action itself becomes purification.
Why this verse still matters
You send the difficult message, close the laptop, and still feel the knot in your stomach. The verse says the act can be clean even when the outcome is uncertain.
The takeaway
You can do the work without being owned by it.
Word-by-word translation
कायेन (by the body) / मनसा (by the mind) / बुद्ध्या (by the intellect) / केवलैः (by the merely) / इन्द्रियैः (by the senses) / अपि (also) / योगिनः (yogis) / कर्म (action) / कुर्वन्ति (perform) / सङ्गम् (attachment) / त्यक्त्वा (having given up) / आत्मशुद्धये (for inner purification)
This verse is part of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5: Karma Sanyasa Yoga — The Yoga of Renunciation, which contains 29 verses.
Explore related themes: karma yoga (55 verses), attachment (20 verses)