A declaration · reflective in mood · builds on earlier teachings
“Ignorance, not action, is what keeps beings confused.”
The all-pervading one takes neither anyone's wrongdoing nor anyone's good deed. Knowledge is covered by ignorance, and that is why living beings are deluded.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Hover a word to focus on it.
Read literallydoes not take · of anyone · wrongdoing · not · and · indeed · good deed · the all-pervading one · by ignorance · covered · knowledge · by that · are deluded · living beings
The divine does not collect anyone's good or bad actions. People get confused because ignorance covers their understanding.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Karma Sanyasa Yoga" (The Yoga of Renunciation).
Verse 15 sits in Chapter 5 of the Bhagavad Gita — Karma Sanyasa Yoga, "The Yoga of Renunciation". The chapter has 29 verses in total.
You replay one mistake at 2 a.m. and treat it like your identity. This verse cuts deeper: the real problem is not the act alone, but the ignorance that keeps repeating it.
Did you like this verse?
It shifts attention from moral bookkeeping to clear seeing. When ignorance lifts, the mind stops being ruled by confusion.
What this verse means
The divine does not collect anyone's good or bad actions. People get confused because ignorance covers their understanding.
Context & commentary
Krishna is still answering Arjuna on the battlefield, where duty feels impossible and every choice seems stained. He shifts the focus from action itself to the ignorance that distorts understanding, showing why people stay confused about responsibility.
Why this verse still matters
You replay one mistake at 2 a.m. and treat it like your identity. This verse cuts deeper: the real problem is not the act alone, but the ignorance that keeps repeating it.
“You are not trapped by what you did, but by what you fail to see.”
Explore related themes: jnana (24 verses), delusion (19 verses), karma phala (10 verses)