SanskritGita shlokas: duty and action
The Gita is spoken on a battlefield to a man who wants to walk away from his duty, and its first great subject is action: why we must act, and how to act without being crushed by hope and fear about the result. This teaching is called karma yoga, the discipline of action.
The six verses here are the ones most often taught in schools and quoted in daily life. They come from the second and third chapters. Read them in order and an argument unfolds: your part is the work, not the reward (2.47); do it with an even mind (2.48); nobody can live without acting (3.8); so act without clinging (3.19); remember that others follow your example (3.21); and do your own duty, not someone else's (3.35).
The Sanskrit text is as transcribed on Sanskrit Wikisource (copied by program on 12 November 2026), and has not yet been compared with a printed edition; please check before reciting or printing. The meanings and notes are our own plain rendering. See About.
Bhagavad Gita 2.47
कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन ।
मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि ॥
karmanyevādhikāraste mā phaleshu kadāchana.
mā karmaphalaheturbhūrmā te sango'stvakarmani.
Hindiतुम्हारा अधिकार केवल कर्म करने में है, उसके फलों में कभी नहीं। इसलिए न तो कर्म के फल को अपना उद्देश्य बनाओ, और न ही कर्म न करने में तुम्हारा मन लगे।
EnglishYour right is to the work alone, never to its fruits. Do not let the fruit of action be your motive, and do not be drawn to inaction either.
NoteThe best-known verse of the Gita. It does not say "do not care about results". It says: put your whole attention on doing the work well, because the doing is in your hands and the result is not. The second half is often forgotten: giving up work is no answer.
Bhagavad Gita 2.48
योगस्थः कुरु कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा धनंजय ।
सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योः समो भूत्वा समत्वं योग उच्यते ॥
yogasthah kuru karmāni sangam tyaktvā dhananjaya.
siddhyasiddhyoh samo bhūtvā samatvam yoga uchyate.
Hindiहे धनंजय, आसक्ति छोड़कर और सफलता-असफलता में समान रहकर, योग में स्थित होकर कर्म करो। मन की यही समता योग कहलाती है।
EnglishSteady in yoga, O Dhananjaya, do your work, giving up attachment and staying the same in success and failure. This evenness of mind is called yoga.
NoteHere the Gita defines yoga in three words: "samatvam yoga uchyate", evenness is yoga. Dhananjaya, "winner of wealth", is a name of Arjuna.
Bhagavad Gita 3.8
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
niyatam kuru karma tvam karma jyāyo hyakarmanah.
sharīrayātrāpi cha te na prasiddhyedakarmanah.
Hindiतुम अपना नियत कर्म करो, क्योंकि कर्म न करने से कर्म करना अच्छा है। कर्म के बिना तो तुम्हारे शरीर का निर्वाह भी नहीं हो सकेगा।
EnglishDo the work that is yours to do, for action is better than inaction. Without action even the upkeep of your body would not be possible.
NoteA plain, practical argument: nobody can live without acting, so the real choice is not whether to act but how.
Bhagavad Gita 3.19
तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर ।
असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः ॥
tasmādasaktah satatam kāryam karma samāchara.
asakto hyācharankarma paramāpnoti pūrushah.
Hindiइसलिए आसक्ति के बिना सदा अपना कर्तव्य कर्म अच्छी तरह करते रहो, क्योंकि आसक्ति से रहित होकर कर्म करने वाला मनुष्य परम को पा लेता है।
EnglishTherefore always do the work that ought to be done, without attachment. For by working without attachment a person reaches the highest.
Note"Karyam karma" is the work that ought to be done, one's duty. The verse sums up the teaching of the third chapter, called Karma Yoga.
Bhagavad Gita 3.21
यद्यदाचरति श्रेष्ठस्तत्तदेवेतरो जनः ।
स यत्प्रमाणं कुरुते लोकस्तदनुवर्तते ॥
yadyadācharati shreshthastattadevetaro janah.
sa yatpramānam kurute lokastadanuvartate.
Hindiश्रेष्ठ मनुष्य जैसा आचरण करता है, दूसरे लोग भी वैसा ही करते हैं। वह जो आदर्श सामने रखता है, लोग उसी के अनुसार चलते हैं।
EnglishWhatever a great person does, others do the same. Whatever standard that person sets, the world follows.
NoteA verse on leadership and example, often quoted to parents, teachers and anyone others look up to: people copy what you do, not what you say.
Bhagavad Gita 3.35
श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् ।
स्वधर्मे निधनं श्रेयः परधर्मो भयावहः ॥
shreyānsvadharmo vigunah paradharmātsvanushthitāt.
svadharme nidhanam shreyah paradharmo bhayāvahah.
Hindiअच्छी तरह निभाए गए दूसरे के धर्म से, गुणों में कम होने पर भी अपना धर्म श्रेष्ठ है। अपने धर्म में मरना भी कल्याणकारी है; दूसरे का धर्म भय देने वाला है।
EnglishBetter is one's own duty, though imperfectly done, than the duty of another done well. Better to die in one's own duty; the duty of another is full of danger.
Note"Dharma" here means one's own nature, calling and duty, not religion in the modern sense. The thought: be faithfully yourself instead of a good copy of someone else.
How to study these verses
Read the Sanskrit aloud first, slowly, using the roman line only if you need it. Then read the meaning, and go back to the Sanskrit to see which words carry it. To understand the verse word by word, follow the four steps in how to read a shloka; the case endings and the small unchanging words will do most of the work. Learning one verse a week by heart is a good pace.