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Chapter 18 · The Perfection of Renunciation · 78 verses

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Duty & actionChapter 18 · The Perfection of Renunciation
18.218.4

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 18.3

Duty, renunciation and giving up the fruits

त्याज्यं दोषवदित्येके कर्म प्राहुर्मनीषिण: ।

यज्ञदानतप:कर्म न त्याज्यमिति चापरे ॥ ३ ॥

tyājyaṁ doṣa-vad ity eke

karma prāhur manīṣiṇaḥ

yajña-dāna-tapaḥ-karma

na tyājyam iti cāpare

Translation

Some learned men declare that all kinds of fruitive activities should be given up as faulty, yet other sages maintain that acts of sacrifice, charity and penance should never be abandoned.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

Different Views on Giving Up

  1. 1Some learned men say to give up all actions done for results; others say sacrifice, charity and penance should never be abandoned.
  2. 2Prabhupāda explains that sages disagree about animal sacrifice, which is meant to give the animal a new life.
  3. 3The Lord Himself now clarifies these different opinions about sacrifice.

Where we are

In the story

Chapter 18, The Perfection of Renunciation: duty, renunciation and giving up the fruits.

What it teaches

Theme summary

Act dutifully without attachment to fruits.

2

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: karma, sva-dharma.

3

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 18.3 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to duty & action?

Practice

Do one task today purely because it is right.

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The story behind it

Mahābhārata episodes and stories from the purports that shed light on this verse.

All stories for chapter 18 ›
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Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 18.2Duty, renunciation and giving up the fruitsBG 18.4Duty, renunciation and giving up the fruitsBG 2.47Responsibility without ownership of outcomesBG 3.21Leadership by example

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

Ask the study guide

Ask about BG 18.3 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.

Back to step 3The key ideasNext · Step 5 of 7 · 5 minLive the teachingsBring it into your day with a practice and a question, straight from Prabhupāda's purports.