Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 18, Verse 10
न द्वेष्ट्यकुशलं कर्म कुशले नानुषज्जते।त्यागी सत्त्वसमाविष्टो मेधावी छिन्नसंशयः।।
na dveṣṭy akuśalaṁ karma kuśale nānuṣajjate
tyāgī sattva-samāviṣṭo medhāvī cchinna-sanśayaḥ
also searched as "na dveshty akushalam karma kushale nanushajjate"
Translation
One who has abandoned, imbued with Sattva, wise, and whose doubts have been dispelled—such a person neither hates disagreeable acts nor clings to agreeable ones.
Vāṇi's rendering
Filled with clarity, wise, doubts cut away, the true relinquisher neither resents unpleasant work nor clings to pleasant.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| नna | not |
| द्वेष्टिdveṣṭy | hates, resents (dveṣṭi, the final i becoming y before the next vowel) |
| अकुशलम्akuśalaṁ | disagreeable, unpleasant, the kind one would rather not do |
| कर्मkarma | work, action |
| कुशलेkuśale | in agreeable work, in the pleasant task |
| नnā- | not (na, joined by sandhi to the word following) |
| अनुषज्जते-nuṣajjate | clings, sticks fast, gets attached |
| त्यागीtyāgī | the relinquisher, one who has let go of the fruit |
| सत्त्वसमाविष्टःsattva-samāviṣṭo | filled through and through with clarity (final ḥ softening to o before the next voiced sound) |
| मेधावीmedhāvī | wise, of steady understanding |
| छिन्नसंशयःcchinna-sanśayaḥ | whose doubts have been cut away |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18 Verse 10 mean?
It describes what letting go actually looks like from the outside. The true tyāgī does not hate the disagreeable task or cling to the agreeable one. Both still arrive; both still feel like what they are. What has ended is the argument with them — because sattva has filled the mind and the doubt underneath the argument has been cut.
What does 'na dveshty akushalam karma kushale nanushajjate' mean?
Literally: he does not resent unpleasant work, nor does he stick to pleasant work. Two refusals, not one. Krishna is closing both exits at once — the sulking that drags through a hard duty, and the grasping that wants a sweet one to continue. Neither is renunciation. Renunciation is doing the work with neither hand tightening.
How can I stop resenting work I do not want to do?
By noticing that the resentment is a separate act from the work. The task takes an hour; the grievance takes the whole day. Krishna does not ask you to enjoy it. He asks you to stop adding the second labour to the first. Begin the thing before you have finished deciding how you feel about it.
What does it mean that the relinquisher's doubts are cut away?
Chinna-saṁśaya — cut, not answered. The doubt Krishna means is the endless weighing of whether this work is worth doing, whether it will pay, whether some other work would suit you better. Once that weighing stops, liking and disliking lose their grip too. They were always the weighing in disguise.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Notice what is not said. Krishna does not say the relinquisher enjoys unpleasant work, or finds all tasks equally sweet. He says: no resentment, no clinging. The pleasant is still pleasant. The unpleasant still costs something. What has gone is the second layer — the grievance that the task should have been otherwise, the grip that wants the good one to last. That layer is doubt, and doubt is what has been cut. Arjuna wants to know which work is worth doing. Krishna describes a person for whom the question has dissolved. Do the dishes you were dreading. Notice you did not argue first.