Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 18, Verse 8
दुःखमित्येव यत्कर्म कायक्लेशभयात्त्यजेत्।स कृत्वा राजसं त्यागं नैव त्यागफलं लभेत्।।
duḥkham ity eva yat karma kāya-kleśa-bhayāt tyajet
sa kṛtvā rājasaṁ tyāgaṁ naiva tyāga-phalaṁ labhet
also searched as "duhkham ityeva yat karma kayakleshabhayat tyajet"
Translation
He who renounces acts that are painful out of fear of bodily suffering performs a Rajasika abandonment; however, he does not gain the fruit of such abandonment.
Vāṇi's rendering
To quit the work because it is hard, because the body would suffer — that is restless, and it earns nothing.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| दुःखम्duḥkham | painful, a hardship |
| इतिity | thus, saying — sandhi: iti + eva |
| एवeva | merely, just on that ground |
| यत्yat | which |
| कर्मkarma | work, the action at hand |
| कायक्लेशभयात्kāya-kleśa-bhayāt | out of fear of bodily discomfort |
| त्यजेत्tyajet | should let go, quits |
| सःsa | he, that one |
| कृत्वाkṛtvā | having made, having performed |
| राजसम्rājasaṁ | restless, driven by agitation |
| त्यागम्tyāgaṁ | letting-go, relinquishment |
| नna | not — sandhi: na + eva |
| एवeva | at all, in no way |
| त्यागफलम्tyāga-phalaṁ | the fruit that true letting-go yields |
| लभेत्labhet | would obtain, earns |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18 Verse 8 mean?
It means that abandoning work because it is hard, or because the body would ache, is not renunciation at all. Krishna calls such letting-go rājasa — restless, born of agitation. And it earns nothing: neither the fruit of the work you dropped, nor the freedom that genuine relinquishment brings.
What is the meaning of duhkham ityeva yat karma kayakleshabhayat tyajet?
Duḥkham ityeva — merely calling something painful. Kāya-kleśa-bhayāt — out of fear that the body will suffer. Tyajet — and so he quits. Krishna names the exact sequence: discomfort noticed, discomfort feared, work dropped. The verse does not condemn the fear. It says the dropping will not be counted as renunciation.
Is it wrong to give up work that causes me suffering?
The Gītā does not measure your comfort. It measures your reason. If the work is truly not yours, put it down. If you are putting it down because carrying it would tire you, that is rājasa tyāga, and Krishna says plainly it earns nothing. The same act, two motives, two very different outcomes.
What does rajasa tyaga mean in the Bhagavad Gita?
Rājasa tyāga is letting-go driven by restlessness rather than clarity. It looks like detachment and feels like relief, but it is only avoidance wearing detachment's clothes. Because the motive was agitation, no stillness follows. Krishna contrasts it with sāttvika tyāga in the next verse — the work done, the fruit released.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
View on the App Store
Commentary
Quitting is not always renouncing. Krishna is dividing two things that look identical from outside — the man who lays down the work because it was never his to carry, and the man who lays it down because his back hurts. The hands do the same thing. Only the reason differs, and the reason is everything. Arjuna's whole temptation is here: a withdrawal dressed as wisdom. Restless letting-go earns nothing — not the peace of renunciation, not even the fruit of the work abandoned. You lose twice. So when you are about to put something down, ask what is heavy: the duty, or the body that must bear it.