Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 4, Verse 41
योगसंन्यस्तकर्माणं ज्ञानसंछिन्नसंशयम्।
आत्मवन्तं न कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनञ्जय।।
आत्मवन्तं न कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनञ्जय।।
yoga-sannyasta-karmāṇaṁ jñāna-sañcchinna-sanśayam
ātmavantaṁ na karmāṇi nibadhnanti dhanañjaya
also searched as "yoga sannyasta karmanam jnana sancchinna sanshayam"
Translation
Actions do not bind him, O Arjuna, who has renounced them through Karma Yoga and whose doubts have been dispelled by knowledge, and who thus possesses a steady mind.
Vāṇi's rendering
Surrender action through practice, cut doubt with knowledge, possess yourself — and no work can bind you.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| योगसंन्यस्तकर्माणम्yoga-sannyasta-karmāṇam | one whose actions have been given over through practice — the doing continues, the ownership is surrendered |
| ज्ञानसंछिन्नसंशयम्jñāna-sañcchinna-sanśayam | one whose doubt has been cut clean through by knowledge |
| आत्मवन्तम्ātmavantam | one who possesses himself; self-composed, in his own keeping |
| नna | not |
| कर्माणिkarmāṇi | actions, works |
| निबध्नन्तिnibadhnanti | they bind, they tie down |
| धनञ्जयdhanañjaya | O winner of wealth — Krishna's name for Arjuna |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 4 Verse 41 mean?
It names what makes work heavy. Not the work — the doubt inside it, and the claim of ownership around it. Give the action over through practice, cut the doubt with knowledge, and stand in your own keeping. Then the same day's labour passes through you and leaves no mark.
What does yoga sannyasta karmanam jnana sancchinna sanshayam mean?
It describes one person under three lights: his actions surrendered through steady practice, his doubt severed by knowledge, himself in his own possession. These are not three achievements but one condition seen from three sides. Krishna is not describing a saint elsewhere. He is describing what Arjuna could be by evening.
How does doubt bind us to our actions?
A divided act needs defending. When part of you refuses what your hands are doing, you build a story around it, then guard the story — and that guarding outlives the deed. Certainty is not stubbornness; it is the absence of that inner argument. What you do wholly, you can set down.
Why does Krishna call Arjuna Dhananjaya in this verse?
Dhanañjaya means winner of wealth. Krishna uses it exactly where he speaks of ātmavantam — one who possesses himself. The man who has conquered kingdoms is being shown the one holding that cannot be taken or lost. Every other possession binds you to guarding it. This one frees your hands.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna calls him Dhanañjaya here — winner of wealth. The man who has taken everything worth taking is told that the only holding which counts is holding himself. Notice the order. Action is given away first, through practice; then doubt is cut, by knowledge; and what remains is a person who belongs to himself. Doubt is what makes work stick. When you are half in and half out of what you are doing, every act leaves a residue — a debt, a defence, a story you must keep telling. Do the thing whole, and nothing clings. You walk out of the day carrying nothing.