Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 5, Verse 12
युक्तः कर्मफलं त्यक्त्वा शान्तिमाप्नोति नैष्ठिकीम्।
अयुक्तः कामकारेण फले सक्तो निबध्यते।।
अयुक्तः कामकारेण फले सक्तो निबध्यते।।
yuktaḥ karma-phalaṁ tyaktvā śāntim āpnoti naiṣṭhikīm
ayuktaḥ kāma-kāreṇa phale sakto nibadhyate
also searched as "Yuktah karma phalam tyaktva shantim apnoti naishthikim"
Translation
A yogi, renouncing the fruits of their actions, attains lasting peace. But the unsteady person who is attached to the fruits of their actions, being driven by desire, is bound.
Vāṇi's rendering
Give up the result and find lasting peace. Cling to the result, and desire ties you down.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| युक्तःyuktaḥ | the one who is joined, steady, held together in yoga |
| कर्मफलम्karma-phalaṁ | the fruit of action, the result of what is done |
| त्यक्त्वाtyaktvā | having let go, having released |
| शान्तिम्śāntim | peace, stillness |
| आप्नोतिāpnoti | reaches, comes into |
| नैष्ठिकीम्naiṣṭhikīm | final, settled, the kind that lasts |
| अयुक्तःayuktaḥ | the one not joined, unsteady, scattered |
| कामकारेणkāma-kāreṇa | by the pushing of desire, driven by wanting |
| फलेphale | in the fruit, upon the result |
| सक्तःsaktaḥ | stuck fast, clinging (sandhi: sakto before ni-) |
| निबध्यतेnibadhyate | is tied down, is bound |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5 Verse 12 mean?
It sets two workers side by side. The steady one releases the result and comes into a peace that nothing later can undo — naiṣṭhikī, settled peace. The scattered one, pushed by wanting, grips the result and is tied down by that grip. Same action, two entirely different lives.
What is the meaning of yuktah karma phalam tyaktva shantim apnoti naishthikim?
Yuktaḥ is one who is joined — held steady, not pulled apart by hope and dread. Such a person lets the fruit go and reaches śānti that is naiṣṭhikī: final, not the temporary calm that lasts until the next piece of news arrives.
Does giving up the result mean I should stop caring about my work?
No. Krishna asks you to release the fruit, not the effort. Care about the work as fully as you can — sharpen it, finish it well. What you set down is the demand that it turn out a particular way. The work stays; the anxiety leaves.
Who is binding the person who clings to results?
No one. Nibadhyate says he is bound, but the verse names the cause as kāma-kāreṇa — the working of his own desire. The rope is self-made. That is difficult to hear and also the good news, because what you tied you can loosen.
Themes in this verse
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Two people do the same work. One puts down the result; one carries it. Krishna is not describing two kinds of labour — he is describing two kinds of grip. The steady one acts and lets the outcome go, and what arrives is not a reward but a settling: śānti that does not depend on how things turn out. The other is driven — kāma-kāreṇa, by the push of wanting — and the rope he is tied by is one he braided himself. Nobody binds him. He is holding on. Notice, in the middle of your own work, which hand is open.