Bhagavad Gita
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नैव किंचित्करोमीति युक्तो मन्येत तत्त्ववित्। पश्यन् श्रृणवन्स्पृशञ्जिघ्रन्नश्नन्गच्छन्स्वपन् श्वसन्।।5.8।।
Verse Audio
naiva kiñchit karomīti yukto manyeta tattva-vit paśhyañ śhṛiṇvan spṛiśhañjighrann aśhnangachchhan svapañśhvasan pralapan visṛijan gṛihṇann unmiṣhan nimiṣhann api indriyāṇīndriyārtheṣhu vartanta iti dhārayan
Core Philosophical Concepts
self-mastery
non-doership
purity in action
offering of works
freedom from bondage
Word-by-Word Meanings
na (na)not; eva (eva)certainly; kiñchit (kiñchit)anything; karomi (karomi)I do; iti (iti)thus; yuktaḥ (yuktaḥ)steadfast in karm yog; manyeta (manyeta)thinks; tattva-vit (tattva-vit)one who knows the truth; paśhyan (paśhyan)seeing; śhṛiṇvan (śhṛiṇvan)hearing; spṛiśhan (spṛiśhan)touching; jighran (jighran)smelling; aśhnan (aśhnan)eating; gachchhan (gachchhan)moving; svapan (svapan)sleeping; śhvasan (śhvasan)breathing; pralapan (pralapan)talking; visṛijan (visṛijan)giving up; gṛihṇan (gṛihṇan)accepting; unmiṣhan (unmiṣhan)opening (the eyes); nimiṣhan (nimiṣhan)closing (the eyes); api (api)although; indriyāṇi (indriyāṇi)the senses; indriya-artheṣhu (indriya-artheṣhu)in sense-objects; vartante (vartante)moving; iti (iti)thus; dhārayan (dhārayan)convinced;
Translation (English)

I do nothing at all," thus would the harmonized knower of Truth think, seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, going, sleeping, and breathing.

Translation (Hindi)

।।5.8।। तत्त्ववित् युक्त पुरुष यह सोचेगा (अर्थात् जानता है) कि "मैं किंचित् मात्र कर्म नहीं करता हूँ" देखता हुआ, सुनता हुआ, स्पर्श करता हुआ, सूंघता हुआ, खाता हुआ, चलता हुआ, सोता हुआ, श्वास लेता हुआ,।।

Verse Summary(English)

I do nothing at all," thus would the harmonized knower of Truth think, seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, going, sleeping, and breathing. It teaches non-doership and purity through disciplined action without possessive identification.

Verse Summary(Hindi)

तत्त्ववित् युक्त पुरुष यह सोचेगा (अर्थात् जानता है) कि "मैं किंचित् मात्र कर्म नहीं करता हूँ" देखता हुआ, सुनता हुआ, स्पर्श करता हुआ, सूंघता हुआ, खाता हुआ, चलता हुआ, सोता हुआ, श्वास लेता हुआ,।। यहाँ कर्म करते हुए अकर्तापन, पवित्रता और फलासक्ति-त्याग की साधना समझाई गई है।

This verse in Chapter 5 develops the Gita's nuanced teaching on renunciation and action. It says: I do nothing at all," thus would the harmonized knower of Truth think, seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, going, sleeping, and breathing.. Its central themes include self-mastery, non-doership, purity in action, offering of works, showing that authentic sanyasa is primarily an inner transformation, not merely external withdrawal. Krishna's argument is practical and psychological. Action itself is not the problem; egoic ownership, craving, and aversion create bondage. When one performs duty with clarity, without possessiveness toward result, action becomes purifying rather than binding. Chapter 5 therefore integrates knowledge, discipline, and ethical responsibility, and demonstrates that serenity is compatible with active life. For real-world practice, this verse asks us to examine motive and identity while acting. Are we acting from fear, status-seeking, and control, or from dharma and steadiness. The chapter's method is to continue responsible work, reduce inner clinging, and stabilize awareness so that peace is not postponed to external success.

In Gita 5.8, Krishna sharpens the philosophical distinction between external renunciation and inner freedom while preserving the necessity of responsible action. The verse states: I do nothing at all," thus would the harmonized knower of Truth think, seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, going, sleeping, and breathing.. Its Sanskrit framing, "नैव किंचित्करोमीति युक्तो मन्येत तत्त्ववित्।", directs attention to self-mastery; non-doership; purity in action, and treats bondage as a function of misidentification rather than of activity per se. From a non-dual standpoint, Chapter 5 undermines the assumption that cessation of outer work guarantees liberation; ignorance can persist under apparent quietism. Freedom matures when the sense of autonomous doership is examined and progressively relinquished. A devotional interpretation complements this by reorienting action as offering: works continue, yet appropriation softens into surrender. An ethical reading then clarifies why Karma Yoga remains indispensable: social life requires action, and spiritual maturity must be tested in relationship, duty, and consequence. The chapter's enduring contribution is its synthesis of metaphysical insight and civic responsibility. The knower sees sameness without collapsing difference, acts without interior violence, and remains poised amid praise, blame, gain, and loss. This is not indifference but refined participation. Chapter 5 therefore invites a disciplined interiority in which knowledge, restraint, and compassion converge, allowing peace to emerge not after life, but within life rightly understood and rightly lived. In this way, renunciation becomes a quality of consciousness, not a geographical relocation from the world.

इस श्लोक में पाँचवें अध्याय का मुख्य शिक्षण सामने आता है, जहाँ श्रीकृष्ण संन्यास और कर्मयोग के संबंध को स्पष्ट करते हैं। श्लोक का भाव है: तत्त्ववित् युक्त पुरुष यह सोचेगा (अर्थात् जानता है) कि "मैं किंचित् मात्र कर्म नहीं करता हूँ" देखता हुआ, सुनता हुआ, स्पर्श करता हुआ, सूंघता हुआ, खाता हुआ, चलता हुआ, सोता हुआ, श्वास लेता हुआ,।।। इसका केंद्र self-mastery, non-doership, purity in action, offering of works जैसे विषय हैं, जो बताते हैं कि वास्तविक संन्यास बाहर का त्याग भर नहीं, बल्कि भीतर की आसक्ति का त्याग है। गीता के अनुसार कर्म करना बंधन का कारण नहीं है; बंधन तब बनता है जब कर्म अहंकार, फल-लालसा और आसक्ति से जुड़ जाता है। जब साधक कर्तव्य को ईश्वरार्पण भाव से करता है, तब वही कर्म अंतःकरण को शुद्ध करता है और मन को स्थिर बनाता है। इसलिए अध्याय 5 शांति को निष्क्रियता से नहीं, बल्कि विवेकपूर्ण और निष्काम कर्म से जोड़ता है। व्यावहारिक जीवन में यह शिक्षा अत्यंत उपयोगी है। परिवार, कार्य और समाज में रहते हुए भी व्यक्ति समत्व, संयम और स्पष्ट बुद्धि विकसित कर सकता है। यह श्लोक साधक को प्रेरित करता है कि वह जिम्मेदारी से कर्म करे, पर भीतर से फल पर अधिकार-बोध छोड़े। इसी मार्ग से कर्म साधना बनता है और साधना से स्थायी शांति तथा मुक्त दृष्टि प्राप्त होती है।

Verse
5.8