यस्य नाहंकृतो भावो बुद्धिर्यस्य न लिप्यते ।
हत्वापि स इमाँल्लोकान्न हन्ति न निबध्यते ॥
हत्वापि स इमाँल्लोकान्न हन्ति न निबध्यते ॥
Hindi · हिन्दी
जिसका अहंकृतभाव नहीं है और जिसकी बुद्धि लिप्त नहीं होती, वह इन सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंको मारकर भी न मारता है और न बँधता है ॥
English
One who has no sense of separate self and whose understanding remains unstained does not kill, even by killing all these beings, and is not bound.
What this verse means
A person who has dropped ego and stays inwardly untouched is not truly the killer, and is not trapped by the act.
Context & commentary
On the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Krishna is still answering Arjuna's panic about action and guilt. After explaining the many causes behind any deed, he now says the deepest shift is to lose the sense of separate doership. Then even the hardest action does not bind.
Why this verse still matters
You make the call that ends a broken partnership. The words are heavy, but you do not have to carry them as personal guilt if you acted from clarity, not ego.
The takeaway
There is relief in seeing that action does not have to stain you when ego is absent.
Word-by-word translation
यस्य (whose) / न (not) / अहंकृतः (made by ego; marked by separate self) / भावः (state) / बुद्धिः (understanding) / यस्य (whose) / न (not) / लिप्यते (is stained; clings) / हत्वा अपि (even after killing) / सः (that one) / इमान् लोकान् (these beings) / न (not) / हन्ति (kills) / न (not) / निबध्यते (is bound)
This verse is part of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 18: Moksha Sanyasa Yoga — Liberation through Renunciation, which contains 78 verses.
Explore related themes: nishkama (14 verses)