नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
Hindi · हिन्दी
तू शास्त्रविधिसे नियत किये हुए कर्तव्यकर्म कर क्योंकि कर्म न करनेकी अपेक्षा कर्म करना श्रेष्ठ है तथा कर्म न करनेसे तेरा शरीरनिर्वाह भी सिद्ध नहीं होगा ॥
English
Do the duty prescribed for you. Action is better than inaction, and even your body cannot be sustained by inaction.
What this verse means
Krishna tells Arjuna to do the duty assigned to him. Action is better than sitting idle, and even basic life cannot continue through inaction.
Context & commentary
On the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Arjuna is paralysed with doubt. Krishna answers the paralysis directly: do the duty that is already yours. This verse turns the argument from fear into action.
Why this verse still matters
You are staring at the unanswered message, the apology, the hard resignation email. Waiting for perfect certainty only deepens the knot; action is what loosens it.
The takeaway
There is relief in moving forward: doing the needed thing is cleaner than freezing in fear.
Word-by-word translation
नियतं (prescribed) / कुरु (do) / कर्म (action, duty) / त्वं (you) / कर्म (action) / ज्यायः (better) / हि (indeed) / अकर्मणः (than inaction) / शरीरयात्रा (bodily maintenance, livelihood) / अपि (also, even) / च (and) / ते (your) / न (not) / प्रसिद्ध्येत् (would be accomplished) / अकर्मणः (by inaction)
This verse is part of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3: Karma Yoga — The Yoga of Action, which contains 43 verses.
Explore related themes: kurukshetra (95 verses), duty (13 verses)