ब्रह्मण्याधाय कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा करोति यः ।
लिप्यते न स पापेन पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा ॥
लिप्यते न स पापेन पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा ॥
Hindi · हिन्दी
जो भक्तियोगी सम्पूर्ण कर्मोंको भगवान् में अर्पण करके और आसक्तिका त्याग करके कर्म करता है, वह जलसे कमलके पत्तेकी तरह पापसे लिप्त नहीं होता ॥
English
One who offers actions to Brahman, renounces attachment, and acts is not stained by wrongdoing, just as a lotus leaf is untouched by water.
What this verse means
Do your actions without clinging to them, and they do not bind you. Like a lotus leaf in water, you remain untouched.
Context & commentary
On the battlefield, Arjuna is frozen between duty and grief. Krishna explains that action itself is not the trap; attachment is. If work is offered beyond the ego, it leaves no stain.
Why this verse still matters
You send the message, make the hard apology, or sign the document that changes everything. What matters is not whether the moment feels clean, but whether you acted without clinging to the result.
The takeaway
There is relief in acting fully without carrying the weight of ownership.
Word-by-word translation
ब्रह्मणि (in Brahman) / आधाय (having placed) / कर्माणि (actions) / सङ्गम् (attachment) / त्यक्त्वा (having abandoned) / करोति (does) / यः (who) / लिप्यते (is stained) / न (not) / सः (he) / पापेन (by wrongdoing) / पद्मपत्रम् (lotus leaf) / इव (like) / अम्भसा (by water)
This verse is part of Bhagavad Gita Chapter 5: Karma Sanyasa Yoga — The Yoga of Renunciation, which contains 29 verses.
Explore related themes: karma yoga (55 verses), vairagya (51 verses), attachment (20 verses)