Chapter 16, Verse 24
तस्माच्छास्त्रं प्रमाणं ते कार्याकार्यव्यवस्थितौ | ज्ञात्वा शास्त्रविधानोक्तं कर्म कर्तुमिहार्हसि ||१६-२४||
tasmācchāstraṃ pramāṇaṃ te kāryākāryavyavasthitau . jñātvā śāstravidhānoktaṃ karma kartumihārhasi ||16-24||
Meaning
16.24 Therefore, let the scripture be thy authority in determining what ought to be done and what ought not to be done. Having known what is said in the ordinance of the scriptures, thou shouldst act here in this world.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
The chapter closes with a clear and grounding instruction. Let shastra — scripture — be your pramana, your authority and standard, in discerning karya and akarya, what ought and ought not to be done. After surveying the chaos of the desire-driven life, Krishna offers a steadying anchor: a tested measure outside the turbulence of one's own impulses.
Yet notice the verb jnatva, 'having known.' This is not blind obedience but informed action. The seeker is to understand what the scriptures teach and then act in the world (iha) with that understanding. Earlier in the Gita, Krishna pointed beyond the letter of scripture to direct realization; here he gives Arjuna, still on the path, a reliable footing for daily conduct. The whole chapter thus resolves into a practical wisdom: until the inner light is fully steady, let the lamp of tested guidance illumine each step of right action.
💡 Key Takeaway
Let tested wisdom guide your discernment of right and wrong, then act in the world with knowing, clear-eyed conviction.
Related Verses
द्वौ भूतसर्गौ लोकेऽस्मिन्दैव आसुर एव च | दैवो विस्तरशः प्रोक्त आसुरं पार्थ मे शृणु ||१६-६||
dvau bhūtasargau loke.asmindaiva āsura eva ca . daivo vistaraśaḥ prokta āsuraṃ pārtha me śṛṇu ||16-6||
16.6 There are two types of beings in this world, the divine and the demoniacal; the divine has been described at length; hear from Me, O Arjuna, of the demoniacal.
प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च जना न विदुरासुराः | न शौचं नापि चाचारो न सत्यं तेषु विद्यते ||१६-७||
pravṛttiṃ ca nivṛttiṃ ca janā na vidurāsurāḥ . na śaucaṃ nāpi cācāro na satyaṃ teṣu vidyate ||16-7||
16.7 The demoniacal know not what to do and what to refrain from; neither purity, nor right conduct nor truth is found in them.
यः शास्त्रविधिमुत्सृज्य वर्तते कामकारतः | न स सिद्धिमवाप्नोति न सुखं न परां गतिम् ||१६-२३||
yaḥ śāstravidhimutsṛjya vartate kāmakārataḥ . na sa siddhimavāpnoti na sukhaṃ na parāṃ gatim ||16-23||
16.23 He who, having cast aside the ordinances of the scriptures, acts under the impulse of desire, attains not perfection, nor happiness nor the Supreme Goal.