Chapter 3, Verse 18
नैव तस्य कृतेनार्थो नाकृतेनेह कश्चन | न चास्य सर्वभूतेषु कश्चिदर्थव्यपाश्रयः ||३-१८||
naiva tasya kṛtenārtho nākṛteneha kaścana . na cāsya sarvabhūteṣu kaścidarthavyapāśrayaḥ ||3-18||
Meaning
3.18 For him there is no interest whatever in what is done or what is not done; nor does he depend on any being for any object.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna deepens the portrait of the realized soul. For such a one, doing brings no special gain and leaving undone brings no loss; the self-fulfilled sage has nothing to acquire and nothing to fear losing. Nor does he depend upon any being for any object — his completeness rests entirely within.
This is true freedom: a state beyond the endless calculus of profit and loss that governs ordinary life. Most of us act because we crave outcomes or dread their absence; the liberated act, if at all, flows from fullness rather than need. Independence here is not arrogance or isolation but the natural fruit of inner sufficiency. Having found the Self, the sage relies on nothing external for his peace. This portrait stands as the inner ideal even for those of us still working amid the play of desire and aversion.
💡 Key Takeaway
Inner completeness means acting from fullness, not need — free from the endless calculation of what you might gain or lose.
Related Verses
न कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषोऽश्नुते | न च संन्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति ||३-४||
na karmaṇāmanārambhānnaiṣkarmyaṃ puruṣo.aśnute . na ca saṃnyasanādeva siddhiṃ samadhigacchati ||3-4||
3.4 Not by non-performance of actions does man reach actionlessness; nor by mere renunciation does he attain to perfection.
यस्त्विन्द्रियाणि मनसा नियम्यारभतेऽर्जुन | कर्मेन्द्रियैः कर्मयोगमसक्तः स विशिष्यते ||३-७||
yastvindriyāṇi manasā niyamyārabhate.arjuna . karmendriyaiḥ karmayogamasaktaḥ sa viśiṣyate ||3-7||
3.7 But whosoever, controlling the senses by the mind, O Arjuna, engages himself in Karma Yoga with the organs of action, without attachment, he excels.
यज्ञार्थात्कर्मणोऽन्यत्र लोकोऽयं कर्मबन्धनः | तदर्थं कर्म कौन्तेय मुक्तसङ्गः समाचर ||३-९||
yajñārthātkarmaṇo.anyatra loko.ayaṃ karmabandhanaḥ . tadarthaṃ karma kaunteya muktasaṅgaḥ samācara ||3-9||
3.9 The world is bound by actions other than those performed for the sake of sacrifice; do thou, therefore, O son of Kunti (Arjuna), perform action for that sake (for sacrifice alone), free from attachment.