Chapter 3, Verse 3
श्रीभगवानुवाच | लोकेऽस्मिन् द्विविधा निष्ठा पुरा प्रोक्ता मयानघ | ज्ञानयोगेन साङ्ख्यानां कर्मयोगेन योगिनाम् ||३-३||
śrībhagavānuvāca . loke.asmina dvividhā niṣṭhā purā proktā mayānagha . jñānayogena sāṅkhyānāṃ karmayogena yoginām ||3-3||
Meaning
3.3 The Blessed Lord said In this world there is a twofold path, as I said before, O sinless one; the path of knowledge of the Sankhyas and the path of action of the Yogins.
Word-by-Word Meaning
Explanation & Commentary
Krishna answers directly, naming two time-honoured paths: jnana-yoga, the discipline of knowledge suited to the contemplative Sankhya temperament, and karma-yoga, the discipline of selfless action suited to those of an active nature. By calling Arjuna anagha — 'sinless one' — Krishna affirms his worthiness even amid doubt.
The key word is dvividha nishtha: two forms of one steadfast commitment. These are not contradictory goals but two doorways into the same sanctuary of liberation. Different temperaments require different beginnings; the introspective find truth through inquiry, the dynamic find it through dedicated work. Krishna thus reframes Arjuna's either/or question: the issue is not which path is superior in the abstract, but which suits your nature. Both, rightly walked, arrive at the same realization.
💡 Key Takeaway
There is more than one valid road to truth — choose the one that fits your temperament rather than chasing what suits another's.
Related Verses
अर्जुन उवाच | ज्यायसी चेत्कर्मणस्ते मता बुद्धिर्जनार्दन | तत्किं कर्मणि घोरे मां नियोजयसि केशव ||३-१||
arjuna uvāca . jyāyasī cetkarmaṇaste matā buddhirjanārdana . tatkiṃ karmaṇi ghore māṃ niyojayasi keśava ||3-1||
3.1 Arjuna said If Thou thinkest that knowledge is superior to action, O Krishna, why then, O Kesava, dost Thou ask me to engage in this terrible action?
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.
न हि कश्चित्क्षणमपि जातु तिष्ठत्यकर्मकृत् | कार्यते ह्यवशः कर्म सर्वः प्रकृतिजैर्गुणैः ||३-५||
na hi kaścitkṣaṇamapi jātu tiṣṭhatyakarmakṛt . kāryate hyavaśaḥ karma sarvaḥ prakṛtijairguṇaiḥ ||3-5||
3.5 Verily none can ever remain for even a moment without performing action; for everyone is made to act helplessly indeed by the alities born of Nature.