Mature action is beyond liking and disliking.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
न द्वेष्ट्यकुशलं कर्म कुशले नानुषज्जते |त्यागी सत्त्वसमाविष्टो मेधावी छिन्नसंशयः ||१८-१०||
na dveṣṭyakuśalaṃ karma kuśale nānuṣajjate . tyāgī sattvasamāviṣṭo medhāvī chinnasaṃśayaḥ ||18-10||
Use this verse when preference controls duty.
Meaning
The renouncer, filled with sattva, wise and free from doubt, neither hates unpleasant action nor clings to pleasant action.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
A true renouncer does not hate difficult duty or cling to pleasant duty.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna describes emotional maturity in action. The sattvic renouncer acts from clarity, not mood. They do not avoid hard tasks or become attached to easy, pleasant ones.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna now describes the inner state of the true tyagi. Saturated with sattva, sharp in intelligence, and free of all doubt — chinna-samshaya — such a person meets work with perfect even-mindedness. He neither recoils from the unpleasant task nor clings to the pleasant one.
This equanimity is the fruit of right renunciation. Because results no longer dictate his emotions, no duty feels like a burden and no pleasant outcome becomes a snare. His doubts are severed because he has seen clearly: action belongs to him, results do not. From that clarity flows a calm, unwavering capacity to do whatever the moment demands.
In daily life
Do not let preference decide duty.
A manager may prefer strategy work but still handle difficult people issues because it is required.
Try this today
Do one necessary task you have been avoiding.
I act from clarity, not preference.Reflect
Do I avoid unpleasant duties and cling to pleasant ones?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘अकुशलं कर्म’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on freedom, in other chapters
- Verse 3.18Inner completeness means acting from fullness, not need — free from the endless calculation of what you might gain or lose.
- Verse 5.3True renunciation is freedom from craving and aversion within — not the outer abandonment of work.
- Verse 15.5Inner freedom from pride, craving, and the swing of pleasure and pain leads to the imperishable state.
- Verse 14.11When clarity and inner light fill your senses and mind, sattva is rising — use such moments for what matters most.
Swipe left for 18.11 · True tyaga is fruit-renunciation, not action-paralysis.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 18.10
Who says Bhagavad Gita 18.10, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 18.10, in Chapter 18, Moksha Sannyas Yoga (Moksha Sannyas Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 18.10 mean?
The renouncer, filled with sattva, wise and free from doubt, neither hates unpleasant action nor clings to pleasant action. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 18.10 for daily life?
Do not let preference decide duty. A manager may prefer strategy work but still handle difficult people issues because it is required.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 18.10 mean?
न द्वेष्टि — does not hate; अकुशलं कर्म — disagreeable / unpleasant action; कुशले — in agreeable action; न अनुषज्जते — is not attached; त्यागी — the man of renunciation.
Where does verse 18.10 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 10 of 78 in Chapter 18, Moksha Sannyas Yoga. The next verse is 18.11.