Life is sustained by interconnected cycles.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
अन्नाद्भवन्ति भूतानि पर्जन्यादन्नसम्भवः |यज्ञाद्भवति पर्जन्यो यज्ञः कर्मसमुद्भवः ||३-१४||
annādbhavanti bhūtāni parjanyādannasambhavaḥ . yajñādbhavati parjanyo yajñaḥ karmasamudbhavaḥ ||3-14||
Use this verse to build ecological and spiritual awareness.
Meaning
Beings arise from food; food arises from rain; rain arises from yajna; and yajna arises from action.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Krishna describes the sacred cycle of life and action.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
This verse shows interdependence. Food, rain, sacrifice, and action are connected in a living cycle. A modern reading can include ecological responsibility: human action affects nature, nature affects food, and food sustains life. Karma Yoga is not only personal productivity; it is participation in the cosmic and ecological order with responsibility.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna traces the great wheel of sustenance. Beings arise from anna, food; food comes from rain; rain is sustained by sacrifice; and sacrifice itself springs from karma, action. Step by step he reveals how every link in the chain of life depends on the one before it.
This is an ecological and spiritual vision rolled into one. Nothing stands alone; existence is a continuous flow in which giving and receiving are inseparable. Crucially, the chain begins and is renewed through action performed in the spirit of sacrifice.
By placing karma at the foundation, Krishna gently returns to his theme: action is not a problem to escape but the very engine that keeps the wheel of life turning. To act rightly is to participate in the sacred maintenance of the whole cosmos.
In daily life
Act in ways that respect nature, food, and the systems that sustain life.
Reducing food waste is not just efficiency; it is respect for the yajna-chain that brought food to the plate.
Try this today
Reduce one form of waste today: food, water, energy, time, or attention.
I participate responsibly in the cycle of life.Reflect
How do my actions affect the larger cycle of life?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘यज्ञः कर्मसमुद्भवः’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on sacrifice, in other chapters
- Verse 4.32All forms of sacred action belong to the realm of action; knowing this — and that the true Self stands beyond it — is liberating.
- Verse 5.14Action springs from nature's flow, not from the pure Self — release the burden of believing your ego authors it all.
- Verse 7.4Even your mind, intellect, and ego belong to Nature — you are the awareness witnessing them, not the instruments themselves.
- Verse 10.23No realm of existence stands outside the Divine — the foremost in each reveals one face of the one Lord.
Swipe left for 3.15 · Sacred action connects daily life with the divine order.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 3.14
Who says Bhagavad Gita 3.14, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 3.14, in Chapter 3, Karma Yoga (Karma Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 3.14 mean?
Beings arise from food; food arises from rain; rain arises from yajna; and yajna arises from action. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 3.14 for daily life?
Act in ways that respect nature, food, and the systems that sustain life. Reducing food waste is not just efficiency; it is respect for the yajna-chain that brought food to the plate.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 3.14 mean?
अन्नात् भवन्ति भूतानि — from food beings come into being; पर्जन्यात् अन्नसम्भवः — from rain food is produced; यज्ञात् भवति पर्जन्यः — from sacrifice arises rain; यज्ञः कर्मसमुद्भवः — sacrifice is born of action (work).
Where does verse 3.14 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 14 of 43 in Chapter 3, Karma Yoga. The next verse is 3.15.