The highest action can come from fullness, not need.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
न मे पार्थास्ति कर्तव्यं त्रिषु लोकेषु किञ्चन |नानवाप्तमवाप्तव्यं वर्त एव च कर्मणि ||३-२२||
na me pārthāsti kartavyaṃ triṣu lokeṣu kiñcana . nānavāptamavāptavyaṃ varta eva ca karmaṇi ||3-22||
Use this verse when you wonder why to serve without reward.
Meaning
O Partha, I have no duty at all in the three worlds, nothing unattained to attain, yet I continue to engage in action.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Krishna acts though he has nothing personal to gain.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
This verse reveals divine leadership. Krishna is complete, yet he acts. His action is not driven by lack, ambition, or insecurity; it is an expression of dharma and cosmic responsibility. For modern leaders, this is profound: the highest action is not always for personal advancement. Sometimes mature people continue to serve because their presence, discipline, and example sustain others.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna now points to himself as the supreme example. As the Lord of all, he has no duty he must fulfil, nothing in the three worlds he lacks or needs to gain. He is utterly complete. And yet — varta eva cha karmani — he remains continuously engaged in action.
The lesson is breathtaking in its simplicity. If even the Divine, who needs nothing, chooses to act, then surely no one can justify idleness on spiritual grounds. Krishna does not act out of compulsion or desire but freely, as the very nature of the sustaining cosmos.
His engagement is pure example and pure giving. Action performed without need is the highest action of all. The realized soul, like the Divine, does not stop working upon attaining freedom; rather, freedom transforms work into spontaneous, selfless service.
In daily life
Serve even when there is nothing personal to gain.
A senior leader may mentor juniors even when it does not increase their own title or salary.
Try this today
Do one act of service today without personal benefit.
I act from fullness and responsibility.Reflect
Where can I act from fullness instead of need?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘न मे पार्थ अस्ति कर्तव्यम्’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on selfless action, in other chapters
- Verse 5.10Offer your actions to the Divine and let go of attachment — then live in the world untouched, like a lotus leaf on water.
- Verse 4.5We forget our past lives and deeper nature; spiritual growth is the slow recovery of the awareness we keep losing.
- Verse 7.7Behind the scattered jewels of life runs one hidden thread of the Divine — learn to feel the cord, not just the beads.
- Verse 12.10Even if you cannot meditate, make your daily work an offering to God and you will reach perfection.
Swipe left for 3.23 · Influence turns private behavior into public teaching.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 3.22
Who says Bhagavad Gita 3.22, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 3.22, in Chapter 3, Karma Yoga (Karma Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 3.22 mean?
O Partha, I have no duty at all in the three worlds, nothing unattained to attain, yet I continue to engage in action. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 3.22 for daily life?
Serve even when there is nothing personal to gain. A senior leader may mentor juniors even when it does not increase their own title or salary.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 3.22 mean?
न मे पार्थ अस्ति कर्तव्यम् — there is no duty for Me, O Partha; त्रिषु लोकेषु किञ्चन — in all the three worlds, anything; न अनवाप्तम् अवाप्तव्यम् — nothing unattained that must be attained; वर्ते एव च कर्मणि — yet I remain engaged in action.
Where does verse 3.22 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 22 of 43 in Chapter 3, Karma Yoga. The next verse is 3.23.