Understand nature without becoming arrogant or hopeless.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
न कर्तृत्वं न कर्माणि लोकस्य सृजति प्रभुः |न कर्मफलसंयोगं स्वभावस्तु प्रवर्तते ||५-१४||
na kartṛtvaṃ na karmāṇi lokasya sṛjati prabhuḥ . na karmaphalasaṃyogaṃ svabhāvastu pravartate ||5-14||
Use this verse when you need to understand a repeated behavior pattern.
Meaning
The Lord does not create doership, actions, or connection with the fruits of action. Nature itself functions.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Doership and result-bondage arise through nature, not from the pure Self.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna separates the Lord and pure Self from egoic doership. The patterns of nature, habit, guna, conditioning, and tendency are what operate in life. This does not remove responsibility; it removes arrogance and self-hatred. Instead of saying I alone am everything, the seeker observes nature and learns to guide it wisely.
Read the traditional commentary
Krishna addresses a deep question: if the Self is not the doer, who or what is responsible for action and its consequences? His answer is that the Prabhu — the indwelling Self, the lord of the body — creates neither doership, nor the deeds themselves, nor the binding of action to its fruits.
It is svabhava — one's own nature, the play of the gunas (the qualities of prakriti) — that sets everything in motion.
This teaching dismantles two errors at once. We are not the helpless authors of every karmic chain, yet neither is the pure Self the agent that acts. Action belongs to nature; the Self merely witnesses. Understanding this dissolves both the burden of egoic doership and the anxiety of being personally responsible for every outcome. The Self shines untouched, while nature, following its own laws, carries the activity forward.
In daily life
Observe your patterns and take responsibility to guide them.
A person may notice anger as a conditioned pattern and work with triggers instead of only blaming themselves.
Try this today
Track one habit pattern and identify its trigger, reward, and consequence.
I understand my nature and guide it with wisdom.Reflect
Which pattern is nature expressing through me?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘स्वभावः तु’ mean in this verse?
Krishna on self, in other chapters
- Verse 14.5Your moods of clarity, drive, and dullness belong to Nature, not to the changeless Self you truly are.
- Verse 4.20When your contentment no longer depends on outcomes, you can act fully yet remain inwardly untouched.
- Verse 3.42Govern the lower from the higher — senses by mind, mind by intellect, and all by the Self that is your deepest, truest identity.
- Verse 8.3The imperishable Brahman lives as your own deepest Self, and even action is its creative expression unfolding through you.
Swipe left for 5.15 · Remove ignorance and wisdom shines again.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 5.14
Who says Bhagavad Gita 5.14, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 5.14, in Chapter 5, Karma Sannyas Yoga (Karma Sannyas Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 5.14 mean?
The Lord does not create doership, actions, or connection with the fruits of action. Nature itself functions. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 5.14 for daily life?
Observe your patterns and take responsibility to guide them. A person may notice anger as a conditioned pattern and work with triggers instead of only blaming themselves.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 5.14 mean?
न कर्तृत्वम् — neither agency / doership; न कर्माणि — nor actions; लोकस्य — for the world / people; सृजति प्रभुः — does the Lord create; न कर्मफलसंयोगम् — nor union with the fruits of action.
Where does verse 5.14 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 14 of 29 in Chapter 5, Karma Sannyas Yoga. The next verse is 5.15.