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What is Dharma in the Bhagavad Gita?

Dharma in the Bhagavad Gita represents one's sacred duty, moral law, and righteous path. Krishna explains that dharma includes personal duties (svadharma), universal ethics, and cosmic order. Following one's dharma, even imperfectly, is superior to perfectly performing another's duty.

— Bhagavad Gita

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What is Karma according to Bhagavad Gita?

Karma in the Bhagavad Gita means action performed with mindful intention. Lord Krishna teaches that karma encompasses all physical, mental, and verbal actions, and their inevitable consequences. True karma yoga involves performing duties without attachment to results, dedicating all actions to the Divine.

— Bhagavad Gita

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Home › Gita Verses About › Karma

Karma Verses from the Gita

Krishna's complete teachings on action, causation, and the law of cause and effect

Top 5 Verses on Karma — Ranked

These verses are ordered from most accessible/practical (for daily life) to most advanced (for the dedicated spiritual seeker).

BG 2.47 — You have the right to perform your duty but not to the fruits thereof — the foundational verse on detached action.
BG 3.5 — No one can remain actionless even for a moment; all are driven to act by the qualities of nature.
BG 4.18 — One who sees inaction in action and action in inaction is wise among humans — they are in yoga.
BG 18.23 — Action which is obligatory, performed without attachment, without love or hate, without desire for results, is called sattvic.
BG 3.19 — Therefore, always perform your duty without attachment; by performing action without attachment, one attains the Supreme.

Karma Yoga vs Other Paths in the Bhagavad Gita
Aspect	Karma Yoga (Action)	Bhakti Yoga (Devotion)	Jnana Yoga (Knowledge)
Primary Method	Selfless, detached action	Loving surrender to God	Discrimination and inquiry
Key Verse	BG 2.47	BG 9.22	BG 4.33
Best For	Active, worldly people	Devotional temperament	Contemplative seekers
Fruit	Purification of mind	Divine grace and union	Direct Self-knowledge
Obstacle	Attachment to results	Ego in worship	Dry intellectualism

How to Choose the Right Verse for You

Your situation determines which verse will speak to you most directly:

If making daily work decisions: BG 2.47 (detached action)
If understanding why we must act: BG 3.5 (action is inevitable)
If you are an advanced practitioner: BG 4.18 (seeing action in inaction)
If distinguishing right from wrong action: BG 18.23 (sattvic action definition)

Understanding Karma Through the Gita

Karma, one of the central themes of the Bhagavad Gita, encompasses both the law of action and reaction and the path of selfless service. Krishna provides comprehensive guidance on how to act in the world without creating bondage, transforming ordinary activities into spiritual practice.

These verses reveal the secret of acting without attachment, understanding the nature of action and inaction, and using work as a means of spiritual purification and growth. For a comprehensive collection of Krishna's wisdom on action and duty, explore our complete guide to Karma quotes from the Bhagavad Gita.

Essential Karma Verses

"You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but not to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty."

— Bhagavad Gita 2.47

This foundational verse establishes the principle of karma yoga: acting with full dedication while remaining detached from specific outcomes. It's the key to transforming work into spiritual practice.

"Perform your duty equipoised, O Arjuna, abandoning all attachment to success or failure. Such equanimity is called yoga."

— Bhagavad Gita 2.48

Equanimity in action is the hallmark of spiritual maturity. This verse teaches the mental attitude that transforms ordinary work into yoga - union with the Divine.

"Therefore, without being attached to the fruits of activities, one should act as a matter of duty, for by working without attachment one attains the Supreme."

— Bhagavad Gita 3.19

Detached action is not only a spiritual practice but the very path to liberation. When we act from duty rather than desire, we naturally progress toward spiritual realization.

"Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, whatever austerities you perform—do that, O son of Kunti, as an offering to the Supreme."

— Bhagavad Gita 9.27

This verse reveals how to transform every action into worship. By offering all activities to the Divine, we purify our intentions and create positive karma.

Explore More Topics

Devotion Verses Explore Dharma Verses Karma Yoga at Work See our collection of Top 25 Karma Quotes