Bhagavad Gītā › Chapter 3 › Verse 8
Bhagavad Gītā 3.8: Do your part
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
niyataṃ kuru karma tvaṃ karma jyāyo hyakarmaṇaḥ
śarīrayātrāpi ca te na prasiddhyedakarmaṇaḥ
Recitation: NehalDaveND (Wikimedia Commons) · CC BY-SA 4.0, adapted, original recording
Meaning
Perform your prescribed action, for action is superior to inaction; even the maintenance of your body would not be possible through inaction. Niyata karma, the work properly one’s own, is for Arjuna his duty as a warrior; for each person it is their own rightful responsibility.
For children
Krishna says: “Do your jobs! Doing is better than doing nothing. You couldn’t even eat or get dressed without doing something.”
Having shown that action cannot be given up (3.4–3.7), Kṛṣṇa tells Arjuna directly to act.
Word by word
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं — Do the work that is yours to do
- niyata: your own, assigned
- kuru: do!
- karman: action, work
- tvam: you
कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः — for doing is better than not doing
- jyāyas: better
- hi: for, indeed
- akarman: not acting
शरीरयात्रापि च ते — even looking after your body
- śarīra: body
- yātrā: upkeep, journey
- api: even
न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः — would not be possible without action
- prasiddhyet: would be possible
Kṛṣṇa speaks this verse. The Sanskrit is checked against four editions; meanings and word notes are simple learning aids written for MahaPrabha Gurukul, awaiting review by a Sanskrit teacher.