Bhagavad Gita Chapter 6, Verse 1

Chapter 6 – Dhyana Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

श्रीभगवानुवाच ।
अनाश्रितः कर्मफलं कार्यं कर्म करोति यः ।
स संन्यासी च योगी च न निरग्निर्न चाक्रियः ॥

Transliteration

śrībhagavānuvāca .
anāśritaḥ karmaphalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ .
sa saṃnyāsī ca yogī ca na niragnirna cākriyaḥ ॥

Meaning

The Blessed Lord said: One who performs the work that ought to be done without depending on its fruits is a true renunciant (sannyasi) and a true yogi — not merely one who has given up the sacred fire, nor one who has given up all activity.

Word meanings

अनाश्रितः – not depending on, not taking shelter in
कर्मफलम् – the fruit of action
कार्यम् – that which ought to be done, obligatory
कर्म – action, work
करोति – performs
यः – one who
सः – he
संन्यासी – a renunciant
च – and
योगी – a yogi
न – not
निरग्निः – one without the sacred fire
अक्रियः – one without action

Anvaya (word order)

श्रीभगवान् उवाच — यः कर्मफलम् अनाश्रितः कार्यं कर्म करोति, सः संन्यासी च योगी च; न निरग्निः, न च अक्रियः ।

Explanation

The sixth chapter opens by restating the conclusion of the fifth. Arjuna has repeatedly wondered whether giving up action is better than performing it. Krishna answers decisively: true renunciation lies not in abandoning external objects or activities but in abandoning inner attachment to results. Whoever does what duty requires, without resting his happiness on the outcome, is at once a sannyasi and a yogi.

In the Vedic tradition the formal renunciant gave up the household sacrificial fire and was therefore called niragni, 'one without fire'. He was also expected to withdraw from ritual works. Krishna points out that such outward marks are not, by themselves, renunciation. If desire still burns within, physical inactivity is only a show. Shankara reads the verse as praise of karma yoga: the selfless worker is honoured with the title 'renunciant' because he has renounced the craving for fruits, even though he has not yet taken formal sannyasa.

Ramanuja adds that action done without attachment to its fruit purifies the mind and itself becomes a means to steady knowledge of the Self; thus the karma yogi already carries within him the essence of the path of knowledge. In this way the verse lays the foundation for the entire teaching on meditation that follows — the one fit for meditation is the one whose mind is no longer agitated by anxiety over results.

The Gita's renunciation is therefore not escape but transformation. The work stays the same; what changes is the doer's inner stance.

Context

At the end of Chapter 5 (5.27–28) Krishna briefly hinted at meditation. Chapter 6 expands that hint into a full teaching on Dhyana Yoga. This first verse redefines renunciation; the next verse (6.2) declares that renunciation and yoga are essentially the same, since both require giving up selfish intention (sankalpa).

Life lesson

Running away from responsibility is not renunciation. Do your work with full sincerity, but do not make the result the foundation of your peace. This kind of inner renunciation is possible right in the middle of family and professional life.

Key terms

Sannyasi: one who has inwardly renounced desire and attachment to results
Yogi: one who acts with evenness of mind, united with the Divine
Niragni: a formal renunciant who has given up the sacrificial fire
Karmaphala: the fruit or result of action