Bhagavad Gita Chapter 9, Verse 28

Chapter 9 – Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

शुभाशुभफलैरेवं मोक्ष्यसे कर्मबन्धनैः ।
संन्यासयोगयुक्तात्मा विमुक्तो मामुपैष्यसि ॥

Transliteration

śubhāśubhaphalairevaṃ mokṣyase karmabandhanaiḥ .
saṃnyāsayogayuktātmā vimukto māmupaiṣyasi ॥

Meaning

In this way you will be freed from the bonds of action that yield good and evil fruits; with your mind established in the yoga of renunciation, liberated, you will come to Me.

Word meanings

शुभाशुभफलैः – of good and evil fruits
एवम् – thus
मोक्ष्यसे – you will be freed
कर्मबन्धनैः – from the bonds of action
संन्यासयोगयुक्तात्मा – with mind united in the yoga of renunciation
विमुक्तः – liberated
माम् – to Me
उपैष्यसि – you will come

Anvaya (word order)

एवं (त्वं) शुभाशुभफलैः कर्मबन्धनैः मोक्ष्यसे; संन्यासयोगयुक्तात्मा विमुक्तः (सन्) माम् उपैष्यसि ।

Explanation

In the previous verse Krishna asked that all actions be offered to Him. Here He gives the result: ‘thus you will be freed from the bonds of karma with their good and evil fruits.’ Actions bear two kinds of fruit, auspicious (merit) and inauspicious (sin). People usually think only sin binds, not merit. The Gita teaches that merit too binds, for one must take birth to enjoy it. Sin is a chain of iron, merit a chain of gold, but both are chains.

When action is offered to God, its fruit too becomes His. Without the ego of doership and the craving for results, the seed of karma is roasted, and a roasted seed does not sprout even when sown. Action done in the spirit of offering therefore creates no new bondage.

Sannyasa-yoga-yuktatma: here sannyasa does not mean wearing ochre robes and leaving home. Shankara explains that offering all actions to the Lord is itself the renunciation meant here, and it is also yoga, because action continues. For Ramanuja, sannyasa is giving up three things: the sense of doership, the sense of ownership and the desire for fruit. This is the art of renouncing inwardly while acting outwardly.

‘Liberated, you will come to Me.’ Such a person becomes free of bonds even while living, and on leaving the body attains the Lord. It is not a distant reward but a freedom that begins in this very life.

Context

Verse 27 instructed that all actions be offered to the Lord. This verse gives the fruit of that offering: release from karmic bondage and attainment of God. In the next verse Krishna explains that He is equal to all, yet devotees dwell in Him and He in them.

Life lesson

Even good actions bind when done with ego and craving for results. True renunciation is not leaving home but letting go of doership and attachment to outcomes while continuing to act. That is the road to inner freedom.

Key terms

Shubhashubha phala: good and evil fruits of action
Karma-bandhana: bondage of karma, compelling rebirth
Sannyasa-yoga: acting while surrendering doership and fruit to the Lord
Vimukta: fully liberated