What is action, what is wrong action, and what is inaction? And how can a person act all day and yet not be bound? The Lord answers in nine verses of the fourth chapter. In short, action is bound by what the doer brings to it. A person who is free of desire-driven intention, of clinging and of the sense "I am the doer", and who offers the work, acts and is not bound. The Lord calls this seeing inaction in action.
Here we take the nine verses in order (Gita 4.16 to Gita 4.24). They follow two earlier lessons. The third chapter taught that no one can stop acting (Can We Simply Stop Acting?), and the second taught that the right is to the action and not the fruit (Action Without Claiming the Fruit). Here the Lord shows what happens to action itself.
What comes just before: the Lord acts and is not bound
The passage is prepared by two verses before it. The Lord says that actions do not bind him because he has no desire for their results, and that one who understands him thus is not bound by actions either (Gita 4.14). He adds that the seekers of liberation in ancient times also performed their duties, and that Arjuna should do the same (Gita 4.15). So the picture of free action is not a new demand. The Lord himself acts and is not bound, and the earlier seekers acted and were free. The verses we read here explain how.
Why the Lord says the matter is hard
अकर्मणश्च बोद्धव्यं गहना कर्मणो गतिः॥ ४.१७॥
One must understand what constitutes proper action, what constitutes wrongful action, and what constitutes inaction. The workings of karma are extremely subtle, profound, and difficult to comprehend.
The Lord begins by saying that even the learned are confused about what is action and what is inaction, and that he will explain it, so that Arjuna may be free from bondage (Gita 4.16). A clear reason is behind the remark. The line between action and inaction is not drawn at the body. A person can sit still and be very busy inside, and a person can be busy all day and be at rest inside.
Then he says that three things must be understood: right action (karma), wrong action (vikarma) and inaction (akarma). The way of action is deep (Gita 4.17).
| Kind | What it is | What it does to the doer |
|---|---|---|
| Karma | Right action, done in the world | Binds when done with clinging and with "I" |
| Vikarma | Wrong action, done from desire, anger or delusion | Binds heavily (see The Enemy Called Desire) |
| Akarma | Action that does not bind | Binds nothing |
The akarma of this table is not the not-acting that the third chapter rejected. There the word meant stopping. Here it means acting freely.
What the wise see
स बुद्धिमान्मनुष्येषु स युक्तः कृत्स्नकर्मकृत्॥ ४.१८॥
One who sees inaction (freedom from karmic bondage) within action, and action within apparent inaction, is truly wise among human beings. Such a person is established in yoga and is regarded as having accomplished all actions.
The wise one sees inaction in action and action in inaction. In plain words, the wise see in an action done without clinging a quiet where nothing binds. And they see in the idle show of a person who sits still with a racing mind a great deal of action (Gita 3.6). Such a person is established in yoga and has done all that is to be done.
Why can the wise see this? Because they see that the self is not the doer. The qualities of nature act, and the mind clouded by ego says "I do" (Gita 3.27, Gita 3.28; see Who Is the Doer?). The knower sees the senses moving among their objects (Gita 5.8, Gita 5.9).
Burnt by knowledge
The next verse says that the sage's undertakings are free from desire and from willed intention (sankalpa), and that his actions are burnt in the fire of knowledge (jnanagni). The wise call such a person learned (Gita 4.19). The fire of knowledge is read in a later stretch of the chapter.
The plain meaning is that the knot of action forms in the intention. "I shall get this" is where the bind begins. Where that intention is gone, the act has nothing to hold on to.
Independent and content
कर्मण्यभिप्रवृत्तोऽपि नैव किञ्चित्करोति सः॥ ४.२०॥
One who has abandoned attachment to the fruits of action, who is ever content and independent of external supports, remains fully engaged in action yet, in truth, does nothing—that is, he does not become bound by his actions.
The person has given up clinging to the fruit, is ever content and does not lean on any outside support (nirashraya). Although fully engaged in action, the person does nothing, in the sense that nothing binds (Gita 4.20).
This is the mark of independence. Such a person's mood does not hang on credit, thanks or a result.
Held and light
The person has no expectations, holds mind and senses in check, has let go of possessiveness (parigraha), and does only the bodily action that life and duty need. No sin or bond follows (Gita 4.21).
Restraint and non-hoarding are marks of a free mind. The free person's needs are simple, and the action is what life asks of them.
Content with what comes
समः सिद्धावसिद्धौ च कृत्वापि न निबध्यते॥ ४.२२॥
One who remains content with whatever comes naturally, has risen above the dualities of life, is free from jealousy, and maintains equanimity in both success and failure, does not become bound by karma even while performing actions.
The person is content with whatever comes unasked, is beyond the pairs of success and failure, pleasure and pain, and is free from envy (matsarya). Such a person is equal in success and failure, and although acting, is not bound (Gita 4.22).
The action melts away
यज्ञायाचरतः कर्म समग्रं प्रविलीयते॥ ४.२३॥
The actions of a liberated person, whose attachments have ended, whose mind is established in spiritual wisdom, and who performs actions in the spirit of sacrifice and dedication to the Divine, completely dissolve and do not create karmic bondage.
The person's attachments are gone, the person is free, the mind stands in knowledge, and the person acts for the sake of sacrifice (yajna). The whole of the action dissolves (Gita 4.23). Think of ice that meets warmth. The act is there, and what held it in a hard form is not.
All is an offering
ब्रह्मैव तेन गन्तव्यं ब्रह्मकर्मसमाधिना॥ ४.२४॥
For a seeker whose vision has become established in Brahman, the act of offering, the offering itself, the sacred fire, the one who offers, and the goal attained are all Brahman. Such a person, absorbed in Brahman through action, ultimately attains Brahman alone.
The offering, the thing offered, the fire, the one who offers and the aim reached are all Brahman. A person whose vision is set on this, and who is absorbed in it through action, reaches Brahman alone (Gita 4.24). This is a vision and not an instruction on ritual. It sees the whole act as one reality. The many forms of sacrifice follow in the verses after it.
The Gita brings this vision to ordinary work in simple words: whatever you do, offer it (Gita 9.27; see A Leaf, a Flower). The offered act is untouched, like a lotus leaf on water (Gita 5.10; see Offering All Actions).
The start, the middle and the end of an act
The five marks can also be read along the life of one act. At the start, the intention is free from desire for gain (Gita 4.19). In the middle, the doer does not lean on any outside support and does not grasp (Gita 4.20, Gita 4.21). At the end, the doer is content with what comes and free from envy (Gita 4.22). Through all three, the act is given away (Gita 4.23, Gita 4.24).
This is why a person can check themselves at three moments. Before beginning, ask what the task is meant to fetch. During the work, notice what the mood is leaning on. After the work, notice what is being claimed or compared.
The five marks, with a question for each
| Mark | Verses | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Free of desire-driven intention | 4.19 | Am I starting this to get something? |
| Independent | 4.20 | Does my mood depend on credit or thanks? |
| Held and not grasping | 4.21 | Am I taking more than the day needs? |
| Content and free from envy | 4.22 | Can I be glad when another does well? |
| Offering | 4.23, 4.24 | Can I give this work away? |
Common misreadings
"Akarma means doing nothing." The person is fully engaged (Gita 4.20), and action is better than inaction (Gita 3.8).
"The liberated person is passive or cold." The Lord says the wise should act without attachment for the welfare of the world (Gita 3.25).
"If I am not the doer, I may act as I like." The sight of non-doership belongs to one who has dropped the "I" (Gita 5.8). The marks include restraint, and the Lord asks for all actions to be offered (Gita 3.30).
"The marks are virtues to display." They are results of seeing and not performances (Gita 4.18).
"The vision of the last verse makes everything the same, so nothing matters." The vision sees one reality in the act. The duty remains (Gita 3.19).
An example
Take Vimala, the senior nurse of a medical ward. The shift is the same, and so are the patients. In some seasons she hurries home feeling used. She remembers who forgot to thank her and who was promoted.
A friend asks her one thing each evening: what did you claim today, what did you wait for, whom did you compare yourself with? Over a few weeks Vimala finds that the work did not weigh. These three things did.
She begins her shift by offering the day to the patients, and ends it by setting down what she has claimed. The work is the same. The evenings change.
A practice from the verses
- Begin the day by naming whom the work serves (Gita 9.27).
- Start each task for the task's sake and not for what it will fetch (Gita 4.19).
- Notice what your mood depends on (Gita 4.20).
- Take only what the day needs (Gita 4.21).
- At the end, set down what you claimed (Gita 4.22).
Did I begin anything today only for what it would fetch? Did my mood rise and fall with credit? Did I take more than the day needed? Was I glad when another did well? Could I give today's work away?
Questions readers ask
Why does the Lord say that even the learned are confused?
The line between action and inaction is drawn at the claim and not at the body (Gita 4.16). From the outside the two can look alike, so the learned who judge by outside signs are confused.
Is wrong action only what we call sin?
The word names action done from desire, anger or delusion (Gita 4.17). The chain of desire and anger is read in The Enemy Called Desire (Gita 3.36, Gita 3.37). Giving up a duty in delusion is also named as dull (Gita 18.7; see Relinquishment and Renunciation of Action).
What does "only bodily action" mean?
It means the action that the body and the duty need, without loading the mind with expectation (Gita 4.21). The body's upkeep is itself a duty (Gita 3.8).
How can the offering and the one who offers be the same?
The last verse gives a vision in which all five are one reality (Gita 4.24). For the beginner the practice is simpler: offer whatever you do (Gita 9.27).
Can a householder live like this?
Yes. Janaka and others reached perfection through action (Gita 3.20). The marks are about the mind, and they do not require leaving one's duties (see Acting for the World).
Action does not bind by being action
Action binds by what the doer brings to it. The nine verses show the doer leaving the claim and keeping the work. The Lord states the picture in one image.
लिप्यते न स पापेन पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा ॥ ५.१० ॥
One who performs all actions as an offering to God, abandoning attachment and possessiveness, does not become bound by karmic impurity. Such a person remains untouched by the effects of action, just as a lotus leaf remains unwetted even while resting upon water.
For the simple version, see the simple reading. For the finer points, the traditions and the objections, see the deeper reading. This is the seventh stop on The Path of Karma Yoga, after Acting for the World and before Who Is the Doer?.