अकर्म

Akarma literally means the absence of action. But in Gita 4.18 it is not used in that plain sense. There we are told that one who sees inaction in action, and action in inaction, is wise, is a yogi, and is one who does all action.

The point is that the difference between action and akarma is not decided by outer movement. Someone may work all day and remain inwardly unbound; in terms of bondage, that action is like akarma. Someone else may sit quietly while the mind races among desires; his outer inaction is full action within. Verses 4.19 to 4.23 draw the portrait of a person whose action has no craving, no clinging to results and no attachment left in it.

Common misreading: taking akarma to mean laziness or giving up action. The Gita says that no one stays without action even for a moment (3.5), and it nowhere advises dropping one’s duty.

Better sense: action carried out fully outside, with no knot tied inside.

To read further, see the topic Karma and Akarma.