Bhagavad Gita 14.16: meaning and translation
Chapter 14: Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga. Krishna says
Krishna says that good action is said to bear a clean fruit, of the nature of sattva.
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Bhagavad Gita 14.16
कर्मणः सुकृतस्याहुः सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम् ।रजसस्तु फलं दुःखमज्ञानं तमसः फलम् ॥
Karmanah sukritasyahuh sattvikam nirmalam phalamRajasastu phalam duhkhamajnanam tamasah phalam
karmaṇaḥ sukṛtasyāhuḥ sāttvikaṃ nirmalaṃ phalam |rajasastu phalaṃ duḥkhamajñānaṃ tamasaḥ phalam ||
Our explanation Krishna says that good action is said to bear a clean fruit, of the nature of sattva. Rajas bears the fruit of pain, and tamas the fruit of ignorance.
हिंदी अर्थ कृष्ण कहते हैं कि अच्छे कर्म का फल सात्त्विक और निर्मल कहा गया है; रज का फल दुःख है; और तम का फल अज्ञान है।
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- कर्मणः karmaṇaḥ · of action (noun (neuter), genitive singular) Dictionary: karman, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 258, col. 2 “act, action, performance, business”
- सुकृतस्य sukṛtasya · good, well done (adjective (neuter), genitive singular) Dictionary: su-kṛta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1220, col. 2 “well done or made or formed or executed”
- आहुः āhuḥ · they say (perfect form, present sense, 3rd person plural) Dictionary: 1. ah, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 124, col. 1 “to say, speak”
- सात्त्विकम् sāttvikam · of the nature of sattva (adjective (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: sāttvika, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1200, col. 1 “relating to or endowed with the quality Sattva (i.e. ‘purity’ or ‘goodness’)”
- निर्मलम् nirmalam · pure (adjective (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: nir-mala, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 541, col. 3 “spotless, unsullied, clean, pure”
- फलम् phalam · fruit, result (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: phala, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 716, col. 2 “fruit (met.), consequence, effect, result, retribution (good or bad)”
- रजसः rajasaḥ · of rajas (noun (neuter), genitive singular) Dictionary: rajas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 863, col. 2 “the ‘darkening’ quality, passion, emotion, affection”
- तु tu · but (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. tu, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 449, col. 3 “but”
- फलम् phalam · fruit (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: phala, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 716, col. 2 “fruit (met.), consequence, effect, result, retribution (good or bad)”
- दुःखम् duḥkham · pain, sorrow (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: 1. duḥkha, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 483, col. 2 “uneasiness, pain, sorrow, trouble, difficulty”
- अज्ञानम् ajñānam · ignorance (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: a-jñāna, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 10, col. 3 “non-cognizance; ignorance”
- तमसः tamasaḥ · of tamas (noun (neuter), genitive singular) Dictionary: tamas, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 438, col. 1 “one of the 3 qualities or constituents of everything in creation”
- फलम् phalam · fruit (noun (neuter), nominative singular) Dictionary: phala, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 716, col. 2 “fruit (met.), consequence, effect, result, retribution (good or bad)”
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 109.
The fruit of meritorious action is said to be good, untainted; while the fruit of passion is misery; and the fruit of darkness ignorance.
Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 109.
The fruit of meritorious action is said to be good, untainted; while the fruit of passion is misery; and the fruit of darkness ignorance.
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Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 131–132.
It is said the fruit of a good action is Sâttvic and spotless; verily the fruit of Rajas is pain, and the fruit of Tamas unwisdom.
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 277.
The fruit of good action, they say, is Sátvic and pure; verily, the fruit of Rajas is pain; and ignorance, the fruit of Tamas.
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Cite this verse
The translation: K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 109. Bhagavad Gita 14.16.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), pp. 131–132. Bhagavad Gita 14.16.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 277. Bhagavad Gita 14.16.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 14.16: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 25, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/14/16/
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Bhagavad Gita 14.16
कर्मणः सुकृतस्याहुः सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम् ।
रजसस्तु फलं दुःखमज्ञानं तमसः फलम् ॥
“The fruit of meritorious action is said to be good, untainted; while the fruit of passion is misery; and the fruit of darkness ignorance.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 109, public domain)
“It is said the fruit of a good action is Sâttvic and spotless; verily the fruit of Rajas is pain, and the fruit of Tamas unwisdom.”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), pp. 131–132, public domain)
“The fruit of good action, they say, is Sátvic and pure; verily, the fruit of Rajas is pain; and ignorance, the fruit of Tamas.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 277, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/14/16/ Nothing is sent from this site. Your own app sends it, to the chat you choose. The picture quotes the translation you chose on this page, with its name and year.
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. Source and changes
Questions families ask
Who speaks Bhagavad Gita 14.16?
Krishna speaks this verse, in chapter 14 (Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga).
Where does the Sanskrit text come from?
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. See the source
Is the meaning on this page a translation?
Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
Source and licence
- Sanskrit text
- The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation (Annie Besant, G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922). Public domain. The Sanskrit on these pages was read from this printing’s page images.
- Translation
- The Bhagavadgîtâ with the Sanatsugâtîya and the Anugîtâ, translated by Kâshinâth Trimbak Telang (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, ed. F. Max Müller) (Kashinath Trimbak Telang, F. Max Müller, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1882). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song, translated by Annie Besant (Annie Besant, Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1895). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita, with Sanskrit Text; Paraphrase with Word-by-word Literal Translation; English Rendering and Comments, Index, &c., by the Swami Swarupananda (Himalayan Series, No. XX) (Swami Swarupananda, The Editors and Publishers, Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, Prabuddha Bharata Press, Mayavati, Almora, Himalayas, 1909). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Common wording
- In this text, 32 words follow today's common wording, checked against sanskritdocuments.org; Sanskrit Wikisource; Gita Press, Gorakhpur; GRETIL, Göttingen and Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
- Our explanation
- Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
- Checked
- Checked against the cited edition, October 14, 2026.
- Updated
- October 25, 2026