Bhagavad Gita 3.19: meaning and translation
Chapter 3: Karma Yoga. Krishna says
So, Krishna says, always do the work that ought to be done (kārya), without attachment, for a person who acts without attachment reaches the highest (param).
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Bhagavad Gita 3.19
तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर ।असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः ॥
Tasmadasaktah satatam karyam karma samacharaAsakto hyacharankarma paramapnoti purushah
tasmādasaktaḥ satataṃ kāryaṃ karma samācara |asakto hyācarankarma paramāpnoti pūruṣaḥ ||
Our explanation So, Krishna says, always do the work that ought to be done (kārya), without attachment, for a person who acts without attachment reaches the highest (param).
हिंदी अर्थ कृष्ण कहते हैं कि इसलिए आसक्ति के बिना सदा वह कर्म करो जो करना चाहिए, क्योंकि आसक्ति के बिना कर्म करने वाला मनुष्य परम को पाता है।
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- तस्मात् tasmāt · therefore (indeclinable) Dictionary: tasmāt, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 441, col. 2 “from that, on that account, therefore”
- असक्तः asaktaḥ · unattached (past participle (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: a-sakta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 118, col. 1 “detached from worldly feelings or passions, unattached or indifferent to (loc.)”
- सततम् satatam · always (indeclinable) Dictionary: sa-tata, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1138, col. 1 “constant, perpetual, continual, uninterrupted”
- कार्यम् kāryam · that ought to be done (gerundive (to be done) (neuter), accusative singular) Dictionary: kārya, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 276, col. 1 “work or business to be done”
- कर्म karma · work, action (noun (neuter), accusative singular) Dictionary: karman, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 258, col. 2 “act, action, performance, business”
- समाचर samācara · do, perform (imperative, 2nd person singular) Dictionary: sam-ā-car, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1159, col. 1 “to practise, perform thoroughly, do, accomplish”
- असक्तः asaktaḥ · unattached (past participle (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: a-sakta, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 118, col. 1 “detached from worldly feelings or passions, unattached or indifferent to (loc.)”
- हि hi · for (indeclinable) Dictionary: 2. hi, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1297, col. 3 “for, because, on account of”
- आचरन् ācaran · doing (present participle (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: ā-car, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 131, col. 3 “to act, undertake, do, exercise, practise, perform”
- कर्म karma · action (noun (neuter), accusative singular) Dictionary: karman, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 258, col. 2 “act, action, performance, business”
- परम् param · the highest (adjective (neuter), accusative singular) Dictionary: 1. para, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 586, col. 1 “highest, supreme, chief”
- आप्नोति āpnoti · reaches (present, 3rd person singular) Dictionary: 1. āp, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 142, col. 1 “to reach, overtake, meet”
- पूरुषः pūruṣaḥ · a person (noun (masculine), nominative singular) Dictionary: pūruṣa, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 643, col. 1; puruṣa, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 637, col. 1 “a person”
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 54.
Therefore1 always perform action, which must be performed, without attachment. For a man, performing action without attachment, attains the Supreme.
Footnotes (the translator’s own) - Srîdhara says that Arguna is here told to perform action, as freedom from it is only for the man of true knowledge, which Arguna is not as yet. ↩
Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 54.
Therefore1 always perform action, which must be performed, without attachment. For a man, performing action without attachment, attains the Supreme.
Footnotes (the translator’s own) - Srîdhara says that Arguna is here told to perform action, as freedom from it is only for the man of true knowledge, which Arguna is not as yet. ↩
You are reading this one
Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 44.
Therefore, without attachment, constantly perform action which is duty, for, performing action without attachment, man verily reacheth the Supreme.
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 72.
Therefore, do thou always perform actions which are obligatory, without attachment;—by performing action without attachment, one attains to the highest.
You are reading this one
Cite this verse
The translation: K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 54. Bhagavad Gita 3.19.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 44. Bhagavad Gita 3.19.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 72. Bhagavad Gita 3.19.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 3.19: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 27, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/3/19/
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Bhagavad Gita 3.19
तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर ।
असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः ॥
“Therefore always perform action, which must be performed, without attachment. For a man, performing action without attachment, attains the Supreme.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), p. 54, public domain)
“Therefore, without attachment, constantly perform action which is duty, for, performing action without attachment, man verily reacheth the Supreme.”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), p. 44, public domain)
“Therefore, do thou always perform actions which are obligatory, without attachment;—by performing action without attachment, one attains to the highest.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 72, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/3/19/ 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 3.19?
Krishna speaks this verse, in chapter 3 (Karma 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 27, 2026.