न मे पार्थास्ति कर्तव्यं त्रिषु लोकेषु किञ्चन ।नानवाप्तमवाप्तव्यं वर्त एव च कर्मणि ॥
na me pārthāsti kartavyaṃ triṣu lokeṣu kiñcana |nānavāptam avāptavyaṃ varta eva ca karmaṇi ||
- न · na
- not
- मे · me
- for me, my
- पार्थ · pārtha
- O Partha (Arjuna)
- अस्ति · asti
- is, exists
- कर्तव्यम् · kartavyam
- duty to be done
- त्रिषु · triṣu
- in the three
- लोकेषु · lokeṣu
- worlds
- किञ्चन · kiñcana
- anything
- न · na
- not
- अनवाप्तम् · anavāptam
- unobtained
- अवाप्तव्यम् · avāptavyam
- to be obtained
- वर्ते · varte
- I remain engaged
- एव · eva
- still, yet
- च · ca
- and
- कर्मणि · karmaṇi
- in action
“There is no duty for me to do in the three worlds, O Partha — nothing unobtained to obtain — and yet I remain engaged in action.”
— Original plain-language translation
Krishna offers himself as the supreme example: the Lord, lacking nothing, still works. If even completeness acts, how much more should the seeker? Divine activity is pure lokasaṅgraha — done solely to sustain the world.
— Reader's notes (original)