श्रीभगवानुवाच ।संन्यासः कर्मयोगश्च निःश्रेयसकरावुभौ ।तयोस्तु कर्मसंन्यासात्कर्मयोगो विशिष्यते ॥
śrībhagavān uvāca |sannyāsaḥ karmayogaś ca niḥśreyasakarāv ubhau |tayos tu karmasannyāsāt karmayogo viśiṣyate ||
- संन्यासः · sannyāsaḥ
- renunciation
- कर्मयोगः · karmayogaḥ
- yoga of selfless action
- निःश्रेयसकरौ · niḥśreyasakarau
- leading to the highest good
- उभौ · ubhau
- both
- तयोः · tayoḥ
- of the two
- तु · tu
- but
- विशिष्यते · viśiṣyate
- is distinguished as superior
“The Blessed Lord said: Both renunciation and the yoga of action lead to the highest good. But of the two, the yoga of action is superior to mere renunciation of action.”
— Original plain-language translation
Krishna refuses to condemn either path, yet gives Arjuna the practical ranking he asked for. Mere outer giving-up without inner detachment is fragile, while selfless action purifies the mind. For Arjuna the warrior, this points straight back to action.
— Reader's notes (original)