Sanskrit · Devanagari
न कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषोऽश्नुते। न च संन्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति ॥
Sanskrit · IAST
na karmaṇāmanārambhānnaiṣkarmyaṃ puruṣo.aśnute na ca saṃnyasanādeva siddhiṃ samadhigacchati
English witness
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882A man does not attain freedom from action merely by not engaging in action nor does he attain perfection by mere renunciation. For nobody ever remains even for an instant without performing some action
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29 translations and commentaries are aligned to this verse. Choose up to three; the root verse and Telang witness stay above them.
Śaṅkarācārya
।।3.4।। न कर्मणां क्रियाणां यज्ञादीनाम् इह जन्मनि जन्मान्तरे वा अनुष्ठितानाम् उपात्तदुरितक्षयहेतुत्वेन सत्त्वशुद्धिकारणानां तत्कारणत्वेन च ज्ञानोत्पत्तिद्वारेण ज्ञाननिष्ठाहेतूनाम् ज्ञानमुत्पद्यते पुंसां क्षयात्पापस्य कर्मणः। यथादर्शतलप्रख्ये पश्यत्यात्मानमात्मनि (महा0 शान्ति0 204।8) इत्यादिस्मरणात् अनारम्भात् अननुष्ठानात् नैष्कर्म्यं निष्कर्मभावं कर्मशून्यतां ज्ञानयोगेन निष्ठां निष्क्रियात्मस्वरूपेणैव अवस्थानमिति यावत्। पुरुषः न अश्नुते न प्राप्नोतीत्यर्थः।।कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं नाश्नुते इति वचनात् तद्विपर्ययात् तेषामारम्भात् नैष्कर्म्यमश्नुते इति गम्यते। कस्मात् पुनः कारणात् कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं नाश्नुते इति उच्यते कर्मारम्भस्यैव नैष्कर्म्योपायत्वात्। न ह्युपायमन्तरेण उपेयप्राप्तिरस्ति। कर्मयोगोपायत्वं च नैष्कर्म्यलक्षणस्य ज्ञानयोगस्य श्रुतौ इह च प्रतिपादनात्। श्रुतौ तावत् प्रकृतस्य आत्मलोकस्य वेद्यस्य वेदनोपायत्वेन तमेतं वेदानुवचनेन ब्राह्मणा विविदिषन्ति यज्ञेन (बृह0 उ0 4।4।22) इत्यादिना कर्मयोगस्य ज्ञानयोगोपायत्वं प्रतिपादितम्। इहापि च संन्यासस्तु महाबाहो दुःखमाप्तुमयोगतः (गीता 5।6) योगिनः कर्म कुर्वन्ति सङ्गं त्यक्त्वात्मशुद्धये (गीता 5।11) यज्ञो दानं तपश्चैव पावनानि मनीषिणाम् (गीता 18।5) इत्यादि प्रतिपादयिष्यति।।ननु च अभयं सर्वभूतेभ्यो दत्त्वा नैष्कर्म्यमाचरेत् इत्यादौ कर्तव्यकर्मसंन्यासादपि नैष्कर्म्यप्राप्तिं दर्शयति। लोके च कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यमिति प्रसिद्धतरम्। अतश्च नैष्कर्म्यार्थिनः किं कर्मारम्भेण इति प्राप्तम्। अत आह न च संन्यसनादेवेति। नापि संन्यसनादेव केवलात् कर्मपरित्यागमात्रादेव ज्ञानरहितात् सिद्धिं नैष्कर्म्यलक्षणां ज्ञानयोगेन निष्ठां समधिगच्छति न प्राप्नोति।।कस्मात् पुनः कारणात् कर्मसंन्यासमात्रादेव केवलात् ज्ञानरहितात् सिद्धिं नैष्कर्म्यलक्षणां पुरुषो नाधिगच्छति इति हेत्वाकाङ्क्षायामाह
08747421d13d…Rāmānuja
3.4 Not by non-performance of the acts prescribed by the scriptures, does a person attain freedom from Karma, i.e., Jnana Yoga; nor by ceasing to perform such actions as are prescribed in the scriptures and are already begun by him. For, success is achieved by actions done without attachment to the fruits and by way of worshipping the Supreme Person. Hence devoid of it (Karma-nistha), one does not achieve Jnana-nistha. By those persons who have not worshipped Govinda by acts done without attachment to fruits and whose beginningless and endless accumulation of evil has not been annulled thery, constant contemplation on the self is not possible. It can be done only if it is preceded by the attainment of a state in which the operation of the senses have been freed from disturbance. This view is put forward by the Lord:
850c96a5b14d…Swami Sivananda
3.4 न not? कर्मणाम् of actions? अनारम्भात् from nonperformance? नैष्कर्म्यम् actionlessness? पुरुषः man? अश्नुते reaches? न not? च and? संन्यसनात् from renunciation? एव only? सिद्धिम् perfection? समधिगच्छति attains.Commentary Actionlessness (Naishkarmyam) and perfection (Siddhi) are synonymous. The sage who has attained to perfection or reached the state of actionlessness rests in his own essential nature as ExistenceKnowledgeBliss Absolute (Satchidananda Svarupa). He has neither necessity nor desire for action as a means to an end. He has perfect satisfaction in the Self.One attains to the state of actionlessness by gaining the knowledge of the Self. If a man simply sits iet by abandoning action you cannot say that he has attained to the state of actionlessness. His mind will be planning? scheming and speculating. Thought is real action. The sage who is free from affirmative thoughts? wishes? and likes and dislikes? who has the knowledge of the Self can be said to have attained to the state of actionlessness.No one can reach perfection or freedom from action or knowledge of the Self by mere renunciation or by simply giving up activities without possessing the knowledge of the Self. (Cf.XVIII.49).
2a153750b804…These supplied texts come from the pinned VedicScriptures dataset under GPL-3.0 and await independent alignment review.