Chapter 3: Karma Yoga, verse 26
न बुद्धिभेदं जनयेदज्ञानां कर्मसङ्गिनाम्।
जोषयेत्सर्वकर्माणि विद्वान् युक्तः समाचरन् ॥
Say itna buddhi-bhedaṁ janayed ajñānāṁ karma-saṅginām
joṣhayet sarva-karmāṇi vidvān yuktaḥ samācharan
Translation
Let no wise man unsettle the minds of ignorant people who are attached to action; he should engage them in all actions, himself fulfilling them with devotion.
Swami Sivananda
The enlightened man should not disturb the beliefs of the ignorant, who are attached to work. He should remain diligent himself and make them perform all their duties.
Swami Gambirananda
Follows the commentary of Shankara (Advaita).
He should not bewilder the minds of the ignorant who are attached to work; rather, he should himself perform work with devotion and cause others to do the same.
Swami Adidevananda
Follows the commentary of Ramanuja (Vishishtadvaita).
Let the wise master of Yoga fulfill (or destroy) all actions by performing them all, and let him not create any disturbance in the minds of the ignorant persons attached to action.
Dr. S. Sankaranarayan
Follows the commentary of Abhinavagupta (Kashmir Shaivism).
But a wise man should not disturb the minds of the ignorant, who are attached to action; let him perform his own actions in the right spirit, with concentration on Me, thus inspiring all others to do the same.
Shri Purohit Swami
हे भरतवंशोद्भव अर्जुन! कर्ममें आसक्त हुए अज्ञानीजन जिस प्रकार कर्म करते हैं आसक्तिरहित विद्वान भी लोकसंग्रह करना चाहता हुआ उसी प्रकार कर्म करे। सावधान तत्त्वज्ञ महापुरुष कर्मोंमें आसक्तिवाले अज्ञानी मनुष्योंकी बुद्धिमें भ्रम उत्पन्न न करे, प्रत्युत स्वयं समस्त कर्मोंको अच्छी तरहसे करता हुआ उनसे भी वैसे ही करवाये।
Swami Ramsukhdas
ज्ञानी पुरुष, कर्मों में आसक्त अज्ञानियों की बुद्धि में भ्रम उत्पन्न न करे, स्वयं (भक्ति से) युक्त होकर कर्मों का सम्यक् आचरण कर, उनसे भी वैसा ही कराये।
Swami Tejomayananda
Classical commentariesFor deeper study. Most are in the original Sanskrit.
Advaita
Non-dual: the self and the absolute are one.
Vishishtadvaita
Qualified non-dual: souls are real parts of the divine.
Dvaita
Dual: the soul and God are eternally distinct.
Shuddhadvaita
Pure non-dual, centred on grace and devotion.
Kashmir Shaivism
The Gita read through Trika Shaiva philosophy.
Modern teachers
20th-century teachers writing for today's readers.
Verse map
How this verse connects to feelings, situations, ideas and other verses. Hover or tap to see why; these links are drafts awaiting review.
Helps when
I don't know what I should doConnected verses
is echoed in 3.21Ideas
कर्म karma