Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 18, Verse 10

न द्वेष्ट्यकुशलं कर्म कुशले नानुषज्जते । त्यागी सत्त्वसमाविष्टो मेधावी छिन्नसंशयः

na dveṣṭyakuśalaṃ karma kuśale nānuṣajjate | tyāgī sattvasamāviṣṭo medhāvī chinnasaṃśayaḥ

Translation

He hates not evil action, nor is he attached to a good one — he who has abandoned, pervaded by Sattva and possessed of wisdom, his doubts cut asunder.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

na

not

dveṣṭi

hates

akuśalam

unpleasant

karma

action

kuśale

in pleasant

na

not

anuṣajjate

is attached

tyāgī

the abandoner

sattvasamāviṣṭaḥ

satva-pervaded

medhāvī

intelligent

chinnasaṃśayaḥ

cut, doubt, whose, he

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

Evil action: the kāmya-karma, the interested action, which becomes the cause of saṃsāra by producing a body. He does not hate evil action, thinking "of what avail is it?" Good one: nitya-karma, obligatory action. He cherishes no attachment for it by way of thinking that it leads to mokṣa. This is said of him who has abandoned attachment and desire — who, having abandoned attachment to action and desire for its fruit, performs obligatory works. When he is permeated with Sattva, which causes a discriminative knowledge of the Self and the not-Self, he becomes gifted with wisdom, with knowledge of Self; his doubt caused by avidyā is cut asunder by the conviction that to abide in the true nature of the Self is alone the means of attaining the Highest Bliss.