Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 3, Verse 17

यस्त्वात्मरतिरेव स्यादात्मतृप्तश्च मानवः । आत्मन्येव च सन्तुष्टस्तस्य कार्यं न विद्यते

yastvātmaratireva syādātmatṛptaśca mānavaḥ | ātmanyeva ca santuṣṭastasya kāryaṃ na vidyate

Translation

That man, verily, who rejoices only in the Self, who is satisfied with the Self, who is content in the Self alone — for him there is nothing to do.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

yaḥ

who

tu

indeed

ātmaratiḥ

in the Self, pleasure, whose, he

eva

only

syāt

may be

ātmatṛptaḥ

by the Self, satisfied

ca

and

mānavaḥ

the man

ātmani

in the Self

eva

only

ca

and

santuṣṭaḥ

contented

tasya

of him

kāryam

(work) to be done

na

not

vidyate

is

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

But that man — a saṃnyāsin, the Sāṅkhya, one devoted to Self-knowledge — whose joy is in the Self, not in the objects of the senses; who is satisfied only with the Self, not with food-essence, etc.; who is contented in the Self — all others derive contentment from possession of external things, whereas, disregarding these, he is content in the Self only and has no desire for anything — for such a man, for the man who knows the Self, there is nothing to do.