Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 4, Verse 41

योगसंन्यस्तकर्माणं ज्ञानसञ्छिन्नसंशयम् । आत्मवन्तं न कर्माणि निबध्नन्ति धनञ्जय

yogasaṃnyastakarmāṇaṃ jñānasañchinnasaṃśayam | ātmavantaṃ na karmāṇi nibadhnanti dhanañjaya

Translation

Him who has renounced actions by Yoga, whose doubts have been cloven asunder by wisdom, who is self-possessed, actions bind not, O Dhanañjaya.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

yogasaṃnyastakarmāṇam

by Yoga, renounced, action, by whom, him

jñānasañchinnasaṃśayam

by knowledge, cut away, doubt, whose, him

ātmavantam

possessing the Self

na

not

karmāṇi

actions

nibadhnanti

bind

dhanañjaya

O Dhanañjaya

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

He who sees the Supreme Being renounces all actions — dharma and adharma — by virtue of Yoga or knowledge of the Supreme Being. He attains this stage when his doubt has been cloven asunder by the realisation of the oneness of the Self with the Īśvara. As he traces all actions to the interactions of the energies (guṇas), actions do not bind him; they do not produce any effects (good or bad) in the case of him who, in virtue of his Yoga, has renounced all actions and is ever watchful over his self.