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Bhagavad-gītā 6.1

श्रीभगवानुवाच अनाश्रित: कर्मफलं कार्यं कर्म करोति य: । स सन्न्यासी च योगी च न निरग्न‍िर्न चाक्रिय: ॥ १ ॥
śrī-bhagavān uvāca
[shree-bhagavaan uvaacha]
anāśritaḥ karma-phalaṁ
[anaashritah karma-phalam]
kāryaṁ karma karoti yaḥ
[kaaryam karma karoti yah]
sa sannyāsī ca yogī ca
[sa sannyaasee cha yogee cha]
na niragnir na cākriyaḥ
[na niragnir na chaakriyah]
Word-for-word
śrī - bhagavān uvāca — the Lord said anāśritaḥ — without taking shelter karma - phalam — of the result of work kāryam — obligatory karma — work karoti — performs yaḥ — one who saḥ — he sannyāsī — in the renounced order ca — also yogī — mystic ca — also na — not niḥ — without agniḥ — fire na — nor ca — also akriyaḥ — without duty .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrī-bhagavān uvāca
śrī - bhagavān uvāca
the Lord said
anāśritaḥ
without taking shelter
anāśritaḥ karma-phalaṁ
karma - phalam
of the result of work
kāryaṁ karma karoti yaḥ
kāryam
obligatory
karma
work
karoti
performs
yaḥ
one who
sa sannyāsī ca yogī ca
saḥ
he
sannyāsī
in the renounced order
ca
also
yogī
mystic
ca
also
na niragnir na cākriyaḥ
na
not
niḥ
without
agniḥ
fire
na
nor
ca
also
akriyaḥ
without duty .
Important Words
  • anāśritaḥ — without taking shelter (of the fruits)
    A negative compound — an-āśritaḥ. The yogī has cut his last refuge in karma-phala. The verse opens by defining the renunciate not by what he refuses to do, but by what he refuses to lean on.
  • kāryam — obligatory
    Gerundive of √kṛ. The action is not chosen, it is prescribed — by varṇa, āśrama, situation. Renunciation is not the abandonment of kārya, only the abandonment of clinging to its outcome.
  • sannyāsī — in the renounced order
    From sam-ni-√as: 'to lay down completely.' Kṛṣṇa redefines the term — laying down does not mean dropping fire and duty, but dropping the inner claim over results.
  • yogī — mystic
    Placed in apposition with sannyāsī — Kṛṣṇa is collapsing the two categories that the world keeps separate. The same person, viewed from outside as worker, is viewed from within as renunciate.
  • akriyaḥ — without duty
    A-kriyaḥ — privative. The verse's sting: the man who has stopped acting is not thereby a yogī. Inaction is not renunciation; it is often only laziness wearing the robe.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: One who is unattached to the fruits of his work and who works as he is obligated is in the renounced order of life, and he is the true mystic, not he who lights no fire and performs no duty.
Classical Sanskrit analysis शास्त्रीय विश्लेषण
How Sanskrit scholars read this verse — split, rearranged, grammar-tagged. For the plain English distilled meaning, jump to Plain meaning below.
Auto-generated study layers — original analysis of the public-domain śloka. Review against a published edition for academic work.
Plain meaning (तात्पर्य · Tātparya)
Kṛṣṇa opens Chapter 6 by collapsing the false dichotomy between renunciation and action: the real sannyāsī is whoever works the appointed work while letting go of its fruit. Abandoning fires and duties is no qualification at all.
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
The verse pivots from karma-yoga (Ch. 5) into dhyāna-yoga by redefining 'sannyāsa' as inner non-attachment rather than outer withdrawal. 'Niragni' targets the orthodox renunciant who has given up the agnihotra; 'akriya' rebukes lazy inaction disguised as detachment. Kāryam karma — duty done because it is duty — is the bridge to the meditation discipline that follows.
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
यः कर्म-फलम् अनाश्रितः कार्यं कर्म करोति, सः सन्न्यासी च योगी च; न तु निरग्निः न च अक्रियः (सन्न्यासी भवति)।
yaḥ karma-phalam anāśritaḥ kāryaṃ karma karoti, saḥ sannyāsī ca yogī ca; na tu niragniḥ na ca akriyaḥ (sannyāsī bhavati)|
He who, without taking shelter of the fruits of action, performs his prescribed duty — he is both a renunciant and a yogī; not he who merely abandons sacred fires or sits inactive.
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
श्रीभगवान् उवाच
śrībhagavān uvāca
अनाश्रितः कर्म-फलं कार्यं कर्म करोति यः । सः सन्न्यासी च योगी च न निरग्निः न च अक्रियः ॥
anāśritaḥ karma-phalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ | saḥ sannyāsī ca yogī ca na niragniḥ na ca akriyaḥ ||
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
SanskritIASTGrammarMeaning
अनाश्रितः anāśritaḥ अन् + आ + √श्रि p.p.p. (past passive participle) nom.sg. (nominative singular)m., bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) not taking shelter of
कर्म-फलम् karma-phalam कर्म (n.) + फल (n.) acc.sg. (accusative singular), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) the fruit of action
कार्यम् kāryam √कृ fut. (future)pass. (passive)part. acc.sg. (accusative singular)n. what ought to be done, prescribed
कर्म karma कर्मन् (n.) acc.sg. (accusative singular) action, duty
करोति karoti √कृ pres. (present) 3sg.par. (parasmaipada / active voice) performs
यः yaḥ यद् (rel. pron. (pronoun)) nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. who
सः saḥ तद् (dem. (demonstrative) pron. (pronoun)) nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. he
सन्न्यासी sannyāsī सन्न्यासिन् (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) renunciant
च ca ind. (indeclinable) and
योगी yogī योगिन् (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) yogī
न na ind. (indeclinable) not
निरग्निः niragniḥ निस् + अग्नि (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular), bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) one without sacred fires
अक्रियः akriyaḥ अ + क्रिया (f.) → adj. nom.sg. (nominative singular)m., bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) one without (ritual) action
श्रीभगवान् śrībhagavān श्री + भगवत् (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) the Blessed Lord
उवाच uvāca √वच् perf. (perfect) 3sg.par. (parasmaipada / active voice) said
Purport

In this chapter the Lord explains that the process of the eightfold yoga system is a means to control the mind and the senses. However, this is very difficult for people in general to perform, especially in the Age of Kali. Although the eightfold yoga system is recommended in this chapter, the Lord emphasizes that the process of karma-yoga, or acting in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is better. Everyone acts in this world to maintain his family and their paraphernalia, but no one is working without some self-interest, some personal gratification, be it concentrated or extended. The criterion of perfection is to act in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and not with a view to enjoying the fruits of work. To act in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the duty of every living entity because all are constitutionally parts and parcels of the Supreme. The parts of the body work for the satisfaction of the whole body. The limbs of the body do not act for self-satisfaction but for the satisfaction of the complete whole. Similarly, the living entity who acts for satisfaction of the supreme whole and not for personal satisfaction is the perfect sannyāsī, the perfect yogī. The sannyāsīs sometimes artificially think that they have become liberated from all material duties, and therefore they cease to perform agnihotra yajñas (fire sacrifices), but actually they are self-interested because their goal is to become one with the impersonal Brahman. Such a desire is greater than any material desire, but it is not without self-interest. Similarly, the mystic yogī who practices the yoga system with half-open eyes, ceasing all material activities, desires some satisfaction for his personal self. But a person acting in Kṛṣṇa consciousness works for the satisfaction of the whole, without self-interest. A Kṛṣṇa conscious person has no desire for self-satisfaction. His criterion of success is the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, and thus he is the perfect sannyāsī, or perfect yogī. Lord Caitanya, the highest perfectional symbol of renunciation, prays in this way: na dhanaṁ na janaṁ na sundarīṁ kavitāṁ vā jagad-īśa kāmaye mama janmani janmanīśvare bhavatād bhaktir ahaitukī tvayi “O Almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor to enjoy beautiful women. Nor do I want any number of followers. What I want only is the causeless mercy of Your devotional service in my life, birth after birth.”

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
1. He who performs his work out of duty while not seeking results is a sannyāsī and yogī, not one who lights no fire and performs no work.
Commentary

In the sixth chapter, the method of controlling the fickle mind, achieved by the yogī who has controlled the senses through the process of aṣṭāṅga-yoga, is described. In commencing the practice of aṣṭāṅga-yoga, one should not suddenly give up niṣkāma-karma-yoga which purifies the heart. He who performs actions prescribed by the scripture as inescapable duty (kāryam karma) without expectation of results (anāśritaḥ karma-phalam) is called a sannyāsī, since he renounces the results of his actions. He is called a yogī because his mind does not dwell on the enjoyment of objects of the senses. A person who merely renounces actions such as the fire sacrifice is not called a sannyāsī. Nor is one who merely half closes his eyes without external bodily activity (akriyaḥ) called a yogī.

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa Gauḍīya
Translation
1. He who performs his work out of duty, not seeking results, is a sannyāsī and yogī, not one who lights no fire(prescribed duties), and performs no actions for maintenance of the body.
Commentary

In the sixth chapter, the method of yoga for one who has been purified through karma yoga and achieved control of the mind, and the method of creating steadiness for even the person of unsteady mind, are described. The Lord will teach aṣṭaṅga yoga, the culmination of karma yoga which he taught previously. The Lord first praises karma yoga because of its practicality in two verses. He who performs his actions as duties that should be done (karyam), without desire for animals, food, sons or heaven, is a person fixed in jñāna yoga (sannyāsī) and a person fixed in aṣṭaṅga yoga (yogī). Both of these stages are achieved by execution of karma yoga. He is the real sannyāsī, not the person in sannyāsa dress who has renounced things such as fire sacrifice (niragniḥ); or the yogī with half closed eyes who gives up actions related to bodily maintenance (akriyaḥ). It is recommended here that those who desire to practice aṣṭaṅga yoga should not suddenly give up prescribed actions.

Bhūrijana Dāsa Gauḍīya
Commentary

Here is the third time that Krsna is making this point ‑ not to give up work. One who is renounced is the one who renounces the fruit of his work while working in a dutyful way. He is the advanced soul. This what Krsna wants of Arjuna and is the basic prescription that He is giving: "Do your work, but with detachment." Krsna is saying this again. Why is He saying this? Because He just described 'astanga‑yoga'. And that process means 'one goes to the forest and perform yoga'. This first Section is going to explain that even 'astanga‑ yogis', like niskama karmis engage in detached work to advance. And it will explain it ‑ at what stage in astanga‑yoga one can give up the practice of niskama karma ‑ that is what we have to look forward to. Even in astanga‑yoga one shouldn't give up work in the beginning. Therefore Krsna explains the same point in the next two verses.

Study Notes — Gauranga Priya Dāsa
Gauranga Priya Dāsa Study
Bhakti-śāstrī Notes, ISKCON Chowpatty (2009)
Theme

One should not prematurely renounce his duties, because actually, it is by giving up the desire for

fruits of one’s action and by working as obligated, one becomes a “true sannyasi” or a “true yogi”

Criteria of ‘perfect sannyasi’ and ‘perfect yogi’
To work unattached to fruits of one’s work
To work as he is obligated
Not he who lights no fire and performs no duty

LINK BETWEEN TEXTS 6.1 & 6.2:

Krishna will now explain the relationship between sannyasa and yoga

Focus of Learning

(a) Karma-yoga is better than astanga-yoga because

Astanga-yoga, as a means to control mind and senses is very difficult especially in this age
Everyone in this world is working for personal self-interest (personal or extended). Sannyasis and mystic yogis are also self interested as follows:
Sannyasis – They are always seeking oneness with impersonal Brahman (desiring liberation) and they cease to perform their prescribed duties like ‘agnihotra yajnas’ etc.
Mystic yogis – They also seek some satisfaction for their personal self by aspiring for mystic perfections (siddhis)
But the criteria of perfection is “to act in Krishna consciousness and not with a view to enjoy the fruits of one’s work”
Analogy: Limbs as part and parcel of the whole are supposed to serve the whole –Similarly Krishna consciousness is the duty of all living entities

(b) Therefore definition of ‘perfect sannyasi’ and ‘perfect yogi’ – Those who work only for the

satisfaction of Krishna without any self-interest

Conclusion: Krishna conscious devotee is the most perfect and true sannyasi and yogi
e.g. Lord Caitanya prays for devotional service as the ultimate perfection – “na dhanam na janam...”

PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF SECTION I

True renunciation manifests in detachment from possessiveness and enjoying propensities, and not necessarily in cessation of activities
Krishna consciousness is the ultimate plane of selflessness, because a devotee only desires the pleasure of Krishna
Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
6.1 Anasritah, without depending on;-on what?-on that which is karma-phalam, the result of action- i.e. without craving for the result of action-. He who craves for the results of actions becomes dependent on the results of actions. But this person is the opposite of such a one. Hence (it is said), 'wihtout depending on the result of action. Having become so, yah he who; karoti, performs accomplishes; (karma, an action;) which is his karyam, duty, the nityakarmas such as Agnihotra etc. which are opposed to the kamya-karmas-. Whoever is a man of action of this kind is distinguished from the other men of action. In order to express this idea the Lord says, sah, he ; is a sannyasi, monk, and a yogi. Sanyyasa, means renunciation. he who is possessed of this is a sannyasi, a monk. And he is also a yogi. Yoga means concentration of mind. He who has that is a yogi. It is to be understood that this man is possessed of these alities. It is not to be understood that, only that person who does not keep a fire (niragnih) and who is actionless (akriyah) is a monk and a yogi. Niragnih is one from whom the fires [viz Garhapatya, Ahavaniya, Anvaharya-pacana, etc.], which are the accessories of rites, have bocome dissociated. By kriya are mean austerity, charity, etc. which are performed wityout fire. Akriyah, actionless, is he who does not have even such kriyas. Objection: Is it not only with regard to one who does not keep a fire and is acitonless that monasticsm and meditativeness are well known in the Vedas, Smrtis and scriptures dealing with meditation? Why are monasticism and meditativeness spoken of here with regard to one who keeps a fire and is a man of action-which is not accepted as a fact? Reply: This defect does not arise, because both are sought to be asserted in some secondary sense. Objection: How is that? Reply: His being monk is by virtue of his having given up hankering for the results of actions; and his being a man of meditation is from the fact of his doing actions as accesories to meditation or from his rejection of thoughts for the results of actions which cause disturbances in the mind. Thus both are used in a figurative sense. On the contrary, it is not that monasticism and meditativeness are meant in the primary sense. With a veiw to pointing out this idea, the Lord says:
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
6.1 The Lord said He who, without depending on such fruits of works as heaven, etc., performs them, reflecting, 'The performance of works alone is my duty (Karya). Works themselves are my sole aim, because they are a form of worship of the Supreme Person who is our Friend in every way. There is nothing other than Him to be gained by them' - such a person is a Sannyasin, i.e., one devoted to Jnana Yoga, and also a Karma Yogin, i.e., one devoted to Karma Yoga. He is intent on both these, which is the means for attaining Yoga, which is of the nature of the vision of the self. 'And not he who maintains no sacred fires and performs no works,' i.e., not he who is disinclined to perform the enjoined works such as sacrifices, etc., nor he who is devoted to mere knowledge. The meaning is that such a person is devoted only to knowledge, whereas a person who is devoted to Karma Yoga has both knowledge and works. Now Sri Krsna teaches that there is an element of knowledge in the Karma Yoga as defined above.
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
6.1 See Comment under 6.2
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
6.1 The Blessed Lord said He who performs his bounden duty without depending on the fruits of his actions he is a Sannyasi and a Yogi; not he who is without fire and without action.
Commentary

6.1 अनाश्रितः not depending (on)? कर्मफलम् fruit of action? कार्यम् bounden? कर्म duty? करोति performs? यः who? सः he? संन्यासी Sannyasi (ascetic)? च and? योगी Yogi? च and? न not? निरग्निः without fire? न not? च and? अक्रियः without action.Commentary Actions such as Agnihotra? etc.? performed without the expectation of their fruits purify the mind and become the means to Dhyana Yoga or the Yoga of Meditation.Karyam Karma bounden duty.Niragnih without fire. He who has renounced the daily rituals like Agnihotra? which are performed with the help of fire.Akriya without action. He who has renounced austerities and other meritorious acts like building resthouses? charitable dispensaries? digging wells? feeding the poor? etc.Sannyasi he who has renounced the fruits of his actions.Yogi he who has a steady mind. These two terms are applied to him in a secondary sense only. They are not used to denote that he is in reality a Sannyasi and a Yogi.The Sannyasi performs neither Agnihotra nor other ceremonies. But simply to omit these without genuine renunciation will not make one a real Sannyasi. (Cf.V.3)

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
6.1 The Blessed Lord said He who performs an action which is his duty, without depending on the result of action, he is a monk and a yogi; (but) not (so in) he who does not keep a fire and is actionless.
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
6.1 "Lord Shri Krishna said: He who acts because it is his duty, not thinking of the consequences, is really spiritual and a true ascetic; and not he who merely observes rituals or who shuns all action.
Related values & verses
Related values
Tyaga (Renunciation / Letting Go)Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)Prema (Divine Love)Samata (Equanimity / Even-mindedness)Vinaya (Humility / Modesty)
Related verses
BG 2.47 BG 3.19 BG 5.2 SB 11.20.7 SB 7.15.66 SB 11.10.4 CC Madhya 19.149 CC Madhya 22.93 CC Antya 6.220 Īśa Upaniṣad 2 BRS 1.2.255
Concepts
Yoga
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
The true sannyāsī is one who acts in dharma without attachment to results — not one who simply abandons fire and prescribed rituals.
Practical Applications
  • Don't equate giving up rituals with spiritual progress; check the inner stance.
  • Continue your duties with a renounced mind rather than abandoning them.
  • Honor those who serve in the world more than those who only flee it.
Reflection Questions
  • Where am I confusing external renunciation with inner detachment?
  • What duty am I tempted to drop in the name of 'spirituality'?
Analogy

A potter whose hands stay clean of clay is not a renunciate — only a man who has not yet sat at the wheel. The true tyāgī keeps both hands deep in the clay of duty and still walks away at sunset owning none of the pots. Renunciation is in the heart's grip, not in the empty hand.

Stories
King Janaka at the Wheel

Janaka ruled Mithilā, oversaw armies and treasuries, married off his daughter Sītā, and yet was held by sages as the model of a self-realized soul. He did not extinguish the ritual fires nor abdicate the throne in the name of renunciation.

Kṛṣṇa Himself names Janaka in 3.20 as one who reached perfection through action. This is the very karma-yogī described in 6.1: the obligatory work is done in full; the proprietorship over the fruit is dropped.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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