Karma-Saṃnyāsa–Karma-Yoga Saṃvāda
Renunciation and the Discipline of Action
तत्त्ववित् तु महाबाहो गुणकर्मविभागयो: । गुणा गुणेषु वर्तन्त इति मत्वा न सज्जते
tattvavit tu mahābāho guṇakarmavibhāgayoḥ | guṇā guṇeṣu vartanta iti matvā na sajjate ||
ಆದರೆ ಹೇ ಮಹಾಬಾಹೋ! ಗುಣ-ಕರ್ಮ ವಿಭಾಗಗಳ ತತ್ತ್ವವನ್ನು ತಿಳಿದವನು ‘ಗುಣಗಳೇ ಗುಣಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ವರ್ತಿಸುತ್ತಿವೆ’ ಎಂದು ತಿಳಿದು ಆಸಕ್ತನಾಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ.
अजुन उवाच
A wise person who understands how actions arise from the guṇas of prakṛti sees agency as belonging to nature’s modes, not to an ego-self; therefore he performs duty without attachment, possessiveness, or craving for results.
In the midst of the Kurukṣetra war setting, Kṛṣṇa is instructing Arjuna on karma-yoga: how to act rightly without inner bondage. This verse explains the perspective of the tattvavit (knower of truth) who remains unattached by recognizing the guṇas as the operative forces behind action.