18.5
Chapter 18, Verse 5
यज्ञदानतपःकर्म न त्याज्यं कार्यमेव तत्। यज्ञो दानं तपश्चैव पावनानि मनीषिणाम्৷৷
yajñadānatapaḥkarma na tyājyaṅ kāryamēva tat. yajñō dānaṅ tapaścaiva pāvanāni manīṣiṇām৷৷
Translation
Acts of sacrifice, benevolence and austerity should not be given up but should be performed, for they purify the aspiring soul.
Translation — Purohit Swami
Commentary
यज्ञदानतपःकर्म acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity, न not, त्याज्यम् should be abandoned, कार्यम् should be performed, एव indeed, तत् that, यज्ञः sacrifice, दानम् gift, तपः austerity, च and, एव indeed, पावनानि purifiers, मनीषिणाम् of the wise. Commentary: Acts of sacrifice, gift and austerity purify the hearts of those who have no desire for rewards. These actions are considered obligatory and ought to be performed. Actions that are skilfully performed lose their power to bind the soul and free it from earthly bondage.Now, O Arjuna, I will explain to thee that skilful way by which actions can destroye their own effect.
Commentary — Swami Sivananda
Sanskrit and transliteration of the Bhagavad Gita. Corpus compiled from the vedabase and the IIT Kanpur Gita Supersite.