Bhagavad Gita 3.25 · BG 3.25
Chapter 3Verse 25
Karma Yoga
सक्ताः कर्मण्यविद्वांसो यथा कुर्वन्ति भारत। कुर्याद्विद्वांस्तथासक्तश्चिकीर्षुर्लोकसंग्रहम्॥
saktāḥ karmaṇy avidvāṁso yathā kurvanti bhārata, kuryād vidvāṁs tathāsaktaś cikīrṣur loka-saṅgraham
Translation
As the unwise act with attachment to their work, so the wise should act without attachment, seeking the good of the world.
Put in the same effort, but aim it at more than your own gain.
What does this mean?
Most people work with a tight grip on what they'll get out of it. This verse asks for the same effort with a looser hold, aimed at something larger than your own return. The work doesn't get less serious. What changes is that it's no longer only about you.
In simple words
Krishna says most people work with a tight grip on what they'll personally get out of it. He asks for that same effort with a looser hold, pointed at something bigger than your own return. The work stays serious. It just stops being only about you.
The deeper idea
The verse isn't contrasting hard work with laziness. Both the unwise and the wise are working hard. The difference is what the work is fastened to. The unwise are attached to their personal stake in the outcome. The wise put in identical effort while aiming at the good of the world, a wider benefit. Loosening the personal grip doesn't reduce the quality or intensity of the work. It changes what the work is in service of.
How it applies to life
Two people build the same thing. One is tracking, the whole time, exactly what credit, money, or advancement they'll get. The other does the job just as well while mostly thinking about whether it'll actually help the people it's for. The second person usually does work that's at least as good, often better, and is far less wrecked when the personal payoff is smaller than hoped. Widening the aim past your own return is a practical move, not just a noble one.