Bhagavad Gita 3.23
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 23 of 43
यदि ह्यहं न वर्तेयं जातु कर्मण्यतन्द्रितः । मम वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते मनुष्याः पार्थ सर्वशः ॥
yadi hy ahaṃ na varteyaṃ jātu karmaṇy atandritaḥ | mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ ||
If even I stopped acting, humans would follow. The great one's withdrawal is never neutral.
Word by word (3)
- yadi aham na varteyam karmaṇi
- — if I were not to engage in action · Yadi = if. Aham = I (Krishna). Na = not. Varteyam = were to be active, were to engage. Karmaṇi = in action. The conditional: 'if I, even I, were to stop acting.' The hypothetical makes V21 concrete: the śreṣṭha's withdrawal sets a negative standard.
- atandritaḥ
- — without laziness / with full alertness · A-tandrita = without sloth/laziness (tandra = fatigue, apathy). Krishna's action is not reluctant or half-hearted — it is atandrita (alert, active, engaged). The pramāṇa He sets is not just 'acting' but acting with full dedication.
- mama vartma anuvartante manuṣyāḥ sarvaśaḥ
- — humans in every way follow My path · Vartma = path, track, way. Mama = My. Anuvartante = they follow (same root as V9, V16). Sarvaśaḥ = in every way, entirely. If Krishna stopped acting, humans would follow His example and chaos would result. The stakes of the śreṣṭha's example are therefore cosmic.
For if I were to stop engaging in action, ever, even for a moment — humans would follow My example in every way, O Arjuna.
A modern analogy
When a deeply respected national figure publicly withdraws from civic life in despair — 'nothing can be fixed, I'm done' — that becomes permission for millions to give up. The withdrawal of the śreṣṭha is never private. It sets the most powerful negative pramāṇa.
Take with you
- Your engagement or withdrawal always sets an example — explicitly or implicitly, to someone.
- The greater your influence, the greater the consequences of your example — for better or worse.
- Atandritaḥ — not lazy, not half-hearted. The śreṣṭha's example must be of full, alert engagement.
- This is why lokasaṃgraha requires continuous action — withdrawal at the top creates collapse below.
Public-domain translations (5) compare all →
For if I did not engage in action tirelessly, men in every way would follow My path, O son of Pritha. [1]
For should I not engage in action, unwearied, at any time, men would in every way follow My path, O Partha. [4]
For if I did not perform my actions, men would follow my example everywhere, O Partha. [6]
For, if I did not act at all, O Pritha's son! men everywhere would straight Follow my path. [7]
For if ever I did not engage in action without carelessness, men would follow My path on all sides, O son of Pritha. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
If the great one withdraws, the worlds collapse and they become the cause of chaos — not a neutral bystander.
Whatever the great one does, others follow. The standard they set — the world adopts. Lead by example.
I am Time, the world-destroyer — even without you, none of these warriors shall survive; they are already slain!
Sāttvic tyāga: niyata karma done ONLY because 'this must be done,' having abandoned attachment and fruit.
One with no ego-doer-sense, whose buddhi is untainted — even while killing all these beings, kills not, is not bound.
Treat pleasure and pain, gain and loss, victory and defeat as equal — then engage. No sin follows from this.
Verse 23 of 43 · back to Chapter 3