Bhagavad Gita 3.7
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 7 of 43
यस्त्विन्द्रियाणि मनसा नियम्यारभतेऽर्जुन । कर्मेन्द्रियैः कर्मयोगमसक्तः स विशिष्यते ॥
yas tv indriyāṇi manasā niyamyārabhate 'rjuna | karmendriyaiḥ karma-yogam asaktaḥ sa viśiṣyate ||
Inner control → outer action without attachment = karma-yoga. That person genuinely excels.
Word by word (3)
- manasā niyamya
- — controlling / governing with the mind · Manasā = with the mind (instrumental). Niyamya = having governed, restrained. The critical difference from V6: here the restraint begins in the mind, not in the organs. Inner control precedes outer action — the right order.
- asaktaḥ karma-yogam ārabhate
- — without attachment, undertakes karma-yoga · Asakta = without attachment (a + sakta, from sañj — to stick). The inner freedom that makes action karma-yoga rather than binding karma. Ārabhate = undertakes, begins, engages. The sequence: mind governs senses → action undertaken without attachment → this is karma-yoga.
- sa viśiṣyate
- — that one excels / is distinguished / is superior · Viśiṣyate from vi+śiṣ (to be distinguished, to excel, to surpass). Not merely 'is better' but 'stands out' — the karma-yogi of V7 is the exemplary human type the Gita is describing throughout Ch.3.
But the one who controls the senses through the mind, and then engages in action through the organs of action without attachment — that person practices karma-yoga and truly excels.
A modern analogy
A surgeon who is not numb to their patient's suffering but is also not overwhelmed by it — the mind governs the emotional response while the hands act with complete skill and non-attachment to outcome. Inner control enables outer excellence. This is the karma-yogi this verse describes: present, skilled, unentangled.
Take with you
- The sequence matters: mind governs senses first, then action follows. Not the reverse.
- Asaktaḥ (without attachment) is the defining mark — full engagement combined with inner non-clinging.
- This is the positive version of the entire sthitaprajña portrait: viśiṣyate — excels. Inner freedom produces outer excellence.
- The previous verse showed the wrong approach — outer restraint over inner craving; this verse shows the right one. Keep both as a pair.
Public-domain translations (5) compare all →
But he who, controlling the senses by the mind, O Arjuna, undertakes karma-yoga through the organs of action, without attachment — he excels. [1]
But he who, controlling the senses by the mind, O Arjuna, engages his organs of action in karma-yoga, without attachment — he excels. [4]
But he, O Arjuna, who with the mind controls those organs and without attachment commences the practice of karma-yoga — he excels. [6]
But he who, ruling well the senses five, With mind unfettered, starts performance then, Using the active organs, unattached — Such an one excels. [7]
But he, O Arjuna, who restrains his senses by his mind, and then without attachment commences the yoga of action with his active organs — he excels. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Sitting still while the mind craves sense-objects is not discipline — the Gita calls it hypocrisy.
Do the work rooted in yoga, unattached. Equanimity in success and failure — that IS yoga.
The truth-knower thinks 'I do nothing' while seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, eating, moving, sleeping, breathing.
Your right is to act — never to the fruits. Don't act for results. Don't hide in inaction.
Therefore: do your required action without attachment — this is the path that leads to the Supreme.
Who acts in duty without depending on fruit — that one is the true sannyāsī and yogī, not the fireless or the inactive.
Verse 7 of 43 · back to Chapter 3