Bhagavad Gita · Karma Sannyasa YogaChapter 5, Shloka 12 (5.12)
Original Sanskrit · श्रीभगवान्
युक्तः कर्मफलं त्यक्त्वा शान्तिमाप्नोति नैष्ठिकीम्
अयुक्तः कामकारेण फले सक्तो निबध्यते
॥ 5.12 ॥
yuktaḥ karmaphalaṃ tyaktvā śāntimāpnoti naiṣṭhikīm
ayuktaḥ kāmakāreṇa phale sakto nibadhyate
Translation
"The steadfast person (established in yoga), giving up the fruit of action, attains lasting peace; the unsteady person, driven by desire and attached to the fruit, is bound."
Interpretation
The same action, two outcomes. The difference is not in the action — it is in the attitude towards the fruit.
Shankaracharya: yuktaḥ "īśvarāya karmāṇi karomi na mama phalāya" ity evaṃ samāhitaḥ san — composed in the thought "I act for Ishvara, not for my own reward", śāntiṃ mokṣākhyām āpnoti naiṣṭhikīm — attains the peace called moksha — how? sattva-śuddhi-jñāna-prāpti-sarva-karma-saṃnyāsa-jñāna-niṣṭhā-krameṇa — in this sequence: purification of the mind → attainment of knowledge → renunciation of all action → steadfastness in knowledge. Ayuktaḥ … kāma-preritatayā "mama phalāya idaṃ karomi karma" — "I do this for my own reward" — so, attached to the fruit, one is bound.
Acharya Ramanuja: yuktaḥ ātma-vyatirikta-phaleṣu acapalaḥ ātmaika-pravaṇaḥ — not restless for fruits other than the self, inclined towards the self alone; naiṣṭhikīṃ śāntim … sthirām ātmānubhava-rūpāṃ nirvṛtim — a steady peace in the form of experiencing the self. Ayuktaḥ … nityaṃ karmabhiḥ badhyate nitya-saṃsārī bhavati. And the conclusion: phala-saṅga-rahita indriyākāreṇa pariṇatāyāṃ prakṛtau karmāṇi saṃnyasya — giving up attachment to fruit, and "renouncing" actions into prakriti transformed into the senses, one should act solely for freedom from bondage.
AI-assisted draft translation — under review.