Sanskrit
किं कर्म किमकर्मेति कवयोऽप्यत्र मोहिताः । तत्ते कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि यज्ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसेऽशुभात् ॥
kiṃ karma kim akarmeti kavayo 'py atra mohitāḥ tat te karma pravakṣyāmi yaj jñātvā mokṣyase 'śubhāt
Translation
"What is action, what inaction"? Even the wise are herein perplexed. Therefore I will declare to thee the action by knowing which thou shalt be loosed from evil.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
Krishna flags the difficulty of what’s coming: even wise men are confused about what counts as action versus inaction. This is a deliberate rhetorical pause before the paradoxes of verses 17-20 — announcing that the distinction is subtle enough to require careful unpacking, not obvious common sense, and setting reader expectations before the argument gets genuinely difficult. The admission that kavayaḥ — poets, seers — are baffled here is a signal that akarma is not “not moving”: the puzzle is that the same outward act can be binding or free depending on the stance behind it. BG 4.18 is the resolution.
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Word by word
- kiṃ karma kim akarmetiकिं कर्म किं अकर्मेति
- 'what is action, what is inaction?' (kim + karma + kim + akarma + iti)
- kavayo 'py atra mohitāḥकवयो ऽप्य् अत्र मोहिताः
- even the wise are confused here (kavayaḥ + api + atra + mohitāḥ)
- tat te karma pravakṣyāmiतत् ते कर्म प्रवक्ष्यामि
- I shall explain that action to you (tat + te + karma + pravakṣyāmi)
- yaj jñātvā mokṣyase 'śubhātयज् ज्ञात्वा मोक्ष्यसे ऽशुभात्
- knowing which you will be freed from ill (yat + jñātvā + mokṣyase + aśubhāt)
Commentary
Site Commentary
Before resolving anything, Krishna admits the difficulty up front — even the wise are confused here. That’s a deliberate teaching technique, not just modesty: naming a distinction as genuinely hard, before explaining it, lowers a listener’s guard against feeling stupid and raises their attention for what’s actually about to be said.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Concepts
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- When you're about to explain something genuinely difficult to someone, say plainly that it's hard — even for people who already know a lot — before diving in; that honesty earns patience instead of making you look uncertain.
Professional
- Before presenting a genuinely subtle technical distinction to your team, acknowledge upfront that even experienced people find it confusing — it primes careful listening instead of a false expectation of instant clarity.
Family & Social
- When raising a hard topic with family, naming that it's genuinely confusing or difficult for everyone, not just them, turns the conversation into shared effort instead of a lecture.
Ask yourself
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