Verse 18.26
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
मुक्तसङ्गोऽनहंवादी धृत्युत्साहसमन्वितः | सिद्ध्यसिद्ध्योर्निर्विकारः कर्ता सात्त्विक उच्यते ||२६||
Transliteration (IAST)
mukta-saṅgo 'nahaṁ-vādī dhṛty-utsāha-samanvitaḥ | siddhy-asiddhyor nirvikāraḥ kartā sāttvika ucyate ||26||
Word-by-Word Meanings
Translation
The doer who is free from attachment, non-egoistic, endowed with determination and enthusiasm, and unaffected by success or failure - is called sattvic.
Commentary
Krishna describes the ideal doer with five qualities: freedom from attachment, absence of ego, steadfast resolve, enthusiasm, and equanimity in outcomes. Shankaracharya notes that 'nirvikāraḥ' (unchanged) in success and failure is the practical test of sattvic doership. Ramanuja emphasizes that such a person acts as an instrument of the divine, maintaining inner equilibrium regardless of external results.