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Study a Verse
Pick any verse to see what it means and how to use it in your life.
Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 18.45
स्वे स्वे कर्मण्यभिरत: संसिद्धिं लभते नर
स्वकर्मनिरत: सिद्धिं यथा विन्दति तच्छृणु ॥ ४५ ॥
sve sve karmaṇy abhirataḥ
saṁsiddhiṁ labhate naraḥ
sva-karma-nirataḥ siddhiṁ
yathā vindati tac chṛṇu
By following his qualities of work, every man can become perfect. Now please hear from Me how this can be done.
Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.ioWhat this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.
3 study points
Everyone can become perfect by working according to their qualities.
The verse introduces an explanation of how this perfection can be reached.
Do work that matches your qualities.
Anyone can become perfect by following the duties of his work. That is explained in 18.46, which explains how one should perform his duties
All work is controlled by the modes, yet one can become free from the reactions of work by acting as brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya or sudra in Niskama karma yoga while worshipping the Lord through that work
Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.
The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.
Key ideas: karma, sva-dharma.
Take one thing from this verse into your day.
What does BG 18.45 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to duty & action?
Do one task today purely because it is right.
Mahābhārata episodes and stories from the purports that shed light on this verse.
Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.
Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.