Upanishads · Jābāladarśana 5.2
॥
Devanāgarī
सांकृते श्रुणु वक्ष्यामि नाडीशुद्धिं समासतः । विध्युक्तकर्मसंयुक्तः कामसंकल्पवर्जितः
Transliteration (IAST)
sāṃkṛte śruṇu vakṣyāmi nāḍīśuddhiṃ samāsataḥ | vidhyuktakarmasaṃyuktaḥ kāmasaṃkalpavarjitaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सांकृते शृणु वक्ष्यामिsāṃkṛte śṛṇu vakṣyāmiSankriti, listen, I shall tell
नाडी-शुद्धिं समासतःnāḍī-śuddhiṃ samāsataḥthe purification of the passages, in brief
विधि-उक्त-कर्म-संयुक्तःvidhi-ukta-karma-saṃyuktaḥjoined with the deeds prescribed by rule
काम-संकल्प-वर्जितःkāma-saṃkalpa-varjitaḥfree of desire and calculation
Translation
"Sankriti, listen, I shall tell the purification of the passages, in brief. Joined with the deeds prescribed by rule, free of desire and calculation…"
Version
54e3c9aa328d · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Before any technique, two conditions are set, and they deserve examining together, for they appear opposite. The first: vidhi-ukta-karma-sanyuktah, "joined with the deeds prescribed by rule." That is, a person must perform his own duties; renunciation prior to any practice is not required.
The second: kama-sankalpa-varjitah, "free of desire and calculation." Sankalpa means "design, intention, resolve to do"; and freedom from it is the absence of calculation. Together this comes out: do what your position requires, and do not calculate the gain.
This combination is precisely what the Gita teaches, and the coincidence here is no accident, but a matter of substance. "You have a right to the deed, but never to its fruits; let not the fruit of the deed be your motive, and let there be no attachment in you to inaction" (2.47). Worth noting is the second half of this verse, usually omitted: ma te sango'stv akarmani, "and let there be no attachment to inaction."
The Gita, then, warns against both errors at once. One — working for the sake of gain; the other — abandoning work so as to have no gain. Here the same thing is said with two definitions placed side by side; and their order is correct: first do, then do not calculate.
This order deserves being held on to. To speak of non-attachment to fruits to a person who is not yet doing anything is premature: non-attachment to fruits belongs to one who labors and does not count; one who does not labor simply has no fruits.