VERSE-4
न कर्मणामनारंभान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषोऽश्नुते ।
न च सन्न्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति ॥

na karmanam anarambhan
naiskarmyam puruso ‘snute
na ca sannyasanad eva
siddhim samadhigacchati

SYNONYMS
na—without; karmaṇām—of the prescribed duties; anārambhāt—non-performance; naiṣkarmyam—freedom from reaction; puruṣah—man; aśnute—achieve; na—nor; ca—also; sannyasanāt—by renunciation; eva—simply; siddhim—success; samadhigacchati—attain.

TRANSLATION
Not by merely abstaining from work can one achieve freedom from reaction, nor by renunciation alone can one attain perfection.

VERSE 5
न हि कश्चित्क्षणमपि जातु तिष्ठत्यकर्मकृत्‌ ।
कार्यते ह्यवशः कर्म सर्वः प्रकृतिजैर्गुणैः ॥

na hi kascit ksanam api
jatu tisthaty akarma-krt
karyate hy avasah karma
sarvah prakrti-jair gunaih

SYNONYMS
na—nor; hi—certainly; kaścit—anyone; kṣaṇam—even a moment; api—also; jātu—even; tiṣṭhati—stands; akarma-kṛt—without doing something; kāryate—is forced to do; hi—certainly; avaśaḥ—helplessly; karma—work; sarvaḥ—everything; prakṛti-jaiḥ—out of the modes of material nature; guṇaiḥ—by the qualities.

TRANSLATION
All men are forced to act helplessly according to the impulses born of the modes of material nature; therefore no one can refrain from doing something, not even for a moment.

VERSE 6
कर्मेन्द्रियाणि संयम्य य आस्ते मनसा स्मरन्‌ ।
इन्द्रियार्थान्विमूढात्मा मिथ्याचारः स उच्यते ॥

karmendriyani samyamya
ya aste manasa smaran
indriyarthan vimudhatma
mithyacarah sa ucyate

SYNONYMS
karma-indriyāṇi—the five working sense organs; saṁyamya—controlling; yaḥ—anyone who; āste—remains; manasā—by mind; smaran—thinking; indriya-arthān—sense objects; vimūḍha—foolish; ātmā—soul; mithyā-ācāraḥ—pretender; saḥ—he; ucyate—is called.

TRANSLATION
One who restrains the senses and organs of action, but whose mind dwells on sense objects, certainly deludes himself and is called a pretender.

VERSE 7
यस्त्विन्द्रियाणि मनसा नियम्यारभतेऽर्जुन ।
कर्मेन्द्रियैः कर्मयोगमसक्तः स विशिष्यते ॥

yas tv indriyani manasa
niyamyarabhate ‘rjuna
karmendriyaih karma-yogam
asaktah sa visisyate

SYNONYMS
yaḥ—one who; tu—but; indriyāṇi—senses; manasā—by the mind; niyamya—regulating; ārabhate—begins; arjuna—O Arjuna; karma-indriyaiḥ—by the active sense organs; karma-yogam—devotion; asaktaḥ—without attachment; saḥ—he; viśiṣyate—by far the better.

TRANSLATION
On the other hand, he who controls the senses by the mind and engages his active organs in works of devotion, without attachment, is by far superior.