कर्मफलत्याग

Karmaphala-tyāga means giving up attachment to the fruit of action. The idea appears in several places in the Gita. In 2.51 the wise, yoked to buddhi, renounce the fruit born of action and reach a state free from affliction. In 4.20 one who has given up attachment to the fruit is ever content and free of outer supports, and though fully engaged is not bound. In 18.9 an action done simply because it ought to be done, giving up attachment and fruit, is called pure relinquishment. The word itself, as a compound, also occurs in the eighteenth chapter.

Here "giving up" does not mean that the fruit does not arrive or that the action does not happen. A fruit comes from its own causes; what is let go is the mind's grip on it. The action goes on as before, and often with more concentration.

The word karmaphala-tyāga itself occurs in the Gita; "nishkama karma" is the tradition's name for the same teaching, seen from the other side: the side of the action rather than the grip on the fruit.

Common misreading: taking the renunciation of the fruit to mean indifference to the outcome, or giving up action.

Better sense: preparation, effort and care in full; the mind's grip loosened.

To read further, see the topic Action Without Claiming the Fruit.