Bhagavad Gita BG 18.60
Chapter 18, Verse 60 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
स्वभावजेन कौन्तेय निबद्धः स्वेन कर्मणा । कर्तुं नेच्छसि यन्मोहात् करिष्यस्यवशो ऽपि तत् ॥
svabhava-jena kaunteya nibaddhah svena karmana kartum necchasi yan mohat karishyasy avasho 'pi tat
Meaning
Bound by your own action born of your nature, O Kaunteya — what through delusion you do not wish to do, you shall do helplessly.
Understanding
The completion of the svabhava-compulsion teaching: svabhavjena nibaddha svena karmana (bound by one's own karma born of one's nature). Kartum necchasi yad mohat (what through delusion/moha you do not wish to do — moha is the operative word: delusion is the cause of the ego-refusal). Karishyasy avasho 'pi tat (you shall do that very thing, helplessly/without choice — avasho = without power over it, compelled). The combination: svabhava-born karma is the deeper force; moha (the delusion of ego) is what creates the false 'I will not do this'; and the svabhava prevails regardless. The teaching is not fatalistic but liberating: work WITH your svabhava consciously, rather than having it work through you unconsciously.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| निबद्धः | nibaddhah | bound, bound up, tied |
| मोहात् | mohat | from delusion, because of delusion (moha) |
| अवशः | avasho | helpless, without control, compelled |
| करिष्यसि | karishyasi | you will do, you shall perform |
| स्वभाव-जेन | svabhāva-jena | born of your own nature |
| कौन्तेय | kaunteya | O son of Kunti |
| निबद्धः | nibaddhaḥ | bound |
| स्वेन | svena | by one's own |
| कर्मणा | karmaṇā | action |
| कर्तुम् | kartum | to do |
| न | na icchasi | you do not wish |
| यत् | yat | what |
| मोहात् | mohāt | from delusion |
| करिष्यसि | kariṣyasi | you will do |
| अवशः | avaśaḥ api | even helplessly |
| तत् | tat | that |