Bhagavad Gita BG 4.19
Chapter 4, Verse 19 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
यस्य सर्वे समारम्भाः कामसङ्कल्पवर्जिताः । ज्ञानाग्निदग्धकर्माणं तमाहुः पण्डितं बुधाः ॥
yasya sarve samarambhah kama-sankalpa-varjitah jnanagni-dagdha-karmanam tam ahuh panditam budhah
Meaning
One whose every undertaking is free from desire and intention (sankalpa) — whose karma has been burned in the fire of knowledge — the wise call that one a pandit (truly learned).
Understanding
Two hallmarks of the liberated actor: (1) sarve samarambhah kama-sankalpa-varjitah — every undertaking (samarambha) is free from kama (desire for results) and sankalpa (the mental intention/resolution that projects a desired future). Not suppression of desire but its genuine absence. (2) Jnanagni-dagdha-karmanam — whose accumulated karma has been burned (dagdha) by the fire of knowledge (jnanagni — the same image as 4.37). Such a person is called pandit by the budhah (the truly wise).
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| समारम्भाः | samarambhah | undertakings, beginnings of action |
| कामसङ्कल्प | kama-sankalpa | desire and self-willed intention |
| वर्जिताः | varjitah | free from, devoid of |
| दग्धकर्माणम् | dagdha-karmanam | one whose karma is burned |
| पण्डितम् | panditam | the truly learned, the pandit |
| यस्य | yasya | whose / of whom |
| सर्वे | sarve | all (undertakings) |
| ज्ञानाग्नि | jñānāgni | the fire of knowledge / knowledge-fire |
| तम् | tam | him / that (person) |
| आहुः | āhuḥ | they call / they say / the learned say |
| बुधाः | budhāḥ | the wise / the enlightened ones |