Bhagavad Gita BG 5.11
Chapter 5, Verse 11 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
कायेन मनसा बुद्ध्या केवलैरिन्द्रियैरपि । योगिनः कर्म कुर्वन्ति सङ्गं त्यक्त्वात्मशुद्धये ॥
kayena manasa buddhya kevlair indriyair api yoginah karma kurvanti sangam tyaktvAtma-shuddhaye
Meaning
Yogis perform actions with body, mind, intellect, and even just the senses — abandoning attachment — for the purification of the self.
Understanding
Yogis act at every level: kayena (with the body), manasa (with the mind), buddhya (with the intellect), and kevalair indriyaih (with bare senses alone). All action happens — nothing is suppressed. But the motive is atma-shuddhaye: for the purification of the inner self. Action becomes a purification tool, not a bondage machine.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| केवलैः | kevalair | merely with, just with, bare |
| इन्द्रियैः | indriyaih | senses, sense-organs |
| आत्मशुद्धये | Atma-shuddhaye | for self-purification, for purification of the inner self |
| कायेन | kāyena | with the body / through the body |
| मनसा | manasā | with the mind / mentally |
| बुद्ध्या | buddhyā | with the intellect / through intelligence |
| योगिनः | yoginaḥ | the yogis / the practitioners |
| कर्म | karma | action / deed |
| कुर्वन्ति | kurvanti | perform / do / engage in |
| सङ्गम् | saṃgam | attachment / clinging |
| त्यक्त्वा | tyaktvā | having abandoned / giving up |