ब्रह्मण्याधाय कर्माणि सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा करोति यः। लिप्यते न स पापेन पद्मपत्रमिवाम्भसा॥५-१०॥
brahmaṇy ādhāya karmāṇi saṅgaṃ tyaktvā karoti yaḥ | lipyate na sa pāpena padma-patram ivāmbhasā || 5.10 ||
Surrendering all actions to Brahman, abandoning attachment — like a lotus leaf, sin never clings.
Word by word (7)
- brahmaṇi ādhāya
- — surrendering / placing / dedicating to Brahman
- karmāṇi
- — actions
- saṅgam tyaktvā
- — having abandoned attachment
- karoti yaḥ
- — who acts
- lipyate na
- — is not stained / not tainted
- pāpena
- — by sin / by negative karma
- padma-patram iva ambhasā
- — like a lotus leaf by water — the classic image of unstained engagement
One who performs actions by surrendering them to Brahman — placing all doership and results in the Divine — while abandoning personal attachment, is not stained by sin. Just as a lotus leaf sits in water but is never wetted by it.
A modern analogy
A civil servant who implements policies they did not choose, doing their absolute best but not personally attached to outcomes — 'I serve the function, not my preferences' — acts with the lotus-leaf quality. The water of results passes over without soaking in.
What it does NOT mean
This is not a formula to avoid moral responsibility by chanting 'I dedicate this to God.' The surrender must be genuine — it requires the actual release of ego-ownership and attachment, not just verbal dedication. Lip-service dedication does not produce lotus-leaf behavior.
Take with you
- Brahmaṇy ādhāya (placing in Brahman) is the practice of dedication — before each significant action, consciously offer it to something larger than your ego-preference.
- Saṅgam tyaktvā (abandoning attachment) is the complementary practice — release the grip on outcomes after you have given your best effort.
- The lotus-leaf image is one of the Gita's most beloved: fully in the world, fully engaged — yet fundamentally unchanged by it.
V10 gives the practical method corresponding to the philosophical insight of V8-9. The tattva-vit of V8 holds 'I do nothing'; the karma-yogi of V10 holds 'I surrender these actions to Brahman.' These are two expressions of the same metaphysical truth from different angles: the first is jñāna-based (I am not the doer), the second is bhakti/karma-yoga-based (the Doer is Brahman, I offer all to That). The result is identical: na lipyate — not stained. The padma-patram analogy is precise: the lotus leaf is fully in contact with water — not withdrawn, not avoiding contact — yet structurally unable to be wetted due to its nature. The karma-yogi's nature, purified through yoga, becomes similarly non-wettable: full engagement, zero clinging.
Modern parallels
The Teflon quality described here appears in resilient people studied in psychology — they engage fully with challenges but bounce back without lasting damage. Research calls this 'psychological non-stick' — high engagement with low rumination afterward. The Gita identifies the mechanism: surrender of ownership.
Practice
In meditation, practice offering each thought, sensation, and emotion to Brahman as it arises. 'This thought arises — I offer it.' 'This discomfort is here — I offer it.' Practice the lotus-leaf mind: present to everything, attached to nothing.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
"He who does actions, surrendering them to Brahman and abandoning attachment, is not stained by sin, just as a lotus-leaf is not stained by water." [1]
"He who does actions, offering them to Brahman and abandoning attachment, is not tainted by sin, just as a lotus-leaf is not tainted by water." [4]
"He who acteth, having abandoned attachment, resigning his actions to the ETERNAL, is not stained by sin, as a lotus-leaf by water." [5]
"He who acts, making Brahm the refuge, abandoning attachment, is not tainted by sin, just as the lotus-leaf is untouched by water." [6]
"Who acts in God, lays on God all his acts, forsakes attachments, sins no more than doth the lotus-leaf that shines unwet in water." [7]
"He who performs actions, placing them on the Brahman, abandoning attachment, is not tainted by sin, just as a lotus-leaf is not tainted by water." [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Yoga-joined, purified, self-controlled, seeing one's Self as the Self of all beings — even while acting, untainted.
Instrument, offering, fire, act, destination — all Brahman. One absorbed in Brahman-action reaches Brahman alone.
Whatever you do, eat, offer, give, or practise as austerity — do it all as mad-arpaṇam, an offering to Me.
Mentally offering all actions to Me, with Me as highest — resorting to buddhi-yoga, always be mind-in-Me.
Unable even to act for My sake? Then take refuge in Me, abandon all fruits of action — with self-restraint.
The unattached-minded, self-conquered, desire-free one attains supreme naiskarmya-siddhi through sannyāsa.