श्रीभगवानुवाच | अनाश्रितः कर्मफलं कार्यं कर्म करोति यः | स संन्यासी च योगी च न निरग्निर्न चाक्रियः || १ ||
śrī bhagavān uvāca anāśritaḥ karma-phalaṃ kāryaṃ karma karoti yaḥ sa sannyāsī ca yogī ca na niragnir na cākriyaḥ
śrī bhagavān uvāca—the Supreme Lord said; anāśritaḥ—without shelter; karma-phalam—the result of work; kāryam—obligatory; karma—work; karoti—performs; yaḥ—one who; saḥ—he; sannyāsī—in the renounced order; ca—also; yogī—mystic; ca—also; na—not; niragniḥ—without fire; na—nor; ca—also; akriyaḥ—without duty.
“The Blessed Lord said: One who performs obligatory duty without depending on the result is both a sannyasi (renunciant) and a yogi. It is not one who has given up fire-rituals or who has ceased action.”
Krishna immediately redefines what it means to be a sannyasi and a yogi. Both titles are popularly associated with external markers: the sannyasi who has renounced all fire-rituals, the yogi who sits in prolonged postures. Krishna cuts through these outer forms: a true renunciant and a true yogi is one who performs his duty without clinging to results. Inner detachment, not outer ceremony, is the criterion.
You do not need to change your lifestyle to be a yogi. Right where you are, in your current profession and relationships, perform your duties fully and release the results. This inner shift in orientation — from ego-driven to offering-based action — is the beginning of true yoga.