नियतं सङ्गरहितमरागद्वेषतः कृतम् | अफलप्रेप्सुना कर्म यत्तत्सात्त्विकमुच्यते ||
niyataṁ saṅga-rahitam arāga-dveṣataḥ kṛtam aphala-prepsunā karma yat tat sāttvikaṁ ucyate
Translation
Action that is ordained, performed without attachment, without love or hatred, by one who seeks no fruit — that is declared sattvic.
Interpretation
Sattvic action: niyatam (ordained, flowing from duty), performed without attachment to the act or its outcome, without love or hatred for the people involved, by one who does not desire the fruit. This is the complete profile of karma yoga action: obligatory, detached, even-minded, desireless. Every quality addresses a different potential contamination: attachment (possessiveness), love/hatred (partiality in how we relate to others in the action), and fruit-desire (expectation of reward). Sattvic action is simultaneously the most natural and the hardest to maintain consistently.