3.8
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः | शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ||८||
niyataṁ kuru karma tvaṁ karma jyāyo hy akarmaṇaḥ śharīra-yātrāpi cha te na prasiddhyed akarmaṇaḥ
Translation
Perform your prescribed duty, for action is better than inaction. A man cannot even maintain his physical body without work.
Interpretation
Action is better than inaction — even at the practical level of bodily survival. The body requires food, shelter, and care, all of which require action. But the deeper point is dharmic: one's prescribed duty (niyatam karma) is not optional. It is the specific form through which one's unique nature expresses its contribution to the cosmic whole.