Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 3: The Path of Action
Bhagavad Gita 3.8
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
niyataṃ kuru karma tvaṃ karma jyāyo hyakarmaṇaḥ | śarīrayātrāpi ca te na prasiddhyedakarmaṇaḥ ||
Do the work that is yours to do, for action is better than inaction. Without action you could not even keep your body alive.
Modern context
Do the work that is yours to do; action is better than inaction. Krishna adds a plain reminder: you cannot even keep your body alive without acting. Life itself is participation. The question is only what work is rightly ours, and then to do it.