Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 8: The Imperishable Absolute

Bhagavad Gita 8.3

akṣaraṃ brahma paramaṃ svabhāvo'dhyātmamucyate | bhūtabhāvodbhavakaro visargaḥ karmasaṃjñitaḥ ||

Brahman is the supreme imperishable. The inner self is said to be one's own essential nature. The creative act that brings beings into existence is called action.

Modern context

Krishna answers briefly. Brahman is the supreme imperishable. The inner self is one's own true nature, what one is beneath every role. Action is the creative impulse that brings beings into existence. That last definition widens the word karma enormously. It is not only what we do with our hands. It is the whole outpouring by which the world keeps coming into being, and our own actions are small currents within that larger flow.