|| 3.9 ||
यज्ञार्थात्कर्मणोऽन्यत्र लोकोऽयं कर्मबन्धनः। तदर्थं कर्म कौन्तेय मुक्तसंगः समाचर।।
yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ tad-arthaṁ karma kaunteya mukta-saṅgaḥ samācara
Word by Word
yajña-arthāt (done only for the sake of sacrifice) karmaṇaḥ (than work) anyatra (otherwise) lokaḥ (world) ayam (this) karma-bandhanaḥ (bondage by work) tat-artham (for that sake) karma (work) kaunteya (O son of Kuntī) mukta-saṅgaḥ (liberated from attachment) samācara (do perfectly)
Translation
Work done as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu has to be performed; otherwise work causes bondage in this material world. Therefore, O son of Kunti, perform your prescribed duties for His satisfaction, and in that way you will always remain free from bondage.
Meaning
Kṛṣṇa reveals the secret to working without creating karma. He says that work done as a sacrifice, or ‘Yajña’, for the Supreme Lord must be performed; otherwise, work causes bondage in this material world. Every action produces a reaction, unless it is an offering.
If you cook for yourself, you are binding yourself to the results. If you cook for God (and eat the remnants), the act becomes a form of worship and you stay free. Kṛṣṇa tells Arjuna to perform his duties for the satisfaction of the Divine. This is the only way to be ‘mukta-saṅgaḥ’, or free from attachment.
This turns the entire world into a temple. The battlefield is not just a place of violence; it is a place of sacrifice if Arjuna fights for the right cause. By dedicating his actions to the Supreme, he escapes the cycle of cause and effect and transforms his work into a tool for liberation.