The Yoga of Liberation by Renunciation

Krishna clarifies the fundamental reality about action and renunciation. 'Na hi deha-bhṛtā śakyaṁ tyaktuṁ karmāṇy aśeṣataḥ'—it is indeed not possible (na śakyam) for one who has a body (deha-bhṛtā) to completely abandon (tyaktuṁ) all actions (karmāṇi aśeṣataḥ). As long as you have a body, you will act—breathing, eating, moving are all actions. Complete abandonment of action is not possible. But 'yas tu karma-phala-tyāgī sa tyāgīty abhidhīyate'—one who relinquishes (tyāgī) the fruits of action (karma-phala) is called (abhidhīyate) a true renunciate (tyāgī). This is the key teaching: you can't stop acting, but you can relinquish attachment to fruits. True renunciation isn't abandoning action—it's performing action while relinquishing attachment to results. This sets up the teaching about the three kinds of action according to gunas that follows.