न हि कश्चित्क्षणमपि जातु तिष्ठत्यकर्मकृत् | कार्यते ह्यवशः कर्म सर्वः प्रकृतिजैर्गुणैः ||३-५||
na hi kaścitkṣaṇamapi jātu tiṣṭhatyakarmakṛt . kāryate hyavaśaḥ karma sarvaḥ prakṛtijairguṇaiḥ ||3-5||
Chapter 3 · Verse 5
Karma Yoga
कर्मयोग
In plain words
You should accept that active living is unavoidable because material nature constantly forces you to act. No one can remain completely still even for a moment. Until you rise above maya, the powerful illusion of the material world, you are bound to perform karma, which means actions driven by nature's qualities.
Translation
3.5 No man can, even for a moment, rest without doing work; for everyone is caused to act, in spite of himself, by the Gunas born of Nature.
Meaning
The Gunas (alities of Nature) are three viz.. Sattva. Rajas and Tamas. Sattva is harmony or light or purity Rajas is passion or motion Tamas is inertia or darkness. Sattvic actions help a man to attain to Moksha. Rajasic and Tamasic actions bind a man to Samsara. These alities cannot affect a man who has knowledge of the Self. He has crossed over these alities. He has become a Gunatita (one who has transcended the alities of Nature). The ignorant man who has no knowledge of the Self and who is swayed by Avidya or nescience is driven helplessly to action by the Gunas. (Cf. IV.16. XVIII.11).
Word by word
नहि not कश्चित् anyone क्षणम् a moment अपि even जातु verily तिष्ठति remains अकर्मकृत् without performing action कार्यते is made to do हि for अवशः helpless कर्म action सर्वः all प्रकृतिजैः born of Prakriti गुणैः by the alities.