Chapter III · Śloka 12
इष्टान्भोगान्हि वो देवा दास्यन्ते यज्ञभाविताः |
तैर्दत्तानप्रदायैभ्यो यो भुङ्क्ते स्तेन एव सः ||
तैर्दत्तानप्रदायैभ्यो यो भुङ्क्ते स्तेन एव सः ||
iṣṭān bhogān hi vo devā dāsyante yajña-bhāvitāḥ |
tair dattān apradāyaibhyo yo bhuṅkte stena eva saḥ ||
tair dattān apradāyaibhyo yo bhuṅkte stena eva saḥ ||
Nourished by sacrifice, the gods will indeed give you the enjoyments you desire. One who enjoys their gifts without offering back to them is truly a thief.
To consume without contributing is a form of theft from the cosmic commons. Krishna is not moralizing in the ordinary sense — he is describing a structural reality: the one who only takes disrupts the cycle that sustains all life.