Chapter VI · Śloka 40
Śrī Kṛṣṇa uvāca
पार्थ नैवेह नामुत्र विनाशस्तस्य विद्यते ।
न हि कल्याणकृत्कश्चिद्दुर्गतिं तात गच्छति ॥
न हि कल्याणकृत्कश्चिद्दुर्गतिं तात गच्छति ॥
pārtha naiveha nāmutra
vināśas tasya vidyate |
na hi kalyāṇa-kṛt kaścid
durgatiṃ tāta gacchati ||
vināśas tasya vidyate |
na hi kalyāṇa-kṛt kaścid
durgatiṃ tāta gacchati ||
O Pārtha, for him there is no destruction — neither here nor hereafter. No one who does good, dear one, ever comes to grief.
Krishna's answer is categorical and tender — note the intimate 'tāta' (dear one). Spiritual effort, however incomplete, is indestructible: no sincere step toward the good is ever wasted, and no seeker is condemned for falling short.