Chapter VIII · Śloka 3
Śrī Kṛṣṇa uvāca
अक्षरं ब्रह्म परमं स्वभावोऽध्यात्ममुच्यते ।
भूतभावोद्भवकरो विसर्गः कर्मसंज्ञितः ॥
भूतभावोद्भवकरो विसर्गः कर्मसंज्ञितः ॥
akṣaraṃ brahma paramaṃ svabhāvo'dhyātmam ucyate |
bhūta-bhāvodbhava-karo visargaḥ karma-saṃjñitaḥ ||
bhūta-bhāvodbhava-karo visargaḥ karma-saṃjñitaḥ ||
The Supreme Imperishable is Brahman; one's own essential nature is adhyātma; the offering that causes the arising of beings is called karma.
Krishna answers systematically: Brahman is the immutable Absolute (akṣara — that which does not perish), adhyātma is the individual's own innermost nature, and karma is the creative sacrificial impulse that generates all existence.