BG 18.48
सहजं कर्म कौन्तेय सदोषमपि न त्यजेत् ।
सर्वारम्भा हि दोषेण धूमेनाग्निरिवावृताः ॥
सर्वारम्भा हि दोषेण धूमेनाग्निरिवावृताः ॥
saha-jaṁ karma kaunteya sa-doṣam api na tyajet
sarvārambhā hi doṣeṇa dhūmenāgnir ivāvṛtāḥ
sarvārambhā hi doṣeṇa dhūmenāgnir ivāvṛtāḥ
Word-for-word meanings
kaunteya — O son of Kuntī; na tyajet — one should not abandon; karma — the duty; saha-jam — born of one’s own nature; sa-doṣam api — even if it is tainted with defect; hi — because; sarva-ārambhāḥ — all undertakings; āvṛtāḥ — are covered; doṣeṇa — with some defect; iva — just as; agniḥ — fire; dhūmena — [is covered] by smoke.
Translation
O son of Kuntī, one should not abandon the duty born of one’s own nature even if it is tainted with defect, because all undertakings are covered by some defect, just as fire is covered by smoke.