7 Gita Shlokas to Read When You’re Overthinking Everything and Trying to Be Perfect
Riya Kumari | Jul 28, 2025, 13:41 IST
( Image credit : Times Life Bureau )
Highlight of the story: Look, I’m not saying I’ve hit rock bottom. I’m just saying my “mindfulness” app told me to “let go,” and I cried harder than I did during the Titanic rewatch. Again. For the fifth time. This week. Some of us, hi, me, are cursed (blessed?) with the overthinking gene. We worry like it’s cardio, people-please like it’s our religion, and treat perfection like it’s a personality trait instead of a deep-seated trauma response wrapped in a productivity spreadsheet.
Somewhere between doing everything right and still being misunderstood, between giving your all and still not being chosen, something in you quietly started to break. You didn’t mean to lose yourself. But you did. In trying to fix things. Please people. Prove your worth. Avoid mistakes. Stay “good.” And maybe, no one saw the moment you went from surviving to silently suffering. But you did. Your body did. Your soul definitely did. Here’s what the Gita reminds us: this pain isn’t random. This moment isn’t punishment. It’s karmic unfolding. You’re not being broken. You’re being shaped. Everything that hurts is revealing what you came here to heal and the verses below are not just soothing; they’re maps back to yourself.
1. When You Gave Everything, and Still Lost What You Wanted
"You have the right to your actions, but never to the results." (2.47)
You tried. You gave. You stayed. You fought for the relationship, the dream, the friendship. And still, it didn’t last. But what if it wasn’t meant to? What if that chapter wasn’t a failure, just a karmic contract, fulfilled? Krishna isn’t asking you to stop caring. He’s asking you to trust the deeper rhythm. The fruit may fall elsewhere. The outcome may change form. But your intention? Your effort? It is never wasted.
Sometimes, the lesson is: you were meant to act, not to win. You were meant to love, not to keep. And letting go is the karma complete.
2. When You Keep Chasing More, but It Still Doesn’t Feel Like Enough
"As rivers flow endlessly into the ocean and the ocean remains still, so too is the wise one amidst all desires." (2.70)
It’s not that you're greedy. You just thought once you achieved this, this title, this love, this security, you’d finally feel safe. But desire doesn’t end with achievement. That’s the trap. The more you grasp, the more life slips through your fingers. Here’s what Krishna is saying: your soul is already oceanic. You’ve simply been identifying with your waves, your wants, your wounds, your worries.
Real calm is when you stop needing more to feel whole. You don’t become enough when you arrive, you realize you always were. This karmic life is not a race. It’s a remembering.
3. When You Can't Let Go Until It’s Perfect and You're Tired
"One who acts without attachment to success or failure is truly renounced." (6.1)
You were taught to keep everything in control. That if you just get it right, life won’t fall apart. That mistakes are dangerous. That flaws are shameful. But maybe your soul chose imperfection, not as failure, but as freedom. Perfectionism is not discipline. It’s fear.
And karma will keep sending you moments where you must act without knowing the result, to teach you surrender. To teach you trust. You are here to be present, not perfect. And your peace lies in release, not performance.
4. When You Keep Saying Yes Just to Be Loved
"One who remains equal in honor and dishonor, friend and enemy, heat and cold, is truly dear to Me." (12.18-19)
Some part of you still believes: If I’m kind enough, soft enough, useful enough… they won’t leave. But that belief is karmic, seeded in past lives where love was earned through sacrifice. And now you carry that pattern like a survival instinct. But Krishna says: this life is your chance to break it.
Your value is not defined by who approves of you. Your role is not to fix, smooth, or shrink. You are allowed to say no. You are allowed to disappoint. You are allowed to choose yourself. That is not selfishness. That is karmic correction.
5. When You Can’t Silence Your Thoughts and You Think You’re Spiritually Failing
"The mind is restless, O Krishna... but with practice and detachment, it can be controlled." (6.34)
Your mind races. You rehearse every conversation. You try to meditate and end up overanalyzing your breathing. You wonder, why can’t I be calm like everyone else? But Arjuna, a warrior and devotee, asked the same thing. And Krishna didn’t say “try harder.” He said “practice gently.” He said, detach kindly.
Karmically, your mind is carrying lifetimes of unprocessed fear. You’re not wrong for spiraling. You’re just in process. This life is about training the mind, not erasing it. And every time you bring yourself back, from anxiety to presence, from fear to faith, you’re healing what your ancestors couldn’t.
6. When You Feel Like You’re Behind, and Everyone Else Has Moved On
"No effort is ever lost. Even a little progress protects you from great fear." (2.40)
They moved on. They got married. They bought homes. They seem sure. You? You’re still figuring things out. But that’s because your path is not theirs. Your karmic lessons are different. Maybe their souls came to live. Yours came to awaken. And awakening is messy. Slow. Isolating. But also sacred.
You’re not behind. You’re on time, for your soul’s syllabus. Even when it feels like nothing is happening, healing is happening in the unseen. Trust the delay. It's your protection.
7. When You’re So Tired of Trying, and You Wonder What It's All For
"Greater than one who performs rituals or study is the one who lives in union with the Self. Therefore, be a yogi." (6.46)
You’ve tried everything, the routines, the affirmations, the reading, the rituals. And yet... something still aches. That’s because this life isn’t about performance. It’s about presence. Karma may have made you a doer. A helper. A giver. But Krishna says: you are not your tasks. You are the awareness behind it all.
You don’t need to do more to deserve rest. Or peace. Or softness. You just need to return, inward, daily, even if only for a few moments, to your center. The part untouched by chaos. The part that knows. Be a yogi, Krishna says. Not the one in a posture. The one in truth.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Maybe no one told you that the pain you carry is not proof of failure, but evidence of your evolution. Maybe no one explained that your overthinking is a karmic echo, your people-pleasing is a soul memory, your burnout is a sign your spirit is craving realignment. The Gita doesn’t promise quick comfort. It offers deep clarity.
So no, you’re not crazy. Or weak. Or doomed. You are simply being asked to remember yourself, slowly, painfully, beautifully. To stop outsourcing your worth. To stop clinging to outcomes. To stop running from the silence. Let this be your anchor. You're not alone. You're not lost. You're just being rerouted, back to your highest path.
1. When You Gave Everything, and Still Lost What You Wanted
You tried. You gave. You stayed. You fought for the relationship, the dream, the friendship. And still, it didn’t last. But what if it wasn’t meant to? What if that chapter wasn’t a failure, just a karmic contract, fulfilled? Krishna isn’t asking you to stop caring. He’s asking you to trust the deeper rhythm. The fruit may fall elsewhere. The outcome may change form. But your intention? Your effort? It is never wasted.
Sometimes, the lesson is: you were meant to act, not to win. You were meant to love, not to keep. And letting go is the karma complete.
2. When You Keep Chasing More, but It Still Doesn’t Feel Like Enough
It’s not that you're greedy. You just thought once you achieved this, this title, this love, this security, you’d finally feel safe. But desire doesn’t end with achievement. That’s the trap. The more you grasp, the more life slips through your fingers. Here’s what Krishna is saying: your soul is already oceanic. You’ve simply been identifying with your waves, your wants, your wounds, your worries.
Real calm is when you stop needing more to feel whole. You don’t become enough when you arrive, you realize you always were. This karmic life is not a race. It’s a remembering.
3. When You Can't Let Go Until It’s Perfect and You're Tired
You were taught to keep everything in control. That if you just get it right, life won’t fall apart. That mistakes are dangerous. That flaws are shameful. But maybe your soul chose imperfection, not as failure, but as freedom. Perfectionism is not discipline. It’s fear.
And karma will keep sending you moments where you must act without knowing the result, to teach you surrender. To teach you trust. You are here to be present, not perfect. And your peace lies in release, not performance.
4. When You Keep Saying Yes Just to Be Loved
Some part of you still believes: If I’m kind enough, soft enough, useful enough… they won’t leave. But that belief is karmic, seeded in past lives where love was earned through sacrifice. And now you carry that pattern like a survival instinct. But Krishna says: this life is your chance to break it.
Your value is not defined by who approves of you. Your role is not to fix, smooth, or shrink. You are allowed to say no. You are allowed to disappoint. You are allowed to choose yourself. That is not selfishness. That is karmic correction.
5. When You Can’t Silence Your Thoughts and You Think You’re Spiritually Failing
Your mind races. You rehearse every conversation. You try to meditate and end up overanalyzing your breathing. You wonder, why can’t I be calm like everyone else? But Arjuna, a warrior and devotee, asked the same thing. And Krishna didn’t say “try harder.” He said “practice gently.” He said, detach kindly.
Karmically, your mind is carrying lifetimes of unprocessed fear. You’re not wrong for spiraling. You’re just in process. This life is about training the mind, not erasing it. And every time you bring yourself back, from anxiety to presence, from fear to faith, you’re healing what your ancestors couldn’t.
6. When You Feel Like You’re Behind, and Everyone Else Has Moved On
They moved on. They got married. They bought homes. They seem sure. You? You’re still figuring things out. But that’s because your path is not theirs. Your karmic lessons are different. Maybe their souls came to live. Yours came to awaken. And awakening is messy. Slow. Isolating. But also sacred.
You’re not behind. You’re on time, for your soul’s syllabus. Even when it feels like nothing is happening, healing is happening in the unseen. Trust the delay. It's your protection.
7. When You’re So Tired of Trying, and You Wonder What It's All For
You’ve tried everything, the routines, the affirmations, the reading, the rituals. And yet... something still aches. That’s because this life isn’t about performance. It’s about presence. Karma may have made you a doer. A helper. A giver. But Krishna says: you are not your tasks. You are the awareness behind it all.
You don’t need to do more to deserve rest. Or peace. Or softness. You just need to return, inward, daily, even if only for a few moments, to your center. The part untouched by chaos. The part that knows. Be a yogi, Krishna says. Not the one in a posture. The one in truth.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
So no, you’re not crazy. Or weak. Or doomed. You are simply being asked to remember yourself, slowly, painfully, beautifully. To stop outsourcing your worth. To stop clinging to outcomes. To stop running from the silence. Let this be your anchor. You're not alone. You're not lost. You're just being rerouted, back to your highest path.