14.16 What each one yields Krishna speaks

कर्मणः सुकृतस्याहुः सात्त्विकं निर्मलं फलम्
रजसस्तु फलं दुःखमज्ञानं तमसः फलम्

karmaṇaḥ sukṛitasyāhuḥ sāttvikaṁ nirmalaṁ phalam
rajasas tu phalaṁ duḥkham ajñānaṁ tamasaḥ phalam

The fruit of good action is said to be spotless and of the nature of clarity; the fruit of restlessness is pain; and the fruit of inertia is unknowing.

Explanation

The fruits, and one of them is simply pain.

Good action yields the spotless; restlessness yields duḥkham; inertia yields unknowing.

The middle term is the one to sit with. Restlessness is the strand that produces results, and the result it is credited with here is pain — not failure, not emptiness. Getting what you chased is included.

Word by word

karmaṇaḥ: of action
su-kṛitasya: pure
āhuḥ: is said
sāttvikam: mode of goodness
nirmalam: pure
phalam: result
rajasaḥ: mode of passion
tu: indeed
phalam: result
duḥkham: pain
ajñānam: ignorance
tamasaḥ: mode of ignorance
phalam: result