Chapter 02 – Shloka 40

Shloka:

नेहाभिक्रमनाशोऽस्ति प्रत्यवायो न विद्यते ।
स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् ॥

Step 1: संधि विच्छेद

Simplifying the Shloka by splitting the compound words (shown in colored fonts).

न इह अभिक्रम-नाशः अस्ति प्रत्यवायः न विद्यते ।
स्वल्पम् अपि अस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतः भयात् ॥

The following Sandhis are seen here

न + इ = ने

ह + अ = हा 

शः + अ = शोऽ

म् + अ = म

पि + अ = प्य

Step 2: Word by word interpretation

Beginning of efforts in the direction of Karma Yoga is never destroyed, nor do any contrary result happen. Even the slightest efforts towards Dharma protects from this great fear of death and rebirth.

There are a number of implied words in the translation given above. The following verbs may be noted in the Shloka.

• अस्ति – A verb having ‘अभिक्रम-नाशः‘ as its subject 
• विद्यते – A verb in लट् लकार having ‘प्रत्यवायः‘ as its subject
• त्रायते – A verb in लट् लकार having ‘स्वल्पम्’ as its subject

With this background, let’s have a closer look at each word in the Shloka.

 

न – An Avyaya meaning “no” in English

इह – An Avyaya meaning “this” in English and ‘इस’ in Hindi.

अभिक्रम-नाशः – A subject of the verb ‘अस्ति’ and hence 1st Vibhakti, Singular form is applied here. The literal meaning of the word is “loss of a beginning”, but a better translation in English is “loss of effort”. In Hindi the same will translate as ‘प्रारम्भ का नाश’.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालः

बालौ

बालाः

अस्ति – 3rd Person, Singular form of the root verb ‘अस्’ (representing the state of being) – in the लट् लकार or the present tense.

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

अस्ति

स्तः

सन्ति

प्रत्यवायः – A subject of the verb ‘विद्यते’ and hence the 1st Vibhakti, Singular form is applied here. The meaning of the word is “contrary result” in English or ‘उल्टा फल’ in Hindi.

The Shabd Roop will be like बाल

न – An Avyaya meaning “no” in English

विद्यते – 3rd Person, Singular form of the root verb ‘विद्’ (again, representing the state of being) – in the लट् लकार or the present tense in the कर्मणि form (or the passive voice).

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

विद्यते

विद्येते

विद्यन्ते

स्वल्पम् – Root word is ‘स्वल्पम्’ – meaning “a little bit” in English. The word is the subject of the verb त्रायते and so the 1st Vibhakti Singular form is applied here.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘फल’

फलम्

फले

फलानि

अपि – An Avyaya meaning “even” in English and ‘भी’ in Hindi. In English the last two words will translate as “even a little bit”

अस्य – This is a form of the 3rd Person Pronoun in Neuter Gender ‘इदम्’ – forms of “this”. Since this pronoun is pointing to the noun ‘धर्मस्य’, the same Gender, Vibhakti and Vachan are applied here.

The Shabd Roop will be as follows:

अस्य

अनयोः, एनयोः

एषाम्

धर्मस्य – Root word is ‘धर्म’ – literally meaning “ethics” but in this sense the noun “practice” makes better sense. The 6th Vibhakti, Singular form is applied here. The 6th Vibhakti is indicative of adding “of” against the noun in English and adding ‘का के की’ in Hindi to the noun. So the last four words will translate in English as “even a little bit of this practice”. In Hindi the same shall translate as ‘इस धर्म का थोड़ा सा भी’

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘फल’

फलस्य

फलयोः

फलानाम्

त्रायते – This is the Present Tense or ‘लट् लकार’ of the root verb ‘त्रै’ – meaning “protect” in English and ‘रक्षा करना’ in हिन्दी. The Atmanepade Dhatu Roop of the the 3rd Person, Singular form are used here .

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

त्रायते

त्रायेते

त्रायन्ते

महतः – Adjective of the noun ‘भयात्’ and so it takes the same Vibhakti and Vachan as the adjective. Hence 5th Vibhakti, Singular form of the root word ‘महत्’ is applicable here.

The Shabd Roop will be as follows:

महतः

महभ्याम्

महभ

भयात् – 5th Vibhakti, Singular form of the root word ‘भय’ – meaning “fear” – is applied here. The 5th Vibhakti is indicative of adding the sense of the word “from” to the noun. In Hindi the same will translate as ‘भय से’.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालात्

बालाभ्याम्

बालेभ्यः

Step 3: Rearrangement of the Shloka & Stitching it all together

The rearranged and translated lines for interpretation as per the sequence of Hindi language are as follows.

इह अभिक्रम-नाशः न अस्ति प्रत्यवायः (अपि) न विद्यते । स्वल्पम् अपि अस्य धर्मस्य महतः भयात् त्रायते ॥

इस प्रारम्भ का नाश नहीं हैं,  विपरीत फल (भी) नहीं हैं  थोडा सा भी इस धर्म का (पालन) महान भय से बचाता हैं

In English, the rearranged and translated lines are as follows:

इह अभिक्रम-नाशः अस्ति न न प्रत्यवायः विद्यते । अपि स्वल्पम् अस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतः भयात् ॥

This beginning is not destroyed, No contrary result happens Even a little bit of this practice protects from the great fear

Please note the context of this Shloka is continuing from the previous ones. Hence the phrase “This beginning” or ‘इस प्रारम्भ’ refers to the beginning of effort towards Karma Yoga. The “great fear”or ‘महान भय’ refers to the most common fear, related to death and rebirth.

Chapter 02 – Shloka 39

Shloka:

एषा तेऽभिहिता सांख्ये बुद्धिर्योगे त्विमां शृणु ।
बुद्ध्या युक्तो यया पार्थ कर्मबन्धं प्रहास्यसि ॥

Step 1: संधि विच्छेद

Simplifying the Shloka by splitting the compound words (shown in colored fonts).

एषा ते अभिहिता साङ्ख्ये बुद्धिः योगे तु इमाम् शृणु ।
बुद्ध्या युक्तः यया पार्थ कर्म-बन्धम् प्रहास्यसि ॥

The following Sandhis are seen here

: + यो = र्यो

तु + इ = त्वि

Step 2: Word by word interpretation

This knowledge is described for you through Sankhya Yoga. And now hear this – Oh Arjuna! – by which you will be able to abandon all shackles of karma.

The following verbs may be noted in the Shloka.

• अभिहिता – A verb like Krudanta having an implied ‘बुद्धिः’ as its subject 
• शृणु – A verb in लोट् लकार having an implied ‘त्वम्’ as its subject and ‘इमाम्’ as its object
• प्रहास्यसि – A verb in Future Tense having ‘त्वम्’ as its implied subject and ‘कर्म-बन्धम्‘ as its object

With this background, let’s have a closer look at each word in the Shloka.

एषा – Root word is एतत् of feminine gender – meaning “that” in English. Since the word is an adjective of ‘बुद्धिः’ and hence takes the same Gender, Vibhakti and Vachan as the noun it describes.

The Shabd Roop will be as follows:

एषा

एते

एताः

ते – Root word is the 2nd Person Pronoun ‘युष्मद्’. The 4th VIbhakti, SIngular form is applied here. The 4th VIbhakti is indicative of adding the sense of the word “for” to the noun. Hence this form means “for you” in English and ‘तुम्हारे लिये’ in Hindi.

The Shabd Roop will be as follows:

तुभ्यम्, ते

युवाभ्याम्

युष्मत्

अभिहिता – Though the word is taking Vibhaktis like a noun, this is probably a Krudant – a noun / adjective also having properties like a verb. The meaning of the word is “describe”. The word is an adjective of ‘एषा’ and hence takes the same Gender, Vibhakti and Vachan as the noun it describes.

साङ्ख्ये – The root word is the neuter gender word ‘साङ्ख्य’ – referring to the Sankhya Literature in Spirituality. The 7th VIbhakti, SIngular form is applied here. The 7th Vibhakti is indicative of usage of prepositions like “in”. Hence the meaning of the last two words is “described in Sankhya Literature” in English and ‘साङ्ख्य शास्त्र में वर्णन किया’ in Hindi.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘फल’

फले

फलयोः

फलेषु

बुद्धिः – Root word is बुद्धि of feminine gender – meaning “knowledge” in English. Since the word is a subject of the verb like Krudant ‘अभिहिता’ the 1st Vibhakti, Singular form shall apply.

The Shabd Roop will be like मति:

मतिः

मती

मतयः

योगे – The root word is the neuter gender word ‘योग’ – referring to the Yogic Literature in Spirituality. The 7th Vibhakti, Singular form is applied here. As explained earlier, the 7th Vibhakti is indicative of usage of prepositions like “in”. Hence the meaning of this form is “in Yogic Literature” in English and ‘योग शास्त्र में’ in Hindi.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बाले

बालयोः

बालेषु

तु – An Avyaya meaning “and” in English

इमाम् – Root word is the 3rd Person Feminine Gender Pronoun ‘इदम्’. As this word is an object of the verb ‘शृणु’, the 2nd Vibhakti, Singular Form is applicable here. Please note that the English word “this” does not have gender associated with it and so in translations ‘इमाम्’ will be translated as “this”. Same is the case in Hindi as well, where the equivalent translation will be ‘इसको’ – which is also a word without a gender.

The Shabd Roop will be as follows:

इमाम्, एनाम्

इमे, एने

इमाः, एनाः

शृणु – The root verb is ‘शृ’ meaning “listen” or “hear” in English. The 2nd Person, Singular form of the ‘लोट् लकार’ is used here for the Class 5 Verb. The ‘लोट् लकार’ is the tense used for request / command.

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

शृणु

शृणुतम्

शृणुत

बुद्ध्या – 3rd Vibhakti, Singular Form of the root word बुद्धि of feminine gender – meaning “mind” in English. The 3rd Vibhakti indicates the sense of the noun being an agent through which the verb’s action is performed. So the meaning of this form is “by mind” or “by intellect” in English. In Hindi the same will translate as ‘बुद्धि से’

The Shabd Roop will be as follows:

मत्या

मतिभ्याम्

मतिभिः

युक्तः – Subject of the verb ‘प्रहास्यसि’ and hence the 1st Vibhakti, Singular Form shall apply in this case. The meaning of the word is “absorbed” or “joined” in English.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालः

बालौ

बालाः

यया – The root word is ‘यद्’ in feminine gender. The meaning of ‘यद्’ is ‘जो’ in Hindi, and “who” in English as used int he phrase “the one who has come”. The 3rd Vibhakti, Singular form is applied here – which translates as ‘जिससे’ in Hindi and “by which” in English. Remember that the 3rd Vibhakti indicates the sense of the noun being an agent through which the verb’s action is performed. Hence the use of “by” in translation.

यया

याभ्याम्

याभिः

पार्थ – Sambodhana form used to address Arjuna.

कर्म-बन्धम्  – Object of the verb ‘प्रहास्यसि’ and hence the 2nd Vibhakti, Singular Form shall apply in this case. The meaning of the word is “shackles of karma” in English.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालम्

बालौ

बालान्

प्रहास्यसि – The word has a prefix ‘प्र’ and the root verb is ‘हा’ meaning “abandon” in English and ‘त्याग’ in Hindi. This is a class 3 verb and the tense used is लृट् लकार (or the Future Tense), for 2nd Person in SIngular form. The meaning of this form is “will abandon” in English and ‘त्यागोगे‘ in Hindi.

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

हास्यसि | जहिष्यसि

हास्यथः | जहिष्यथः

हास्यथ | जहिष्यथ

Step 3: Rearrangement of the Shloka & Stitching it all together

The rearranged and translated lines for interpretation as per the sequence of Hindi language are as follows.

एषा बुद्धिः साङ्ख्ये योगे ते अभिहिता तु इमाम् शृणु पार्थ  यया बुद्ध्या युक्तः (त्वम्) कर्म-बन्धम् प्रहास्यसि ॥

यह बुद्धि साङ्ख्य योग के द्वारा तुम्हारे लिये बतायी गयी हैं  और इसको सुनो हे अर्जुन! जिससे बुद्धि से युक्त (तुम) कर्म-बन्धन को त्याग पाओगे

In English, the rearranged and translated lines are as follows:

एषा बुद्धिः साङ्ख्ये योगे ते अभिहिता तु इमाम् शृणु पार्थ  यया (त्वम्) युक्तः बुद्ध्या प्रहास्यसि कर्म-बन्धम् ॥

This knowledge is described for you through Sankhya Yoga And hear this Oh Arjuna! By which (you) – absorbed by the mind – will be able to abandon shackles of karma

This Shloka is not easy to translate. The English text especially reads as a very contrived structure. But as has been explained earlier, the purpose of these translations is to learn Sanskrit grammatically and hence the focus is on trying to give – as far as possible – a direct one to one correlation between the Sanskrit and Hindi / English grammar.

Chapter 02 – Shloka 38

Shloka:

सुखदुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभालाभौ जयाजयौ ।
ततो युद्धाय युज्यस्व नैवं पापमवाप्स्यसि ॥

Step 1: संधि विच्छेद

Simplifying the Shloka by splitting the compound words (shown in colored fonts).

सुख-दुःखे समे कृत्वा लाभ-अलाभौ जय-अजयौ ।
ततः युद्धाय युज्यस्व न एवम् पापम् अवाप्स्यसि ॥

The following Sandhis are seen here

न + ए = नै

म् + अ = म

Step 2: Word by word interpretation

Treat happiness and sorrow, victory and defeat, gain and loss as same, and fight the war. In this way no sin shall accrue to you.

The following verbs may be noted in the Shloka.

• कृत्वा – A verb like Avyaya having an implied ‘त्वम्’ as its subject and the word pairs सुख-दुःखे, लाभ-अलाभौ and जय-अजयौ  as its objects
• युज्यस्व – A verb in लोट् लकार having an implied ‘त्वम्’ as its subject 
• अवाप्स्यसि – A verb in Future Tense having ‘त्वम्’ as its implied subject and ‘पापम्’ as its object

With this background, let’s have a closer look at each word in the Shloka.

सुख-दुःखे – The two words form a pair and hence द्विवचन or Dual form shall apply for this word. Since the word is an object of the verb like Avyaya कृत्वा, the 2nd Vibhakti, Dual form is applied here.

The meaning of the word pair is “happiness and sorrow” and the Shabd Roop will be like the neuter gender noun ‘फल’

फलम्

फले

फलानि

समे – Adjective of सुख-दुःखे and hence the same Gender, Vibhakti and Vachan shall apply.

कृत्वा – This is a case of त्वा Pratyaya being applied to ‘कृ’ Dhatu literally meaning “do”. The त्वा Pratyaya gives the sense of having done the action and so the form literally means “after doing”. In this sense however, the verb’s actual implication is more like “after making”.

लाभ-अलाभौ – The two words form a pair and hence द्विवचन or Dual form shall apply for this word. Since the word is an object of the verb like Avyaya कृत्वा, the 2nd Vibhakti, Dual form is applied here.

The meaning of the word pair is “gain and loss” and the Shabd Roop will be like the masculine gender noun ‘बाल’

बालम्

बालौ

बालान्

जय-अजयौ – The two words form a pair and hence द्विवचन or Dual form shall apply for this word. Since the word is an object of the verb like Avyaya कृत्वा, the 2nd Vibhakti, Dual form is applied here.

The meaning of the word pair is “victory and defeat” and the Shabd Roop will be like the masculine gender noun ‘बाल’

ततः – An Avyaya meaning “therefore” in English.

युद्धाय – 4th Vibhakti, SIngular form of the root word युद्ध meaning “batle”. The 4th Vibhakti is indicative of adding the sense of “for” to the noun. Hence this form means “for battle” in English and ‘युद्ध के लिये’ in Hindi.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालाय

बालाभ्याम्

बालेभ्यः

युज्यस्व –  The root word is ‘युज्’ – meaning “fight” and the tense used here is लोट् लकार – or the tense used for request / command. Since this is being addressed to Arjuna, the 2nd Person, Singular form of the लोट् लकार  shall apply here.

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

युज्यस्व

युज्येथाम्

युज्यध्वम्

न – Meaning “no” in English.

एवम् – An Avyaya meaning “so” in English

पापम् – 2nd Vibhakti, Singular Form of the neuter gender root word ‘पाप’. As the word is an object of the verb ‘अवाप्स्यसि’, hence the 2nd Vibhakti is applicable.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘फल’

फलम्

फले

फलानि

अवाप्स्यसि – The root word is taken from the verb ‘आप्’ meaning “to gain” in English. The verb has a prefix ‘अव’ – and the form of the verb used is 2nd Person, Future tense (लृट लकार) of the Class 5 verb ‘आप्’.

The Dhatu Roop will be as follows:

आप्स्यसि

आप्स्यथः

आप्स्यथ

Step 3: Rearrangement of the Shloka & Stitching it all together

The rearranged and translated lines for interpretation as per the sequence of Hindi language are as follows.

सुख-दुःखे लाभ-अलाभौ जय-अजयौ समे कृत्वा  । ततः युद्धाय युज्यस्व एवम् पापम् न अवाप्स्यसि ॥

सुख-दुःख, लाभ-अलाभ, जय-अजय को समान बना कर  फिर युद्ध के लिये लड़ो, इस तरह पाप को नहीं पाओगे

In English, the rearranged and translated lines are as follows:

कृत्वा सुख-दुःखे लाभ-अलाभौ जय-अजयौ समे । ततः युद्धाय युज्यस्व एवम् ( त्वम्) न अवाप्स्यसि  पापम्  ॥

After making happiness and sorrow, gain and loss, victory and defeat same Thereafter fight for the battle In this way, (you) shall not earn sin

In the 33rd Shloka of this chapter, Sri Krishna explains how Arjuna will earn more sin. The same form ‘ पापम् अवाप्स्यसि’ is used in that Shloka as well. In this Shloka, Sri Krishna explains how Arjuna may fight the war and still not earn any further sin.

Chapter 02 – Shloka 37

Shloka:

हतो वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गं जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् ।
तस्मादुत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः ॥

Step 1: संधि विच्छेद

Simplifying the Shloka by splitting the compound words (shown in colored fonts).

हतः वा प्राप्स्यसि स्वर्गम् जित्वा वा भोक्ष्यसे महीम् ।
तस्मात् उत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय कृत-निश्चयः ॥

The following Sandhis are seen here

त् + उ = दु

 

Step 2: Word by word interpretation

Die and gain heaven, or after winning enjoy the pleasures of the world. Therefore stand up Arjuna, and be determined for the war.

The following verbs may be noted in the Shloka.

• प्राप्स्यसि  – A verb in Future Tense having an implied ‘त्वम्’ as its subject and स्वर्गम् as its object
• भोक्ष्यसे  – Again a verb in Future Tense having an implied ‘त्वम्’ as its subject and महीम् as its object
• उत्तिष्ठ – Having an implied ‘त्वम्’ as its subject

With this background, let’s have a closer look at each word in the Shloka.

हतः – An adjective of an implied 2nd Person Pronoun ‘त्वम्’ and hence takes the same Vibhakti and Vachan as the pronoun. Hence the 1st Vibhakti, Singular form is applicable.

The meaning of the word is “die” in English. This is again a case of an adjective playing the role of a verb.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालः

बालौ

बालाः

वा – An Avyaya meaning “or” in English

प्राप्स्यसि – This is a verb have ‘प्र’ as a prefix to the root verb ‘आप्’ meaning “gain” in English. Since the subject of the verb is the implied ‘त्वम्’ – the 2nd Person, Singular form of the Future Tense (लृट् लकार) is applied here.

The Dhatu Roop are as follows

आप्स्यसि

आप्स्यथः

आप्स्यथ

स्वर्गम् – Object of the verb ‘प्राप्स्यसि’ and hence the 2nd Vibhakti, Singular Form is applicable here. The root word is ‘स्वर्ग’ and the Shabd Roop will be like ‘फल’

फलम्

फले

फलानि

जित्वा – This is a case of ‘त्वा’ Pratyaya being aplied to the verb ‘जि’ meaning “win” in English. The ‘त्वा’ Pratyaya conveys the sense of having done the action of the verb. Hence this form means “after winning” in English and ‘जीत कर’ in Hindi

वा – An Avyaya meaning “or” in English

भोक्ष्यसे – 2nd Person, Singular form of the Future Tense or लृट् लकार of the Class 7 root verb ‘भुज्’ – meaning “enjoy” in English. The Atmanepade forms are applied here.

The Dhatu Roop are as follows

भोक्ष्यसे

भोक्ष्येथे

भोक्ष्यध्वे

महीम् – The root word is ‘मही’ meaning “earth” and this is a noun in the feminine gender. Hence the Shabd Roop will be like ‘नदी’. The word is an object of the verb भोक्ष्यसे and hence the 2nd Vibhakti Singular Form is applicable here.

नदीम्

नद्यौ

नदीः

तस्मात् – An Avyaya meaning “therefore” in English

उत्तिष्ठ – This is a verb composed of उद् + स्था. The form of the verb is परस्मैपद लोट्-लकार मध्यमपुरुष एकवचन and means “stand up!”.

I was unable to get the full Dhatu Roop for स्था Dhatu – the above explanation has been taken from Amit Rao’s comment for the same word in the 3rd Shloka of 2nd Chapter.

कौन्तेय – Sambodhana form using another name for Arjuna – literally meaning “son of Kunti”.

युद्धाय – This is 4th Vibhakti of the root word ‘युद्ध’ meaning “war” in English. The 4th Vibhakti is indicative of the sense of ‘के लिये’ in Hindi or “for” in English. So this form means ‘युद्ध के लिये’ in Hindi and “for war” in English.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘फल’

फलाय

फलाभ्याम्

फलेभ्यः

कृत-निश्चयः – This is a case of 1st Vibhakti, Singular form being applied to the root word ‘कृत-निश्चय’. The meaning of the word is “determined” and it is an adjective of the implied 2nd Person Pronoun ‘त्वम्’. Hence it takes the same Vibhakti and Vachan as the pronoun it describes.

The Shabd Roop will be like ‘बाल’

बालः

बालौ

बालाः

Step 3: Rearrangement of the Shloka & Stitching it all together

The rearranged and translated lines for interpretation as per the sequence of Hindi language are as follows.

वा हतः (त्वम्) स्वर्गम् प्राप्स्यसि  वा जित्वा महीम् भोक्ष्यसे तस्मात् उत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय युद्धाय (त्वम्) कृत-निश्चयः (भवसि) ॥

या मर कर तुम स्वर्ग को प्राप्त करोगे या जीतकर पृथ्वी को भोगोगे इसलिये उठो, हे अर्जुन! युद्ध के लिये तुम दृढ निश्चयी (बनो)

In English, the rearranged and translated lines are as follows:

वा हतः (त्वम्) स्वर्गम् प्राप्स्यसि  वा जित्वा महीम् भोक्ष्यसे तस्मात् उत्तिष्ठ कौन्तेय (भवसि) कृत-निश्चयः युद्धाय ॥

Die, you shall gain heaven Or after winning, enjoy the world Therefore get up Oh Arjuna! Become determined for the war