3.8
नियतं कुरु कर्म त्वं कर्म ज्यायो ह्यकर्मणः ।
शरीरयात्रापि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः ॥
niyataṃ kuru karma tvaṃ karma jyāyo hy akarmaṇaḥ
śarīrayātrāpi ca te na prasiddhyed akarmaṇaḥ
śrībhagavān (श्रीभगवान्) is speaking, and the argument has reached a command.
The verse
Do the action appointed for you: action is better than inaction, and even the journey of your body would not succeed from doing nothing.
नेपालीमा
तोकिएको कर्म गर। कर्म नगर्नुभन्दा कर्म राम्रो हो, र केही नगर्दा तिम्रो शरीरको यात्रा पनि सफल हुँदैन।
Where it sits
The first stretch ends on a direct order: the two stances of 3.3 remain, and the stance he is told to stand in is the action that is his. What that action is for begins at 3.9.
Split: नियतम् + कुरु + कर्म + त्वम् + कर्म + ज्यायः + हि + अकर्मणः + शरीर-यात्रा + अपि + च + ते + न + प्रसिद्ध्येत् + अकर्मणः
niyatam + kuru + karma + tvam + karma + jyāyaḥ + hi + akarmaṇaḥ + śarīra-yātrā + api + ca + te + na + prasiddhyet + akarmaṇaḥ
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| नियतम् | niyatam | accusative neuter | appointed, the action that is his. |
| कुरु | kuru | imperative, 2nd singular of kṛ (कृ) | do. |
| कर्म | karma | accusative neuter | action. |
| त्वम् | tvam | nominative | you. |
| कर्म | karma | nominative neuter | action. |
| ज्यायः | jyāyaḥ | nominative neuter of jyāyas (ज्यायस्) | superior. Agrees with karma (कर्म). |
| हि | hi | indeclinable | for. |
| अकर्मणः | akarmaṇaḥ | ablative of akarman (अकर्मन्) | than inaction. |
| शरीर-यात्रा | śarīra-yātrā | nominative feminine | the journey of the body, keeping it going. |
| अपि | api | indeclinable | even. |
| च | ca | indeclinable | and. |
| ते | te | genitive enclitic | your. |
| न | na | indeclinable | not. |
| प्रसिद्ध्येत् | prasiddhyet | optative, 3rd singular of pra-sidh (प्र-सिध्) | it would succeed, it would be accomplished. |
| अकर्मणः | akarmaṇaḥ | ablative | from inaction. |
The phrases
नियतम् कुरु कर्म त्वम् niyataṃ kuru karma tvam is the command. You, do the action that is appointed. niyatam (नियतम्) describes karma (कर्म): not action in general, the one that falls to him.
कर्म ज्यायो हि अकर्मणः karma jyāyo hy akarmaṇaḥ is the reason, in the comparative he himself used in 3.1. Action is superior to not-acting. ज्यायः + हि jyāyaḥ + hi is jyāyo hi (ज्यायो हि), because h (ह्) is voiced. हि + अकर्मणः hi + akarmaṇaḥ is hy akarmaṇaḥ (ह्यकर्मणः).
शरीरयात्रा अपि च ते न प्रसिद्ध्येत् अकर्मणः śarīrayātrā api ca te na prasiddhyet akarmaṇaḥ is how far the refusal fails. Even the keeping of your body would not get done from doing nothing. आ + अ ā + a has made śarīrayātrāpi (शरीरयात्रापि). The t (त्) of prasiddhyet (प्रसिद्ध्येत्) has voiced before the vowel: prasiddhyed akarmaṇaḥ (प्रसिद्ध्येदकर्मणः).
Sanskrit in this line
jyāyas (ज्यायस्) changes gender with the noun. In 3.1 the noun was buddhiḥ (बुद्धिः), feminine, so the form was jyāyasī (ज्यायसी). Here the noun is karma (कर्म), neuter, so the form is jyāyaḥ (ज्यायः). Same comparative. Do not import the feminine ending onto the neuter noun.
Say it back
Give the command, then the comparison. If niyatam (नियतम्) becomes "any action you like," stay here. It is the action appointed for him.