3.16
एवं प्रवर्तितं चक्रं नानुवर्तयतीह यः ।
अघायुरिन्द्रियारामो मोघं पार्थ स जीवति ॥
evaṃ pravartitaṃ cakraṃ nānuvartayatīha yaḥ
aghāyur indriyārāmo moghaṃ pārtha sa jīvati
śrībhagavān (श्रीभगवान्) is speaking, and the chain of 3.14 and 3.15 gets its name, a wheel.
The verse
He who does not keep this wheel turning here lives in vain, Pārtha (पार्थ), a life of evil spent in the senses.
नेपालीमा
हे पार्थ, जसले यहाँ यो चक्र घुमाइरहँदैन, त्यो इन्द्रियमा पापको जीवन बिताउँदै व्यर्थ बाँच्छ।
Where it sits
The wheel is now a duty for anyone who still has a life to spend. 3.17 will name the exception, the person who no longer needs anything from the wheel.
Split: एवम् + प्रवर्तितम् + चक्रम् + न + अनुवर्तयति + इह + यः + अघ-आयुः + इन्द्रिय-आरामः + मोघम् + पार्थ + सः + जीवति
evam + pravartitam + cakram + na + anuvartayati + iha + yaḥ + agha-āyuḥ + indriya-ārāmaḥ + mogham + pārtha + saḥ + jīvati
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| एवम् | evam | indeclinable | thus. As just described. |
| प्रवर्तितम् | pravartitam | accusative neuter | set going, set to turn. |
| चक्रम् | cakram | accusative | the wheel. |
| न | na | indeclinable | not. |
| अनुवर्तयति | anuvartayati | present, 3rd singular, causative | he keeps it turning, he follows it along. |
| इह | iha | indeclinable | here. |
| यः | yaḥ | nominative | who. |
| अघ-आयुः | agha-āyuḥ | nominative | he whose life is evil. āyus (आयुस्) is life. |
| इन्द्रिय-आरामः | indriya-ārāmaḥ | nominative | he whose delight is in the senses. ārāma (आराम) is a pleasure-garden. |
| मोघम् | mogham | accusative, adverbial | in vain. |
| पार्थ | pārtha | vocative | Pārtha (पार्थ), son of Pṛthā (पृथा). Arjuna (अर्जुन). |
| सः | saḥ | nominative | he. |
| जीवति | jīvati | present, 3rd singular | he lives. |
The phrases
एवम् प्रवर्तितम् चक्रम् न अनुवर्तयति इह यः evaṃ pravartitam cakraṃ na anuvartayati iha yaḥ is the refusal. Who, here, does not keep turning the wheel that has been set going. न + अनुवर्तयति + इह na + anuvartayati + iha is nānuvartayatīha (नानुवर्तयतीह). First अ + अ a + a lengthens, then इ + इ i + i lengthens.
aghāyuḥ indriyārāmaḥ (अघायुः इन्द्रियारामः) is the life that refusal makes. A life of evil, delighting in the senses. uḥ (उः) before a vowel becomes ur (उर्): aghāyur i (अघायुरि). Then ārāmaḥ (आरामः) before the voiced m (म्) of mogham (मोघम्) becomes ārāmo (आरामो).
मोघम् पार्थ स जीवति moghaṃ pārtha sa jīvati is the judgment on that life. He lives in vain. sa (स) is saḥ (सः) before a consonant, as in 3.7.
Sanskrit in this line
uḥ (उः) before a vowel becomes ur (उर्). अघायुः + इन्द्रिय agha-āyuḥ + indriya is recited aghāyur indriya (अघायुरिन्द्रिय). The visarga has become r (र्), and the vowel of āyus (आयुस्) stays u (उ). You will meet iḥ (इः) doing the same with r (र्) in the next verse.
Say it back
Name the wheel, then say what kind of life fails to turn it. If mogham (मोघम्) becomes "unhappy," stay here. The verse says the life is wasted.