9.3
अश्रद्दधानाः पुरुषा
धर्मस्यास्य परन्तप ।
अप्राप्य मां निवर्तन्ते
मृत्युसंसारवर्त्मनि ॥
aśraddadhānāḥ puruṣā dharmasyāsya parantapa
aprāpya māṃ nivartante mṛtyusaṃsāravartmani
Kṛṣṇa (कृष्ण) is still speaking to Arjuna (अर्जुन). parantapa (परन्तप) is the name he uses for him here.
The verse
Men who do not trust this dharma, scorcher of the foe, fail to reach me and turn back onto the path of death and the round of births.
नेपालीमा
हे शत्रुलाई पोल्ने, यो धर्ममा विश्वास नगर्ने मानिसहरू मकहाँ पुग्दैनन्, र मृत्युको बाटो र जन्मको चक्रमा फर्किन्छन्।
Where it sits
The titles in 9.2 are not a charm by themselves. This verse is the condition. Without trust, the hearer does not arrive, and the old road takes him again.
Split: अश्रद्दधानाः + पुरुषाः + धर्मस्य + अस्य + परन्तप + अप्राप्य + माम् + निवर्तन्ते + मृत्यु-संसार-वर्त्मनि
aśraddadhānāḥ + puruṣāḥ + dharmasya + asya + parantapa + aprāpya + mām + nivartante + mṛtyu-saṃsāra-vartmani
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| अश्रद्दधानाः | aśraddadhānāḥ | nominative plural | not placing trust. From śrad-dhā (श्रद्-धा), "set the heart." The a- (अ-) reverses it. |
| पुरुषाः | puruṣāḥ | nominative plural | men, persons. |
| धर्मस्य | dharmasya | genitive | of the dharma. This teaching. |
| अस्य | asya | genitive of idam (इदम्) | of this. |
| परन्तप | parantapa | vocative | scorcher of the foe. para (पर) is the other, the foe. tapa (तप) is heat. |
| अप्राप्य | aprāpya | gerund | not having reached. pra-āp (प्र-आप्) "arrive at," with a- (अ-). |
| माम् | mām | accusative | me. |
| निवर्तन्ते | nivartante | present, 3rd plural, middle | they turn back. ni-vṛt (नि-वृत्). |
| मृत्यु-संसार-वर्त्मनि | mṛtyu-saṃsāra-vartmani | locative | on the path of death and the round of births. vartman (वर्त्मन्) is a path. |
The phrases
aśraddadhānāḥ puruṣāḥ (अश्रद्दधानाः पुरुषाः) are the people. They do not set the heart on this. dharmasya asya (धर्मस्य अस्य) is "of this dharma," the one just called king of knowings and king of secrets.
aprāpya mām (अप्राप्य माम्) is unfinished business that stays unfinished. They do not arrive at him. nivartante (निवर्तन्ते) is what they do instead: they turn back.
mṛtyu-saṃsāra-vartmani (मृत्यु-संसार-वर्त्मनि) is where the turning-back puts them. Death, and the round, and a path under their feet.
Sanskrit in this line
puruṣāḥ (पुरुषाः) stands in front of dharmasya (धर्मस्य) and is recited puruṣā (पुरुषा). āḥ (आः) before a voiced consonant drops the visarga and leaves ā (आ). धर्मस्य + अस्य dharmasya + asya is dharmasyāsya (धर्मस्यास्य): अ + अ a + a becomes ā (आ).
Say it back
Cover the English. Say who turns back, and onto what path. If aśraddadhānāḥ (अश्रद्दधानाः) comes out as "people in general," stay here.