9.8
प्रकृतिं स्वामवष्टभ्य
विसृजामि पुनः पुनः ।
भूतग्राममिमं कृत्स्नम्
अवशं प्रकृतेर्वशात् ॥
prakṛtiṃ svām avaṣṭabhya visṛjāmi punaḥ punaḥ
bhūtagrāmam imaṃ kṛtsnam avaśaṃ prakṛter vaśāt
Kṛṣṇa (कृष्ण) is still speaking to Arjuna (अर्जुन).
The verse
Taking hold of my own nature, I send forth again and again this whole gathering of beings, powerless, by the sway of nature.
नेपालीमा
आफ्नै प्रकृति समातेर म प्रकृतिको वशले विवश यो सारा भूतसमूहलाई फेरि फेरि निकाल्छु।
Where it sits
9.7 said he sends them at the beginning of a world-age. This verse puts his hand on his own nature, and puts the beings under nature's sway. They do not step forth on their own.
Split: प्रकृतिम् + स्वाम् + अवष्टभ्य + विसृजामि + पुनः + पुनः + भूत-ग्रामम् + इमम् + कृत्स्नम् + अवशम् + प्रकृतेः + वशात्
prakṛtim + svām + avaṣṭabhya + visṛjāmi + punaḥ + punaḥ + bhūta-grāmam + imam + kṛtsnam + avaśam + prakṛteḥ + vaśāt
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| प्रकृतिम् | prakṛtim | accusative | nature. |
| स्वाम् | svām | accusative feminine | my own. Agrees with prakṛtim (प्रकृतिम्). |
| अवष्टभ्य | avaṣṭabhya | gerund | having taken hold. ava-stambh (अव-स्तम्भ्), "prop, seize." |
| विसृजामि | visṛjāmi | present, 1st singular | I send forth. |
| पुनः | punaḥ | indeclinable | again. |
| पुनः | punaḥ | indeclinable | again. |
| भूत-ग्रामम् | bhūta-grāmam | accusative | the gathering of beings. grāma (ग्राम) is a village, a heap of people. |
| इमम् | imam | accusative masculine | this. |
| कृत्स्नम् | kṛtsnam | accusative | whole. |
| अवशम् | avaśam | accusative | without a will of its own. vaśa (वश) is power, sway. |
| प्रकृतेः | prakṛteḥ | genitive | of nature. |
| वशात् | vaśāt | ablative | from the sway, by the power. |
The phrases
प्रकृतिं स्वाम् अवष्टभ्य prakṛtiṃ svām avaṣṭabhya is how he sends. He takes hold of his own nature first. The gerund has no person of its own. The person is the aham (अहम्) inside visṛjāmi (विसृजामि).
visṛjāmi punaḥ punaḥ (विसृजामि पुनः पुनः) is the act, doubled. Again and again, not once.
भूतग्रामम् इमं कृत्स्नम् अवशम् bhūtagrāmam imaṃ kṛtsnam avaśam is what he sends: this whole gathering of beings, powerless. prakṛteḥ vaśāt (प्रकृतेः वशात्) says by whose sway. By the sway of nature.
Sanskrit in this line
avaṣṭabhya (अवष्टभ्य) ends in --ya (य) because the verb has a prefix. A gerund with no prefix would end in --tvā (त्वा), as jñātvā (ज्ञात्वा) did in 9.1. प्रकृतेः + वशात् prakṛteḥ + vaśāt is recited prakṛter vaśāt (प्रकृतेर्वशात्): eḥ (एः) before a voiced sound becomes er (एर्).
Say it back
Cover the English. Say what he takes hold of, and whether the beings choose. If avaśam (अवशम्) drops out, stay here.