14.5
सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति
गुणाः प्रकृतिसम्भवाः ।
निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो
देहे देहिनमव्ययम् ॥
sattvaṃ rajas tama iti guṇāḥ prakṛtisambhavāḥ
nibadhnanti mahābāho dehe dehinam avyayam
Kṛṣṇa (कृष्ण) is still speaking, to Arjuna (अर्जुन).
The verse
sattva (सत्त्व), rajas (रजस्), and tamas (तमस्), the strands born of nature, bind the imperishable embodied one in the body, mighty-armed one.
नेपालीमा
सत्त्व, रजस् र तमस्, प्रकृतिबाट जन्मेका गुण, नाश नहुने देहीलाई शरीरमा बाँध्छन्, हे महाबाहु।
Where it sits
Birth was the womb and the seed, and this verse turns to what holds the embodied one once he has a body. The next three verses say how each strand binds.
Split: सत्त्वम् + रजः + तमः + इति + गुणाः + प्रकृति-सम्भवाः + निबध्नन्ति + महा-बाहो + देहे + देहिनम् + अव्ययम्
sattvam + rajaḥ + tamaḥ + iti + guṇāḥ + prakṛti-sambhavāḥ + nibadhnanti + mahā-bāho + dehe + dehinam + avyayam
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| सत्त्वम् | sattvam | nominative neuter | sattva (सत्त्व), the clear strand. |
| रजः | rajaḥ | nominative neuter | rajas (रजस्), the driving strand. |
| तमः | tamaḥ | nominative neuter | tamas (तमस्), the dark strand. |
| इति | iti | indeclinable | thus. It closes the list of names. |
| गुणाः | guṇāḥ | nominative plural | the strands. |
| प्रकृति-सम्भवाः | prakṛti-sambhavāḥ | nominative plural | born of nature. prakṛti (प्रकृति) is nature. sambhava (सम्भव) is arising. |
| निबध्नन्ति | nibadhnanti | present, 3rd plural | they bind. ni-bandh (नि-बन्ध्). |
| महा-बाहो | mahā-bāho | vocative | mighty-armed one. |
| देहे | dehe | locative singular | in the body. |
| देहिनम् | dehinam | accusative singular | the embodied one. dehin (देहिन्) is the one who has a body. |
| अव्ययम् | avyayam | accusative singular | imperishable. Agrees with dehinam (देहिनम्). |
The phrases
sattvaṃ rajaḥ tamaḥ iti guṇāḥ prakṛti-sambhavāḥ (सत्त्वं रजः तमः इति गुणाः प्रकृति-सम्भवाः) names the three and then says what they are. Strands, born of nature. iti (इति) ends the three names, so guṇāḥ (गुणाः) is the word that gathers them.
निबध्नन्ति महा-बाहो देहे देहिनम् अव्ययम् nibadhnanti mahā-bāho dehe dehinam avyayam is what those strands do. They bind the embodied one, in the body. dehe (देहे) is the place. dehinam (देहिनम्) is the object. avyayam (अव्ययम्) agrees with the man, not with the body. The one who is bound does not perish.
Sanskrit in this line
रजः + तमः + इति rajaḥ + tamaḥ + iti is recited rajas tama iti (रजस्तम इति). aḥ (अः) before the voiceless t (त्) becomes s (स्), so rajaḥ tamaḥ (रजः तमः) is rajas tamaḥ (रजस्तमः). Then aḥ (अः) before the vowel i (इ) drops its visarga and leaves the a (अ): tama iti (तम इति). Three words are in that sound. If tama (तम) is heard as a stump of tamaḥ (तमः), the third strand has been lost.
Say it back
Cover the English. Name the three strands, then say whom they bind. If avyayam (अव्ययम्) is said of the body, stay here.