18.40
न तदस्ति पृथिव्यां वा
दिवि देवेषु वा पुनः ।
सत्त्वं प्रकृतिजैर्मुक्तं
यदेभिः स्यात्त्रिभिर्गुणैः ॥
na tad asti pṛthivyāṃ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ
sattvaṃ prakṛtijair muktaṃ yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ
Kṛṣṇa (कृष्ण) is still speaking, to Arjuna (अर्जुन). The sorting stops. The three guṇa (गुण)s are said to cover everything that is.
The verse
There is no being on earth, or again in heaven among the gods, which would be free of these three guṇa (गुण)s born of prakṛti (प्रकृति).
नेपालीमा
पृथ्वीमा, वा फेरि स्वर्गमा देवताहरूमा, प्रकृतिबाट जन्मेका यी तीन गुणबाट मुक्त हुने कुनै प्राणी छैन।
Where it sits
The lists are over, and this verse is the rule under them: no being, on earth or among the gods, is free of the three guṇa (गुण)s born of prakṛti (प्रकृति). What he says from 18.41 belongs to another sitting.
Split: न + तत् + अस्ति + पृथिव्याम् + वा + दिवि + देवेषु + वा + पुनः + सत्त्वम् + प्रकृति-जैः + मुक्तम् + यत् + एभिः + स्यात् + त्रिभिः + गुणैः
na + tat + asti + pṛthivyām + vā + divi + deveṣu + vā + punaḥ + sattvam + prakṛti-jaiḥ + muktam + yat + ebhiḥ + syāt + tribhiḥ + guṇaiḥ
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| न | na | indeclinable | not. There is not. |
| तत् | tat | nominative singular neuter | that. The correlative of yat (यत्). |
| अस्ति | asti | present, 3rd singular of as (अस्) | there is. |
| पृथिव्याम् | pṛthivyām | locative singular of पृथ्वी pṛthivī | on the earth. |
| वा | vā | indeclinable | or. |
| दिवि | divi | locative singular of div (दिव्) | in heaven. |
| देवेषु | deveṣu | locative plural | among the gods. |
| वा | vā | indeclinable | or. |
| पुनः | punaḥ | indeclinable | again. Further. |
| सत्त्वम् | sattvam | nominative singular | a being. An existent thing. |
| प्रकृति-जैः | prakṛti-jaiḥ | instrumental plural | by those born of prakṛti (प्रकृति). The suffix --ja (ज) means "born." Agrees with guṇaiḥ (गुणैः). |
| मुक्तम् | muktam | nominative singular neuter | freed. Free. Agrees with sattvam (सत्त्वम्) and with yat (यत्). |
| यत् | yat | nominative singular neuter | which. |
| एभिः | ebhiḥ | instrumental plural | by these. |
| स्यात् | syāt | optative, 3rd singular of as (अस्) | would be. |
| त्रिभिः | tribhiḥ | instrumental plural | by the three. |
| गुणैः | guṇaiḥ | instrumental plural | by the guṇa (गुण)s. |
The phrases
न तत् अस्ति पृथिव्याम् वा na tat asti pṛthivyām vā opens the refusal. There is not, on earth, that thing. तत् अस्ति tat asti is tad asti (तदस्ति). divi deveṣu vā punaḥ (दिवि देवेषु वा पुनः) adds heaven, among the gods. The search is the earth and the gods' place.
सत्त्वं प्रकृति-जैः मुक्तम् यत् एभिः स्यात् त्रिभिः गुणैः sattvaṃ prakṛti-jaiḥ muktam yat ebhiḥ syāt tribhiḥ guṇaiḥ is the thing that is not found. A being which would be free of these three guṇa (गुण)s born of prakṛti (प्रकृति). prakṛti-jaiḥ muktam (प्रकृति-जैः मुक्तम्) is prakṛtijair muktam (प्रकृतिजैर्मुक्तम्). यत् एभिः yat ebhiḥ is yad ebhiḥ (यदेभिः). syāt tribhiḥ guṇaiḥ (स्यात् त्रिभिः गुणैः) is syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ (स्यात्त्रिभिर्गुणैः).
Sanskrit in this line
sattvam (सत्त्वम्) in this verse is a being, a thing that exists. It is not the guṇa (गुण) called sattva (सत्त्व). The three strands are named separately, tribhiḥ guṇaiḥ (त्रिभिः गुणैः), and prakṛti-jaiḥ (प्रकृति-जैः) agrees with them: born of prakṛti (प्रकृति). muktam (मुक्तम्) takes the instrumental as "free of." The instrumental of separation is the same case as the instrumental of means, and the verb decides it. syāt (स्यात्) is optative, "would be." न तत् अस्ति यत् स्यात् na tat asti yat syāt is "there is not a thing which would be." If sattvam (सत्त्वम्) is heard as one of the three strands, the being has been swapped for a guṇa (गुण), and the verse is lost.
Say it back
Cover the English. Say sattvam (सत्त्वम्) as a being, and say the three guṇa (गुण)s as what it is not free of. If sattvam (सत्त्वम्) comes out as the clear strand, stay here.