18.66
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य
मामेकं शरणं व्रज ।
अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो
मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥
sarvadharmān parityajya mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja
ahaṃ tvā sarvapāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
Kṛṣṇa (कृष्ण) is still speaking, to Arjuna (अर्जुन).
The verse
Leaving all dharmas, come to me alone for refuge; I shall release you from all evils; do not grieve.
नेपालीमा
सबै धर्म छाडेर ममा मात्र शरण आउ। म तिमीलाई सबै खराबीबाट छुटकारा दिनेछु, शोक नगर।
Where it sits
This is the most secret word, the refuge he offers because Arjuna (अर्जुन) is dear, and mā śucaḥ (मा शुचः) answers the grief of the man who sat down and has not yet spoken.
The verse is revered as the carama-śloka (चरम-श्लोक), the ultimate verse, across the devotional and theological schools of India: the word of total surrender. That surrender is called śaraṇāgati (शरणागति), and prapatti (प्रपत्ति).
Split: सर्व-धर्मान् + परित्यज्य + माम् + एकम् + शरणम् + व्रज + अहम् + त्वा + सर्व-पापेभ्यः + मोक्षयिष्यामि + मा + शुचः
sarva-dharmān + parityajya + mām + ekam + śaraṇam + vraja + aham + tvā + sarva-pāpebhyaḥ + mokṣayiṣyāmi + mā + śucaḥ
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| देवनागरी | Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|---|
| सर्व-धर्मान् | sarva-dharmān | accusative plural | all dharmas. |
| परित्यज्य | parityajya | gerund | having left behind. From pari-tyaj (परि-त्यज्). |
| माम् | mām | accusative | me. |
| एकम् | ekam | accusative | alone, the one. Agrees with mām (माम्). |
| शरणम् | śaraṇam | accusative | refuge. |
| व्रज | vraja | imperative, 2nd singular | come, go. From vraj (व्रज्). |
| अहम् | aham | nominative | I. |
| त्वा | tvā | accusative enclitic of tvam (त्वम्) | you. The short form. |
| सर्व-पापेभ्यः | sarva-pāpebhyaḥ | ablative plural | from all evils. |
| मोक्षयिष्यामि | mokṣayiṣyāmi | future, 1st singular, causative | I shall release. The stem is mokṣaya (मोक्षय), "cause to be free." |
| मा | mā | indeclinable | do not. The prohibitive. |
| शुचः | śucaḥ | injunctive, 2nd singular | grieve. From śuc (शुच्). With mā (मा), a prohibition. |
The phrases
sarvadharmān parityajya mām ekaṃ śaraṇaṃ vraja (सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज) is the command. Leaving all dharmas, come to me alone for refuge. ekam (एकम्) agrees with mām (माम्). The refuge of 18.62 is now himself, alone.
ahaṃ tvā sarvapāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि) is what he will do. I shall release you from all evils. tvā (त्वा) is the person. The ablative is what he is released from.
mā śucaḥ (मा शुचः) is the last clause of the teaching. Do not grieve. mā (मा) with the injunctive forbids the act.
Sanskrit in this line
The future is mokṣayiṣyāmi (मोक्षयिष्यामि). Count the syllables as they stand in the Devanagari: mo kṣa yi ṣyā mi (मो क्ष यि ष्या मि). kṣa (क्ष) has its own a (अ). The y (य्) begins the next syllable, yi (यि). That a (अ) is the stem vowel of mokṣaya (मोक्षय) meeting the future --iṣya- (इष्य-). Read the a (अ) that follows क्ष kṣ.
Say it back
Cover the English. Say the leaving, the refuge, and the last prohibition. If mokṣayiṣyāmi (मोक्षयिष्यामि) is said with kṣya (क्ष्य) in place of kṣa yi (क्ष यि), stay here.