Verse 18.37
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
यत्तदग्रे विषमिव परिणामेऽमृतोपमम् | तत्सुखं सात्त्विकं प्रोक्तमात्मबुद्धिप्रसादजम् ||३७||
Transliteration (IAST)
yat tad agre viṣam iva pariṇāme 'mṛtopamam | tat sukhaṁ sāttvikaṁ proktam ātma-buddhi-prasāda-jam ||37||
Word-by-Word Meanings
Translation
That happiness which is like poison in the beginning but like nectar in the end, which is born of the clarity of self-knowledge - that is declared to be sattvic.
Commentary
Sattvic happiness requires initial discipline that feels difficult but yields lasting bliss. Shankaracharya explains that spiritual practices like meditation and self-restraint seem painful at first (like poison) but lead to the nectar of self-realization. The phrase 'ātma-buddhi-prasāda-jam' indicates this joy arises from the purified intellect's direct perception of the Self. Madhva notes this is the only happiness that is permanent and self-sustaining.