Verse 18.4
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
निश्चयं शृणु मे तत्र त्यागे भरतसत्तम | त्यागो हि पुरुषव्याघ्र त्रिविधः सम्प्रकीर्तितः ||४||
Transliteration (IAST)
niścayaṁ śṛṇu me tatra tyāge bharata-sattama | tyāgo hi puruṣa-vyāghra tri-vidhaḥ samprakīrtitaḥ ||4||
Word-by-Word Meanings
niścayam-the conclusion/definite truth
śṛṇu-hear
tatra-there/in that matter
tyāge-regarding relinquishment
bharata-sattama-O best of the Bharatas
tri-vidhaḥ-threefold
samprakīrtitaḥ-is declared
Translation
Hear from Me the definitive truth about relinquishment, O best of the Bharatas. Relinquishment, O tiger among men, has been declared to be of three kinds.
Commentary
Krishna announces His conclusive teaching on tyaga, classifying it into three types based on the three gunas. Shankaracharya notes that the word 'niścayam' (definitive conclusion) indicates that Krishna is about to resolve the debate presented in the previous verse. Ramanuja observes that the threefold classification follows the pattern established in Chapter 17.
Themes
karmamoksha