Shloka 31

Adhyāya 51: Kṛṣṇa’s Leave-Taking and Departure for Dvārakā (द्वारकागमनानुमति)

Devanagari script

कर्मणा जायते जन्तुर्मूर्तिमान्‌ू षोडशात्मक: । पुरुषं ग्रसते5विद्या तद्‌ ग्राह्मममृताशिनाम्‌,क्योंकि सकाम कर्मके अनुष्ठानसे जीवको सोलह विकारोंसे निर्मित स्थूल शरीर धारण करके जन्म लेना पड़ता है और वह सदा अविद्याका ग्रास बना रहता है। इतना ही नहीं, कर्मठ पुरुष देवताओंके भी उपभोगका विषय होता है

Transliteration

karmaṇā jāyate jantur mūrtimān ṣoḍaśātmakaḥ | puruṣaṃ grasate 'vidyā tad grāhyam amṛtāśinām ||

Translation

Vāyu said: “Through action (especially desire-driven ritual action) a living being is born again, taking on a tangible body constituted of sixteen constituents. Ignorance continually devours the person; and such a person becomes an object to be ‘seized’—even by the immortals who feed on amṛta—meaning that one bound to works and ignorance is subject to higher powers and cannot attain true freedom.”

Word by Word

• {'karmaṇā': 'by action

• through karma (often implying desire-motivated acts here)', 'jāyate': 'is born

• comes into existence', 'jantuḥ': 'living being

• embodied soul in saṃsāra', 'mūrtimān': 'having form

• possessing a tangible body', 'ṣoḍaśa-ātmakaḥ': 'consisting of sixteen constituents (a doctrinal count of bodily/psychic factors)', 'puruṣam': 'the person

• the embodied self', 'grasate': 'devours

• overpowers', 'avidyā': 'ignorance

• misapprehension of the Self', 'tad': 'that

• such a one/that condition', 'grāhyam': 'to be grasped/seized

• an object of control or enjoyment', 'amṛta-āśinām': 'of those who eat/drink nectar

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• वायुदेव (Vāyudeva)
• अविद्या (Avidyā)
• अमृताशिन् (Amṛtāśin, the immortals/devas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Desire-driven action leads to repeated embodiment; ignorance dominates the embodied person, making them subject to forces beyond their control. Freedom requires overcoming avidyā and transcending binding karma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva delivers a doctrinal instruction: he explains how karma results in rebirth into a formed body (described as sixteenfold) and how ignorance keeps the person bound, even rendering them an object of higher beings’ enjoyment or control.