Shloka 37

Devanagari script

यत्तदग्रे विषमिव परिणामे5मृतोपमम्‌ । तत्सुखं सात्त्विकं प्रोक्तमात्मबुद्धिप्रसादजम्‌,हे भरतश्रेष्ठ! अब तीन प्रकारके सुखको भी तू मुझसे सुन। जिस सुखमें साधक मनुष्य भजन, ध्यान और सेवादिके अभ्याससे रमण करता है* और जिससे दु:खोंके अन्तको प्राप्त हो जाता है*-- जो ऐसा सुख है, वह आरम्भकालमें यद्यपि विषके तुल्य प्रतीत होता है,* परंतु परिणाममें अमृतके तुल्य है;* इसलिये वह परमात्मविषयक बुद्धिके प्रसादसे उत्पन्न होनेवाला सुख+ सात्त्विक कहा गया है

Transliteration

yat tad agre viṣam iva pariṇāme ’mṛtopamam | tat sukhaṁ sāttvikaṁ proktam ātmabuddhiprasādajam ||

Translation

That happiness which at first feels like poison, but in the end becomes like nectar—such happiness is declared to be sāttvika. It arises from the clarity and grace of one’s inner understanding: the purified intellect turned toward the Self (Ātman).

Word by Word

यत्which (that)

तत्that

अग्रेat first, in the beginning

विषम्poison

इवlike, as if

परिणामेin the result, in the end

अमृतोपमम्comparable to nectar

तत्that

सुखम्happiness, pleasure

सात्त्विकम्sattvic (of goodness)

प्रोक्तम्said, declared

आत्मबुद्धिप्रसादजम्born of the clarity (prasāda) of self-knowledge/intellect

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arjuna

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True (sāttvika) happiness may feel difficult at the start—because it requires restraint, practice, and turning away from easy indulgence—but it matures into lasting well-being and inner freedom, arising from a purified, Self-oriented intellect.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the teaching on the threefold classification of happiness (sāttvika, rājasika, tāmasika), Arjuna’s dialogue context frames a definition: the happiness born of inner clarity and spiritual discipline is initially unpleasant like poison but culminates in nectar-like fulfillment.