Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 38
योगस्वरूप-धारणा-समाधि-वर्णनम् (केशिध्वजोपदेशः)
येयं क्षेत्रज्ञशक्तिः सा चेष्टिता नृप कर्मजा । असारभूते संसारे प्रोक्ता तत्र महामते ॥ ३८ ॥
yeyaṃ kṣetrajñaśaktiḥ sā ceṣṭitā nṛpa karmajā | asārabhūte saṃsāre proktā tatra mahāmate || 38 ||
ಓ ನೃಪಾ! ಈ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರಜ್ಞಶಕ್ತಿ ‘ಚೇಷ್ಟಾ’ ಎಂದು ಕರೆಯಲ್ಪಡುತ್ತದೆ; ಇದು ಕರ್ಮಜನ್ಯ. ಅಸಾರವಾದ ಸಂಸಾರದಲ್ಲಿ, ಓ ಮಹಾಮತೇ, ಹೀಗೆ ಉಪದೇಶಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ.
Sanatkumara (teaching to Narada; addressing the listener as ‘nṛpa’ per the verse’s vocative style)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
FAQs
It distinguishes the witnessing Self (kṣetrajña) from the sense of doership: what appears as ‘activity’ is karma-born and belongs to saṃsāra, which is described as lacking true essence—pointing the seeker toward detachment and liberation.
By showing that worldly agency is karma-driven and unstable, it supports bhakti as surrender: offering actions to Bhagavan and loosening identification with doership, which steadies the mind for remembrance and devotion.
No specific Vedanga (like Vyākaraṇa, Jyotiṣa, or Kalpa) is taught in this verse; it is primarily a Moksha-Dharma/Vedāntic point about karma-born agency and the kṣetrajña (Self).