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Shloka 16

Maṅgalācaraṇa, the Sages’ Inquiry, and Hari as Supreme with an Avatāra-Outline

Devanagari script

तृतीयमृषिसर्गं तु देवर्षित्वमुपेत्य सः / तन्त्रं सात्वतमाचष्टे नैष्कर्म्यं कर्मणां यतः

Transliteration

tṛtīyamṛṣisargaṃ tu devarṣitvamupetya saḥ / tantraṃ sātvatamācaṣṭe naiṣkarmyaṃ karmaṇāṃ yataḥ

Translation

तृतीय ऋषिसर्गे स देवर्षित्वं समासाद्य सात्वततन्त्रं व्याचष्टे; येन कर्मसु प्रवृत्तेष्वपि नैष्कर्म्यं सिद्ध्यति।

Word by Word
तृतीयम्third
तृतीयम्:
Karma (Object/कर्म)
TypeAdjective
Rootतृतीय (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; विशेषण (ordinal)
ऋषिसर्गम्the creation/emanation of sages
ऋषिसर्गम्:
Karma (Object/कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootऋषि (प्रातिपदिक) + सर्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (ऋषीणां सर्गः)
तुbut/indeed
तु:
Sambandha/Discourse particle
TypeIndeclinable
Rootतु (अव्यय)
Formअव्यय; निपात (emphatic/contrastive particle)
देवर्षित्वम्the state of being a divine sage
देवर्षित्वम्:
Karma (Object/कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootदेव (प्रातिपदिक) + ऋषि (प्रातिपदिक) + त्व (तद्धित-प्रत्यय)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तद्धितान्त भाववाचक (त्व); तत्पुरुष (देवर्षेः भावः)
उपेत्यhaving attained
उपेत्य:
Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial to main verb)
TypeVerb
Rootउप-इ (धातु)
Formक्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund); उपसर्ग: उप; अर्थ: having attained
सःhe
सः:
Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
TypeNoun
Rootतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम
तन्त्रम्treatise/system
तन्त्रम्:
Karma (Object/कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootतन्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन
सात्वतम्Sātvata (pertaining to Sātvatas/Vaiṣṇava)
सात्वतम्:
Karma (Object-qualifier)
TypeAdjective
Rootसात्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (तन्त्रस्य)
आचष्टेdeclares/teaches
आचष्टे:
Kriya (Main action)
TypeVerb
Rootआ-चक्ष् (धातु)
Formलट्-लकार (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद
नैष्कर्म्यम्freedom from action (non-action)
नैष्कर्म्यम्:
Karma (Object/कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootनिः (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + य (तद्धित/प्रत्यय)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भाववाचक (state of non-action/inaction)
कर्मणाम्of actions
कर्मणाम्:
Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation)
TypeNoun
Rootकर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन
यतःbecause/from which
यतः:
Hetu (Cause marker)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootयतः (अव्यय)
Formअव्यय; अव्ययीभाव/सम्बन्धबोधक (causal-relative adverb)
Speaker

Lord Vishnu (to Garuda/Vainateya), in the introductory narration

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Naiṣkarmya—freedom from binding agency while actions continue, attained through Sātvata Tantra (bhakti-yoga/pañcarātra orientation).

Vedantic Theme: Karma performed without ahaṅkāra and phala-āśā; inner renunciation leading toward jīvanmukti-like steadiness.

Application: Perform duties as worship (īśvara-arpana), cultivate non-attachment to results, and stabilize the witness-attitude through disciplined sādhana.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana (general): mokṣa-dharma and Viṣṇu-bhakti passages where niṣkāma-karma and nāma-smaraṇa are praised (sectional parallels vary by recension)

Characters & Entities
R
Rishis
D
Devarshis
S
Sātvata (Pāñcarātra/Vaiṣṇava Tantra)

FAQs

This verse frames the Sātvata (Vaiṣṇava/Pāñcarātra) teaching as a means to transcend karmic bondage—guiding a practitioner to act without accruing binding karma (naiṣkarmya).

It points to naiṣkarmya: not the absence of work, but the absence of karmic attachment and binding results—achieved through a disciplined spiritual doctrine (tantra) aligned with devotion and right knowledge.

Perform duties responsibly while reducing ego and attachment to outcomes; anchor actions in devotion, ethical restraint, and steady practice so work becomes purifying rather than binding.

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