Shloka 23

Kāraṇa-vyākhyā: Cosmic Agents, Rudra-Forms, Sense-Purity, and Ānanda-Tāratamya

Devanagari script

द्रोणाज्जातो द्रौणिसंज्ञो रुद्र एव प्रकीर्तितः / प्रारब्धं भोक्तुकामोसौ परपक्षप्रकाशकः

Transliteration

droṇājjāto drauṇisaṃjño rudra eva prakīrtitaḥ / prārabdhaṃ bhoktukāmosau parapakṣaprakāśakaḥ

Translation

த்ரோணரிடமிருந்து பிறந்தவர் ‘த்ரௌணி’ என அழைக்கப்படுகிறார்; அவர் ருத்ரனே எனப் புகழப்படுகிறார். ஆரம்பித்த கர்மப் பயனை அனுபவிக்க விரும்பி, எதிர் தரப்பை வெளிப்படுத்துபவராகிறார்.

Word by Word

• droṇāt: from Droṇa
• droṇāt: Apadana (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: droṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative), एकवचन

• jātaḥ: born
• jātaḥ: Kriya (क्रिया/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त (Past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘born’

• drauṇi-saṃjñaḥ: named 'Drauṇi'
• drauṇi-saṃjñaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: drauṇi (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃjñā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (द्रौणिः इति संज्ञा यस्य)

• rudraḥ: Rudra
• rudraḥ: Karta (कर्ता/विधेय-नाम)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• eva: indeed, only
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक (emphatic particle)

• prakīrtitaḥ: is proclaimed
• prakīrtitaḥ: Kriya (क्रिया/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-kīrt (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘is proclaimed’

• prārabdham: what has been begun (destiny already started)
• prārabdham: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pra-ṛbh/ārabh (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP used substantively), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘that which has begun’

• bhoktum: to experience/consume
• bhoktum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhuj (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (Infinitive)

• kāmaḥ: desirous
• kāmaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (भोक्‍तुम् + कामः = इच्छुकः)

• asau: that one (he)
• asau: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• para-pakṣa-prakāśakaḥ: revealer/exposer of the enemy side
• para-pakṣa-prakāśakaḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक) + pakṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + prakāśaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (परस्य पक्षस्य प्रकाशकः = revealer of the opponent's side)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Prārabdha karma must be experienced; even powerful beings act within the momentum of begun destiny while serving a revelatory function in events.

Vedantic Theme: Karma-phala and prārabdha as operative for embodied life; instrumentality (nimitta) within īśvara’s order.

Application: Recognize what must be endured with steadiness; act responsibly within circumstances; avoid fatalism by focusing on right action while accepting outcomes.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: vira

Secondary Rasa: raudra

Geographic Context

Type: battlefield/royal-martial sphere

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana (general): karma-phala explanations and inevitability of experienced results once set in motion

Characters & Entities

• Droṇa
• Drauṇi (Aśvatthāmā)
• Rudra

FAQs

What is the importance of prārabdha (already-begun karma) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse highlights that prārabdha is karma already set in motion and must be experienced; even powerful beings are portrayed as moving through its fruition.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul and karma’s operation?

By stressing “desiring to undergo prārabdha,” it implies that embodied experience unfolds according to ripened karma, shaping actions and outcomes within dharma and adharma contexts.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Accept responsibility for present circumstances as results of prior causes, act ethically now to shape future outcomes, and cultivate steadiness while facing unavoidable consequences.