Previous Verse
Next Verse

Shloka 16

Rajo-guṇa-nirdeśa — Brahmā’s Enumeration of Rajasic Dispositions

कामतृत्ता: प्रमोदन्ते सर्वकामसमृद्धिभि: । अर्वाक्स्रोतस इत्येते मनुष्या रजसा वृता:

kāmatṛptāḥ pramodante sarvakāmasamṛddhibhiḥ | arvāksrotasa ity ete manuṣyā rajasā vṛtāḥ ||

Vāyu nói: “Những kẻ chỉ được thỏa mãn bởi dục vọng thì hân hoan trước sự dư dật của mọi thứ hưởng thụ. Hạng người ấy, bị rajas bao phủ, được gọi là ‘arvāksrotas’—dòng chảy của họ đổ xuống, hướng về các đối tượng và khoái lạc thế gian.”

कामतृप्ताःsatiated with desires
कामतृप्ताः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootकामतृप्त (तृप् धातु + क्त; उपपद-समास: काम-)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
प्रमोदन्तेrejoice
प्रमोदन्ते:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootप्र + मुद्
FormPresent, Third, Plural, Ātmanepada
सर्वकामसमृद्धिभिःby/with the abundance of all enjoyments
सर्वकामसमृद्धिभिः:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootसर्वकामसमृद्धि
FormFeminine, Instrumental, Plural
अर्वाक्स्रोतसःthose whose stream flows downward (worldward)
अर्वाक्स्रोतसः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootअर्वाक्स्रोतस्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
इतिthus
इति:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootइति
एतेthese
एते:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootएतद्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
मनुष्याःmen, humans
मनुष्याः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootमनुष्य
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
रजसाby rajas (the quality of passion/activity)
रजसा:
Karana
TypeNoun
Rootरजस्
FormNeuter, Instrumental, Singular
वृताःcovered, enveloped
वृताः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootवृ (वृञ्/वृ धातु) + क्त
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural

वायुदेव उवाच

V
Vāyudeva
M
manuṣyāḥ (human beings)
R
rajas (rajo-guṇa)
A
arvāksrotas (classification of beings)

Educational Q&A

A life driven by kāma (desire) and delighting in the plenty of enjoyments is characterized as rājasic: energetic and restless, but ethically and spiritually downward-leaning. The verse warns that such desire-satiation is not true fulfillment; it marks a consciousness oriented toward external gratification rather than inner clarity and higher aims.

Vāyudeva is describing a category of human disposition. He identifies people who revel in sense-pleasures and worldly abundance as being covered by rajas and labels them ‘arvāksrotas,’ indicating their tendency to flow toward lower, outward pursuits.