ॐ

यतः प्रवृत्तिर्भूतानां येन सर्वमिदं ततम्।स्वकर्मणा तमभ्यर्च्य सिद्धिं विन्दति मानवः।।18.46।।

yataḥ pravṛittir bhūtānāṁ yena sarvam idaṁ tatam sva-karmaṇā tam abhyarchya siddhiṁ vindati mānavaḥ

Sanskrit Chant Recitation
Chapter 18, Verse 46
0:000:00

Scripture Translation Room

Sanskrit to English Translation

Translator:
He from whom all the beings have evolved and by whom all this is pervaded, worshipping Him with his own duty, one attains perfection.

A Reading - Rantideb

Why: worshipping through one's own natural work, one attains perfection, hear how, engaged in one's own duty, one finds perfection, restating the same principle once more before elaborating on the actual mechanism behind it.

In life: this repeated emphasis across multiple verses on committing to your own suited work, rather than chasing a different, more prestigious-seeming path, is itself a signal of how commonly people get this specific choice wrong.

Teaching: take this repeated emphasis seriously as a signal, not a redundancy, the fact that this point gets restated multiple times suggests it's a genuinely common and costly mistake, worth directly checking your own current path against.

yataḥfrom whom
pravṛittiḥhave come into being
bhūtānāmof all living entities
yenaby whom
sarvamall
idamthis
tatampervaded
sva-karmaṇāby one’s natural occupation
tamhim
abhyarchyaby worshipping
siddhimperfection
vindatiattains
mānavaḥa person

Deep Classical Commentary (Bhashya)

Author:
18.46 यतः from whom? प्रवृत्तिः (is) the evolution? भूतानाम् of beings? येन by whom? सर्वम् all? इदम् this? ततम् is pervaded? स्वकर्मणा with his own duty? तम् Him? अभ्यर्च्य worshipping? सिद्धिम् perfection? विन्दति attains? मानवः man.Commentary The performance by a man of his own duty is simply carrying into effect the intention of the Supreme from Whom the whole of the creation emanates. When a man worships Him? the Supreme Being? with the flowers of his action? then He is immensely pleased and being thus gratified by such worship He confers on Him? as a boon? dispassion and discrimination.Pravritti Evolution or activity it proceeds from the Lord? the Antaryamin? the Inner Ruler.Bhutanam Beings living creatures.Svakarmana With his own duty each according to his caste as described above.Man attains perfection by worshipping the Lord by performing his own duty? i.e.? he becomes alified for the dawn of Selfknowledge (for Jnana Yoga).