3.14 Food, rain, sacrifice, action Krishna speaks
अन्नाद्भवन्ति भूतानि पर्जन्यादन्नसम्भवः
यज्ञाद्भवति पर्जन्यो यज्ञः कर्मसमुद्भवः
annād bhavanti bhūtāni parjanyād anna-sambhavaḥ
yajñād bhavati parjanyo yajñaḥ karma-samudbhavaḥ
Beings live on food; food comes from rain; rain comes from sacrifice; and sacrifice arises from action.
Explanation
The chain, in four links.
- beings live on food
- food comes from rain
- rain from sacrifice
- sacrifice from action
Read as cosmology it is of its time. Read as structure it is doing something the chapter needs: putting action at the bottom of everything that keeps anyone alive.
Word by word
- annāt
- from food
- bhavanti
- subsist
- bhūtāni
- living beings
- parjanyāt
- from rains
- anna
- of food grains
- sambhavaḥ
- production
- yajñāt
- from the performance of sacrifice
- bhavati
- becomes possible
- parjanyaḥ
- rain
- yajñaḥ
- performance of sacrifice
- karma
- prescribed duties
- samudbhavaḥ
- born of
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