9.8 Helplessly, by that nature Krishna speaks
प्रकृतिं स्वामवष्टभ्य विसृजामि पुनः पुनः
भूतग्राममिमं कृत्स्नमवशं प्रकृतेर्वशात्
prakṛitiṁ svām avaṣhṭabhya visṛijāmi punaḥ punaḥ
bhūta-grāmam imaṁ kṛitsnam avaśhaṁ prakṛiter vaśhāt
Presiding over my own nature, I bring forth this whole multitude of beings again and again, helplessly, by the working of that nature.
Explanation
Helplessly — and the word is applied to beings, not to him.
avaśam: the same word 8.19 used. He presides over his own nature and brings forth the multitude again and again, and they have no say in it.
Set against the freedom the rest of the chapter offers, this is the default being described — what happens to anyone not doing anything in particular.
Word by word
- prakṛitim
- the material energy
- svām
- my own
- avaṣhṭabhya
- presiding over
- visṛijāmi
- generate
- punaḥ punaḥ
- again and again
- bhūta-grāmam
- myriad forms
- imam
- these
- kṛitsnam
- all
- avaśham
- beyond their control
- prakṛiteḥ
- nature
- vaśhāt
- force
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