भावी त्ववश्यमेवाऽर्थः पुरुषार्थैकसाधनः । यः सोऽस्मिँल्लोकसंघाते दैवशब्देन कथ्यते ॥ ६ ॥
bhāvī tvavaśyamēvā’rthaḥ puruṣārthaikasādhanaḥ | yaḥ sō’smim̐llōkasaṁghātē daivaśabdēna kathyatē || 6 ||
Translation
The thing that surely will be, whose one means is effort: that, in this world of people, is what the word fate names.
Word by word
- bhāvī
- that will be
- tv
- (tu) indeed
- avaśyam
- surely
- ēva
- indeed
- arthaḥ
- the thing
- puruṣārtha
- effort
- ēka
- one
- sādhanaḥ
- whose means is
- yaḥ
- which
- sō
- (saḥ) that
- asmim̐l
- (asmin) in this
- lōka
- of people
- saṁghātē
- in the world
- daiva
- fate
- śabdēna
- by the word
- kathyatē
- is named
Meaning
Here the word is taken as what is bound to happen (bhāvī). There is such a thing. Sow and the crop will come; eat poison and you will suffer. But note what the verse joins to it: puruṣārtha-eka-sādhana, its one means is effort. What is inevitable is inevitable because of what has been done. Another commentary says this is what the worldly view means by the word. So "it had to happen" can be a true sentence. It is true of the consequence, and it tells nothing against the freedom that set the consequence going.