Today's Goal
By the end of today, you will be able to recognize present tense verb endings for third-person forms, and identify 10 key verb roots that appear throughout the Gita.
Sanskrit Verb Basics
Sanskrit verbs encode person (who), number (how many), and tense/mood (when/how). The verb root (dhātu) is like a seed — endings grow from it. The good news: for reading the Gita, you mainly need to recognize third-person forms ('he/she/it does' and 'they do') since most verses describe actions of Krishna, Arjuna, or the Self.
| Devanagari | IAST | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| √कृ | √kṛ | to do, to make — the most important Gita verb (karma comes from this root!) |
| करोति / कुर्वन्ति | karoti / kurvanti | he does / they do |
Present Tense Endings (लट्-लकार)
The present tense endings for the most common verb class. Focus on third person — that's what you'll see most in the Gita.
| Devanagari | IAST | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| -ति | -ti | 3rd person singular: 'he/she/it does' — गच्छति (gacchati, he goes) |
| -तः | -taḥ | 3rd person dual: 'those two do' — गच्छतः (gacchataḥ) |
| -न्ति | -nti | 3rd person plural: 'they do' — गच्छन्ति (gacchanti, they go) |
| -सि | -si | 2nd person singular: 'you do' — गच्छसि (gacchasi, you go) |
| -मि | -mi | 1st person singular: 'I do' — गच्छामि (gacchāmi, I go) |
10 Essential Gita Verb Roots
These verb roots appear again and again in the Gita. Knowing them unlocks the action in most verses.
| Devanagari | IAST | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| √कृ → करोति | √kṛ → karoti | to do, to make — 'karma' comes from this root |
| √गम् → गच्छति | √gam → gacchati | to go — 'he goes' |
| √विद् → वेत्ति | √vid → vetti | to know — 'Veda' comes from this root |
| √भू → भवति | √bhū → bhavati | to be, to become — 'bhava' (existence) |
| √वद् → वदति | √vad → vadati | to speak, to say |
| √दृश् → पश्यति | √dṛś → paśyati | to see — Arjuna 'sees' the armies (BG 1.26) |
| √मन् → मन्यते | √man → manyate | to think — 'manas' (mind) comes from this root |
| √त्यज् → त्यजति | √tyaj → tyajati | to abandon — as in 'tyāga' (renunciation) |
| √युज् → युनक्ति | √yuj → yunakti | to yoke, to unite — 'yoga' comes from this root! |
| √जन् → जायते | √jan → jāyate | to be born — 'janma' (birth) |
Recognizing Verbs in the Gita
In Gita verses, the verb is often the last word. Look for the -ti, -nti, or -te endings.
| Devanagari | IAST | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| न जायते म्रियते वा कदाचित् | na jāyate mriyate vā kadācit | BG 2.20: 'It is not born, nor does it die' — both -te endings = verbs |
| पश्य मे योगम् | paśya me yogam | BG 11.5: 'See my yoga!' — paśya is an imperative (command form) |
| श्रीभगवानुवाच | śrībhagavān uvāca | 'The Blessed Lord said' — uvāca is past tense of √vac (speak) |
Gītā Connection
In BG 2.20, Krishna describes the eternal Self: 'na jāyate mriyate vā kadācit' — 'It is not born, nor does it ever die.' Both jāyate (is born, from √jan) and mriyate (dies, from √mṛ) end in -te, marking them as verbs. Spotting verb endings is your fastest path to understanding a verse's action.
Practice
Identify the verb in each phrase by looking for -ti, -nti, -te, or -si endings.
- अर्जुनः पश्यति → पश्यति (paśyati — he sees)
- न जायते → जायते (jāyate — is born)
- ये यजन्ति → यजन्ति (yajanti — they worship)
- त्वं वेत्सि → वेत्सि (vetsi — you know)
- अहं वदामि → वदामि (vadāmi — I speak)
Match each verb form to its root and meaning.
- करोति → √kṛ — he does
- गच्छति → √gam — he goes
- भवति → √bhū — he becomes
- पश्यति → √dṛś — he sees
- जायते → √jan — is born
- वदति → √vad — he speaks
Recap
Sanskrit verbs encode person and number through endings. The key endings are: -ti (he/she), -nti (they), -te (middle voice he/she), -si (you), -mi (I). Ten essential verb roots — √kṛ, √gam, √vid, √bhū, √vad, √dṛś, √man, √tyaj, √yuj, √jan — cover most of the action in the Gita.
Coming Tomorrow
Tomorrow is vocabulary power day — you'll learn the 50 most frequent words in the Gita. With the script, sandhi, cases, and verbs you already know, adding vocabulary will let you understand significant portions of actual verses.