Bg. 18.44 · Bhagavad-gita As It Is

Devanagari

कृषिगोरक्ष्यवाणिज्यं वैश्यकर्म स्वभावजम् । परिचर्यात्मकं कर्म श‍ूद्रस्यापि स्वभावजम् ॥ ४४ ॥

Verse text

kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyaṁ vaiśya-karma svabhāva-jam paricaryātmakaṁ karma śūdrasyāpi svabhāva-jam

Synonyms

kṛṣi — plowing ; go — of cows ; rakṣya — protection ; vāṇijyam — trade ; vaiśya — of a vaiśya ; karma — duty ; svabhāva-jam — born of his own nature ; paricaryā — service ; ātmakam — consisting of ; karma — duty ; śūdrasya — of the śūdra ; api — also ; svabhāva-jam — born of his own nature.

Translation

Farming, cow protection and business are the natural work for the vaiśyas, and for the śūdras there are labor and service to others.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

44. The natural duties of the vaiśya are agriculture, raising cows, and commerce. The natural duty of the śūdra is service to the other varṇas.

Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

44. The natural duties of the vaiśya are agriculture, raising cows, and commerce. The natural duty of the śūdra is service to the other varṇas.

Translation (Bhurijana Dasa)

Farming, cow protection and business are the natural work for the vaisyas, and for the sudras there is labor and service to others.

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

This verse describes the actions of the vaiśyas predominated by rajas with tamas as a secondary guṇa. Protecting the cows and commerce are the activities of the vaiśya. One who protects the cows is called go-rakṣaḥ. The state of protecting the cows is called go-rakṣyam. The verse also speaks of the śūdras in whom tamas predominates and rajas is secondary. Serving the vaiśyas, kṣatriyas and brāhmaṇas (paricaryātmikam) is the activity of the śūdra.

Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

The activities of the vaiśya are described. He tills the land with a plough for producing food crops. He raises and protects animals. He engages in buying and selling. Loaning money to increase wealth is also included. These are the natural activities of the vaiśya. Then the activity of the śūdra is described. The activity of the śūdra is to serve the twice born, those of the other three varṇas. These descriptions are representative of the activities of the four āśramas (not an exhaustive list).