Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 11

Chapter 10 – Vibhuti Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

तेषामेवानुकम्पार्थमहमज्ञानजं तमः ।
नाशयाम्यात्मभावस्थो ज्ञानदीपेन भास्वता ॥

Transliteration

teṣāmevānukampārthamahamajñānajaṃ tamaḥ .
nāśayāmyātmabhāvastho jñānadīpena bhāsvatā ॥

Meaning

Out of compassion for them alone, I who dwell within their hearts destroy the darkness born of ignorance with the shining lamp of knowledge.

Word meanings

तेषाम् – for them
एव – alone
अनुकम्पार्थम् – out of compassion
अहम् – I
अज्ञानजम् – born of ignorance
तमः – darkness
नाशयामि – destroy
आत्मभावस्थः – dwelling in their hearts
ज्ञानदीपेन – with the lamp of knowledge
भास्वता – shining

Anvaya (word order)

तेषाम् एव अनुकम्पार्थम् अहम् आत्मभावस्थः (सन्) भास्वता ज्ञानदीपेन अज्ञानजं तमः नाशयामि ।

Explanation

The fourth and last of the essential verses is the summit of the Lord’s compassion. In the previous verse He said that He gives loving devotees the yoga of understanding; now He says how and why.

Tesham evanukampartham, ‘out of compassion for them alone’. The word eva is significant: the Lord does this for no gain of His own, only out of tenderness for His devotees. Anukampa means being moved by another’s suffering. Seeing the devotee’s pain born of ignorance, the Lord Himself steps forward.

Atma-bhava-sthah, ‘dwelling in their hearts’. The Lord works not only as an outer teacher giving instruction but as the inner controller seated within. Shankara explains: abiding in the very modifications of the devotee’s inner instrument. When the heart becomes pure, the Lord within begins to shine of Himself.

Jnana-dipena bhasvata, ‘with the shining lamp of knowledge’. Shankara gives a beautiful description of this lamp: its oil is the grace born of devotion; it is fanned by the wind of earnest meditation on the Lord; its wick is right understanding, refined by disciplines such as self-restraint; it rests on a heart free from attachment and aversion; and it stands in the windless chamber of dispassion where it burns steadily. When such a lamp is lit, ajnanajam tamah, the darkness born of ignorance, vanishes at once.

Darkness cannot be driven out with a stick; it leaves only when a lamp is lit. Ignorance too is removed not by argument or force but by the knowledge kindled through the Lord’s grace. A cave dark for thousands of years is lit in an instant by a single lamp; the ignorance of many lives can likewise vanish in a moment by the Lord’s lamp of knowledge.

Context

In verse 10 Krishna said He gives devotees the yoga of understanding. Here the four essential verses are completed: He lights the lamp of knowledge in their hearts. From the next verse Arjuna praises the Lord and begs Him to describe His glories in detail.

Life lesson

The darkness within, confusion, fear and ignorance, is removed not by outer effort alone but by the lamp of knowledge lit through God’s grace. Keep the heart free of attachment and aversion and full of devotion, so that the lamp can burn.

Key terms

Anukampa: compassion, being moved by another’s pain
Atma-bhava-stha: dwelling in the devotee’s heart
Jnana-dipa: the lamp of knowledge
Ajnanaja tamas: darkness born of ignorance