Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 13

Chapter 10 – Vibhuti Yoga · Speaker: Arjuna

Sanskrit verse

आहुस्त्वामृषयः सर्वे देवर्षिर्नारदस्तथा ।
असितो देवलो व्यासः स्वयं चैव ब्रवीषि मे ॥

Transliteration

āhustvāmṛṣayaḥ sarve devarṣirnāradastathā .
asito devalo vyāsaḥ svayaṃ caiva bravīṣi me ॥

Meaning

All the sages proclaim You so, as do the divine sage Narada, Asita, Devala and Vyasa; and now You Yourself tell me the same.

Word meanings

आहुः – declare
त्वाम् – You
ऋषयः – the sages
सर्वे – all
देवर्षिः – the divine sage
नारदः – Narada
तथा – also
असितः – Asita
देवलः – Devala
व्यासः – Vyasa
स्वयम् – Yourself
च – and
एव – indeed
ब्रवीषि – You say
मे – to me

Anvaya (word order)

सर्वे ऋषयः, तथा देवर्षिः नारदः, असितः, देवलः, व्यासः (च) त्वाम् (एवम्) आहुः; स्वयं च एव (त्वं) मे ब्रवीषि ।

Explanation

In the previous verse Arjuna called Krishna the Supreme Brahman and the eternal Person. Now he adds that this is not only his own feeling but the testimony of great sages. In Indian tradition the word of apta, trustworthy realised persons, is an important means of knowing truth.

Arjuna names four in particular. Narada, the devarshi or sage among the gods, is one of the greatest teachers of devotion, who wanders the three worlds with his vina singing the name of Narayana and is regarded as the author of the Bhakti Sutras. Asita and Devala are wise sages mentioned in the Mahabharata (some traditions treat them as one, Asita Devala, or as father and son) who proclaimed the Lord’s greatness. Vyasa is Veda Vyasa, who arranged the Vedas, composed the Mahabharata and the Puranas, and who records this very Gita.

Svayam chaiva bravishi me, ‘and now You Yourself tell me so’. This is significant. Arjuna had heard of the Lord’s glory from the sages but perhaps had not fully taken it in. Now that Krishna, his own friend and charioteer, says it Himself, scripture and direct experience become one.

Shankara notes that the words of the sages and the Lord’s own word together make Arjuna’s conviction complete. The seeker’s journey follows the same pattern: first hearing from scripture and saints, then experiencing for oneself.

Context

Arjuna began his hymn of praise in verse 12. Here he says that sages such as Narada, Asita, Devala and Vyasa say the same. In the next verse he declares that he accepts everything Krishna says as true, for neither gods nor demons know His manifestation.

Life lesson

To grasp truth we need scripture, the experience of saints and our own realisation together. When all three say the same thing, conviction becomes firm.

Key terms

Devarshi: sage among the gods, Narada
Narada: great teacher of devotion, singer of the Lord’s name
Asita-Devala: wise sages named in the Mahabharata
Vyasa: arranger of the Vedas, author of the Mahabharata
Apta-vachana: testimony of trustworthy realised persons