Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 42

Chapter 10 – Vibhuti Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

अथवा बहुनैतेन किं ज्ञातेन तवार्जुन ।
विष्टभ्याहमिदं कृत्स्नमेकांशेन स्थितो जगत् ॥

Transliteration

athavā bahunaitena kiṃ jñātena tavārjuna .
viṣṭabhyāhamidaṃ kṛtsnamekāṃśena sthito jagat ॥

Meaning

But what need is there, Arjuna, for all this detailed knowledge? I stand, sustaining this entire universe with a single fraction of Myself.

Word meanings

अथवा – or rather, but
बहुना – with much
एतेन – this
किम् – what (use)
ज्ञातेन – by knowing
तव – to you
अर्जुन – O Arjuna
विष्टभ्य – supporting, upholding
अहम् – I
इदम् – this
कृत्स्नम् – entire
एकांशेन – with one fraction
स्थितः – stand, abide
जगत् – universe

Anvaya (word order)

अथवा अर्जुन, एतेन बहुना ज्ञातेन तव किम् (प्रयोजनम्)? अहम् इदं कृत्स्नं जगत् एकांशेन विष्टभ्य स्थितः (अस्मि) ।

Explanation

This is the final and loftiest verse of chapter 10. Athava bahunaitena kim jnatena tavarjuna, ‘but what is the use to you, Arjuna, of knowing all this in detail?’ Krishna seems to say: I have told you many glories and given you a rule; now rise above them all. Instead of searching for Me in one thing after another, know that everything is within Me.

Vishtabhyaham idam kritsnam ekamshena sthito jagat, ‘I stand, upholding this entire universe with one fraction of Myself.’ It is an astonishing declaration. This vast cosmos, countless galaxies, stars, planets and beings, rests within a single portion of the Lord. The Purusha Sukta says the same: all beings are one quarter of Him, and three quarters of Him are immortal in the heavens. The Lord is not used up in the world; He is far greater than it.

Shankara explains ‘one fraction’ as one quarter, one part: by a portion of His being the Lord pervades the whole world as its Self, while His true nature transcends it. Ramanuja reads it as meaning that by a tiny fraction of His infinite power the whole world is upheld by His will. Madhva too stresses the Lord’s boundless glory beyond the world.

The verse brings the chapter to a beautiful completion. At the start Arjuna asked in what forms he should contemplate the Lord. Krishna gave many forms, then a rule, and finally the simplest answer of all: everything is in Me, so wherever you look, see Me. It echoes 9.4, ‘by Me this whole world is pervaded.’

The verse also prepares for chapter 11. Hearing ‘I uphold the whole universe with a fraction of Myself,’ Arjuna naturally longs to see that cosmic form with his own eyes, and in the next chapter he will ask exactly that. For the seeker the message is this: once we know that the entire universe rests in a fraction of God, how small our problems and anxieties become, and how deep our trust in Him can grow.

Context

In verse 41 Krishna gave the universal rule for recognising His glories. In this final verse He declares that the whole universe rests in a fraction of Him, completing chapter 10. In chapter 11 Arjuna will pray to see that very cosmic form, and the Lord will grant him divine sight and reveal His universal form.

Life lesson

When we realise that the whole universe rests in a mere fraction of God, our worries shrink and our trust grows. Rather than getting lost in details, hold fast to the root truth: everything is in Him, and He is beyond everything.

Key terms

Ekamsha: one fraction, one part
Vishtabhya: upholding, supporting
Kritsna jagat: the entire universe
Purusha Sukta: Rig Vedic hymn calling the world one quarter of the Supreme Person
Transcendence: being beyond and greater than the world