Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verse 38

Chapter 11 – Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga · Speaker: Arjuna

Sanskrit verse

त्वमादिदेवः पुरुषः पुराणस्-
त्वमस्य विश्वस्य परं निधानम् ।
वेत्तासि वेद्यं च परं च धाम
त्वया ततं विश्वमनन्तरूप ॥

Transliteration

tvamādidevaḥ puruṣaḥ purāṇasa- tvamasya viśvasya paraṃ nidhānam .
vettāsi vedyaṃ ca paraṃ ca dhāma tvayā tataṃ viśvamanantarūpa ॥

Meaning

You are the primal God, the ancient Person, the supreme resting-place of this universe. You are the knower and the known, and the highest abode. By You the whole universe is pervaded, O You of infinite forms.

Word meanings

त्वम् – You
आदिदेवः – the first God, prior to all gods
पुरुषः – the Person, the indwelling spirit
पुराणः – ancient, eternal
अस्य – of this
विश्वस्य – of the universe
परम् – supreme
निधानम् – resting-place, treasury, final refuge
वेत्ता – the knower
असि – are
वेद्यम् – that which is to be known
धाम – abode, goal
त्वया – by You
ततम् – pervaded, spread out
विश्वम् – the universe
अनन्तरूप – O You of endless forms

Anvaya (word order)

त्वम् आदिदेवः पुराणः पुरुषः, त्वम् अस्य विश्वस्य परम् निधानम्, (त्वम्) वेत्ता वेद्यम् च परम् धाम च असि । अनन्तरूप, त्वया विश्वम् ततम् ।

Explanation

The hymn now rises higher. Adideva: You are before all the gods, for Arjuna sees every god appearing within the cosmic body. Purana Purusha: You are the ancient Person who existed before creation began; one traditional derivation of purusha is ‘He who dwells in the city’, the in-dweller of every body.

Param nidhanam: a nidhana is a place where treasure is laid up and kept safe. At dissolution the whole universe withdraws into the Lord and rests there in seed form, so He is its supreme repository. Shankara explains the word precisely in this sense of the place of dissolution.

Vetta asi vedyam ca: You are the knower and also the known. For Advaita this is a profound hint: the consciousness that knows everything is itself, ultimately, the one Reality to be known. The Brihadaranyaka asks, ‘By what can one know the knower?’ Ramanuja reads it more directly: the Lord is omniscient, knowing all, and He alone is the object that the Vedanta seeks to make known. Param dhama is the supreme abode, reaching which there is no return (8.21, 15.6).

Finally, ‘by You the universe is pervaded’ echoes Krishna’s own words in 9.4, ‘by Me all this is pervaded’. What Arjuna heard as teaching he now affirms from sight, and the address Anantarupa names the boundless form spread before his eyes.

Context

Following 11.37, this verse in Arjuna’s hymn celebrates the Lord as the cause, refuge and pervader of all. In 11.39 Arjuna goes on to see Him as Vayu, Yama, Agni and the other gods, and bows again and again.

Life lesson

The one who knows within us is also the highest thing worth knowing. Remembering that all is pervaded by that single Reality gives a restless mind both steadiness and comfort.

Key terms

Adideva: the primal God, source of all gods
Purana Purusha: the ancient, eternal Person
Nidhana: the resting-place into which all dissolves
Param dhama: the supreme abode, final goal