Bhagavad-gītā 8.20
Read once with your eyes. Read again aloud.
परस्तस्मात्तु भावोऽन्योऽव्यक्तोऽव्यक्तात्सनातनः। यः स सर्वेषु भूतेषु नश्यत्सु न विनश्यति।।8.20।।
paras tasmāt tu bhāvo ’nyo ’vyakto ’vyaktāt sanātanaḥ yaḥ sa sarveṣhu bhūteṣhu naśhyatsu na vinaśhyati
In truth, therefore, there is the eternal, unmanifest, which is beyond and above the unmanifest spirit of creation, and which is never destroyed when all these beings perish.
English rendering by Shri Purohit Swami. Each source voice remains named.
Build the sentence from its parts
Read across once, then cover the meanings and recover them from the Sanskrit forms.
| Sanskrit form | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| paraḥ | transcendental |
| tasmāt | than that |
| tu | but |
| bhāvaḥ | creation |
| anyaḥ | another |
| avyaktaḥ | unmanifest |
| avyaktāt | to the unmanifest |
| sanātanaḥ | eternal |
| yaḥ | who |
| saḥ | that |
| sarveṣhu | all |
| bhūteṣhu | in beings |
| naśhyatsu | cease to exist |
| na | never |
| vinaśhyati | is annihilated |
Another unmanifested in the ancient or eternal Para Brahman Who is distinct from the Unmanifested (Avyakta or Primordial Nature), Who is of ite a different nature. It is superior to Hiranyagarbha (the Cosmic Creative Intelligence) and the Unmanifested Nature because It is their cause.
Attributed explanatory witness: Swami Sivananda. Chapter lens: Track Arjuna’s questions and Kṛṣṇa’s answers about Brahman, action, remembrance, destination and cosmic time.
Three named reading witnesses
Śaṅkara edition witness
Swami GambiranandaBut distinct from that Unmanifested is the other eternal, unmanifest Reality, who does not get destroyed when all beings are destroyed.
Rāmānuja edition witness
Swami AdidevanandaBut distinct from that Unmanifested is the other eternal, unmanifest Reality, who does not get destroyed when all beings are destroyed.
Sivananda commentary witness
Swami SivanandaAnother unmanifested in the ancient or eternal Para Brahman Who is distinct from the Unmanifested (Avyakta or Primordial Nature), Who is of ite a different nature. It is superior to Hiranyagarbha (the Cosmic Creative Intelligence) and the Unmanifested Nature because It is their cause.
These are concise, attributed reading witnesses from identified editions. They are presented for comparison and are not merged into one anonymous interpretation.
Meaning map
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- 1
In truth, therefore, there is the eternal, unmanifest, which is beyond and above the unmanifest spirit of creation
- 2
which is never destroyed when all these beings perish
- 3
paraḥ: transcendental
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