Complete learning edition. The Sanskrit source remains separate from attributed word meanings, translation, explanation and commentary witnesses. Diagrams and memory aids are study tools, not replacements for the source text.
व्यवसायात्मिका बुद्धिरेकेह कुरुनन्दन। बहुशाखा ह्यनन्ताश्च बुद्धयोऽव्यवसायिनाम्।।2.41।।
vyavasāyātmikā buddhir ekeha kuru-nandana bahu-śhākhā hyanantāśh cha buddhayo ’vyavasāyinām
In this, O scion of Kuru, there is but a single one-pointed determination. The purposes of the undecided are innumerable and many-branching.
English rendering by Swami Swarupananda. Public domain first edition, 1909.
Build the sentence from its parts
Read across once, then cover the meanings and recover them from the Sanskrit forms.
| Sanskrit form | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| vyavasāya-ātmikā | resolute |
| buddhiḥ | intellect |
| ekā | single |
| iha | on this path |
| kuru-nandana | descendent of the Kurus |
| bahu-śhākhāḥ | many-branched |
| hi | indeed |
| anantāḥ | endless |
| cha | also |
| buddhayaḥ | intellect |
| avyavasāyinām | of the irresolute |
Keep the verse in view while connecting vyavasāya-ātmikā (resolute), bahu-śhākhāḥ (many-branched), and avyavasāyinām (of the irresolute). Ask what changes between the first and last term, and how that movement contributes to the enduring self and steady wisdom. State the connection in your own words, then check it against Bhagavad-gita 2.41.
Original school explanation. Written independently from the Sanskrit word map. It is not a quotation, translation, or summary of a named modern commentary. Chapter lens: Trace the movement from grief through self, duty, disciplined action and the description of steady intelligence.
Five careful reading routes
The cards below are reading references, not claims about what an acharya says in this verse. Modern wording stays inside authorized editions. Classical commentary will appear only after an independent translation has passed scholarly and rights review.
Meaning map
Follow the thought
- 1
In this, O scion of Kuru, there is but a single one-pointed determination
- 2
The purposes of the undecided are innumerable and many-branching
- 3
vyavasāya-ātmikā: resolute
Look, link, cover, teach
Look
Picture the enduring self.
Link
Use the line starts: vyavasāyātmikā buddhir / bahu-śhākhā hyanantāśh.
Cover
Hide the verse and rebuild one line at a time.
Teach
Explain the flow to another person without looking.
Circle repeated sounds, names, or grammatical endings before consulting a meaning.
Read one line aloud, cover it, and reconstruct as much as you can from memory.
Compare with a checked edition and record the source before adding any translation.
Build meaning without hiding the work
Trace the movement from grief through self, duty, disciplined action and the description of steady intelligence.
Mark forms you want to investigate
These are visual tokens, not a reviewed sandhi split. Select repeated forms, endings, compounds, particles or speaker markers; verify segmentation with the Sanskrit tools or a checked edition.
Three questions for this verse
- 1
What distinction or instruction appears?
- 2
Which earlier problem does it answer?
- 3
How does it connect action with understanding?
Place the verse under grief, self, action or steadiness and defend the placement.
Attempt before comparison
Make revision visible
Assessment: read aloud, explain the verse’s role in its chapter, identify one source boundary, answer one question and schedule a return.
Turn this reading into a study record
Save it, return from memory, and write one idea in your own words. Your record stays in this browser unless you export it.
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Bhagavad-gita As It IsFor Bhagavad-gita 2.41, consult the authorized BBT edition. No purport, translation, or author-attributed summary is reproduced here.
Find the authorized editionBhaktivinoda Thakura
Rasika-ranjanaA verified independent rendering for Bhagavad-gita 2.41 has not yet passed scholarly and rights review. Modern translations are not copied here.
Independent rendering pending reviewBaladeva Vidyabhushana
Gita-bhushana-bhashyaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 2.41 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewVishvanatha Cakravarti Thakura
Sarartha-varshini-tikaThe original work is classical. A newly commissioned or independently prepared translation for Bhagavad-gita 2.41 must be verified before publication.
Independent translation pending reviewOther Gaudiya acharyas
Authorized Gaudiya editionsFor Bhagavad-gita 2.41, later teachers remain a further-reading route. Their wording and distinctive teaching structures require permission or a separate rights review.
Use an authorized edition