Bhagavad Gita BG 10.15
Chapter 10, Verse 15 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
स्वयमेवात्मनात्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम । भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते ॥
svayam evatmana 'tmanam vettha tvam purushottama bhuta-bhavana bhuteshvara deva-deva jagat-pate
Meaning
You alone know Yourself by Yourself, O Purushottama (Supreme Person), O Bhutabhavana (Nourisher of beings), O Bhuteshvara (Lord of beings), O Devadeva (God of gods), O Jagatpate (Lord of the universe).
Understanding
The climactic address — Arjuna addresses Krishna with five epithets that each express a dimension of the Supreme: (1) Purushottama — Supreme Person, beyond even the imperishable; (2) Bhutabhavana — the Nourisher, Maker-flourish of all beings; (3) Bhuteshvara — Lord of all beings; (4) Devadeva — God of all gods, the Supreme above all the celestial; (5) Jagatpate — Lord of the universe. And the central affirmation: svayam eva atmana atmanam vettha tvam — YOU ALONE know Yourself by Yourself. The Supreme is the only adequate knower of the Supreme. This is the epistemological conclusion: no finite being can know the Infinite — only the Infinite knows itself through itself.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| स्वयमेव | svayam eva | You alone, by Yourself, only by Your own self |
| पुरुषोत्तम | purushottama | Supreme Person (beyond the imperishable and perishable) |
| भूतभावन | bhuta-bhavana | Nourisher and flourisher of all beings |
| भूतेश | bhuteshvara | Lord of all beings |
| देवदेव | deva-deva | God of gods, Supreme above all divine beings |
| जगत्पते | jagat-pate | Lord of the universe (jagat = the moving world) |
| स्वयम् | svayam | Yourself |
| एव | eva | alone |
| आत्मना | ātmanā | by Yourself |
| आत्मानम् | ātmānam | Yourself |
| वेत्थ | vettha | You know |
| त्वम् | tvam | You |
| पुरुषोत्तम | puruṣottama | O Supreme Person |
| भूत-भावन | bhūta-bhāvana | O creator of all beings |
| भूतेश्वर | bhūteśvara | O lord of all beings |