Bhagavad Gita BG 10.17
Chapter 10, Verse 17 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
कथं विद्यामहं योगिंस् त्वां सदा परिचिन्तयन् । केषु केषु च भावेषु चिन्त्योऽसि भगवन्मया ॥
katham vidyam aham yogins tvam sada paricintayan keshu keshu ca bhaveshu cintyo 'si bhagavan maya
Meaning
How am I to know You, O Yogi, by constantly thinking of You? In which forms (bhavaeshu) am I to contemplate You, O Blessed One?
Understanding
Arjuna's most practical question: katham vidyam (how am I to know) tvam sada paricintayan (while constantly thinking of You)? This is the question of the ordinary devoted person: I want to constantly remember You — but where do I focus? Keshu keshu bhaveshu (in which, which specific forms, states, appearances) cintyo asi (are You to be contemplated) by me? The vibhuti-teaching is requested as a practical aid to constant remembrance — not philosophical curiosity but devotional need.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| कथम् | katham | how, in what way |
| विद्याम् | vidyam | may I know, am I to know |
| परिचिन्तयन् | paricintayan | constantly thinking of, contemplating fully |
| भावेषु | bhaveshu | in forms, in states, in manifestations |
| चिन्त्यः | cintyah | to be contemplated, to be thought of |
| विद्याम् | vidyām | may I know |
| अहम् | aham | I |
| योगिन् | yogin | O yogi |
| त्वाम् | tvām | You |
| सदा | sadā | always |
| केषु | keṣu | in which |
| केषु | keṣu | which various |
| च | ca | and |
| भावेषु | bhāveṣu | aspects, manifestations |
| चिन्त्यः | cintyaḥ | to be thought of, meditated upon |
| असि | asi | are You |
| भगवन् | bhagavan | O Lord |
| मया | mayā | by me |