Bhagavad Gita BG 11.37
Chapter 11, Verse 37 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
कस्माच्च ते न नमेरन्महात्मन् गरीयसे ब्रह्मणोऽप्यादिकर्त्रे । अनन्त देवेश जगन्निवास त्वमक्षरं सदसत्तत्परं यत् ॥
kasmac ca te na nameran mahatman gariyase brahmaNo 'py adi-kartre ananta devEsha jagan-nivasa tvam aksharam sad asat tat param yat
Meaning
And why should they not bow to You, O Great Soul, who are greater even than Brahma the creator? O Infinite, O Lord of gods, O Abode of the universe — You are the Imperishable, being and non-being, and what is beyond that.
Understanding
Arjuna's question is rhetorical and worshipful. Kasmac ca te na nameran (and why should they not bow to you?). Gariyas brahmaNo 'py adi-kartre (greater even than Brahma the creator — adi-kartr, the primordial maker). Who is Brahma? The creator-god, the highest within creation. Krishna is beyond even Brahma — the source of the source of creation. Ananta (O Infinite — no boundaries). Devesa (O Lord of gods — even gods are within this). Jagan-nivasa (O Abode of the universe). Then the great philosophical statement: tvam aksharam (You are the Imperishable). Sad asat (being and non-being — both existence and non-existence). Tat param yat (and what is beyond that — the nameless beyond both).
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| गरीयसे | gariyase | greater, more exalted (comparative of guru — heavy/great) |
| आदिकर्त्रे | adi-kartre | to the Primordial Creator, the Original Maker |
| अनन्त | ananta | O Infinite, O Endless One |
| अक्षरम् | aksharam | the Imperishable, the Indestructible |
| सदसत् | sad-asat | being and non-being, existence and non-existence |
| तत्परम् | tat param | that which is beyond (the transcendent beyond both) |
| कस्मात् | kasmāt | why, for what reason |
| च | ca | and |
| ते | te | to You |
| न | na | not |
| नमेरन् | nameran | they should bow |
| महात्मन् | mahātman | O great soul |
| गरीयसे | garīyase | who are greater than |
| ब्रह्मणः | brahmaṇaḥ | Brahma (the creator) |
| अपि | api | even |
| आदि-कर्त्रे | ādi-kartre | the original creator |
| देवेश | deveśa | O lord of gods |
| जगन्-निवास | jagan-nivāsa | O abode of the universe |
| त्वम् | tvam | You |
| अक्षरम् | akṣaram | the imperishable |
| सत्-असत् | sat-asat | the existent and the non-existent |
| तत् | tat | that |
| परम् | param | the Supreme beyond |
| यत् | yat | which |