Bhagavad Gita BG 13.18
Chapter 13, Verse 18 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
ज्योतिषामपि तज्ज्योतिः तमसः परमुच्यते । ज्ञानं ज्ञेयं ज्ञानगम्यं हृदि सर्वस्य विष्ठितम् ॥
jyotisham api taj jyotis tamasah param ucyate jnanam jneyam jnana-gamyam hrdi sarvasya vishthitam
Meaning
It is the Light of all lights, said to be beyond darkness. It is knowledge, the object of knowledge, and that which is attained through knowledge — seated in the heart of all.
Understanding
The most luminous description of Brahman: jyotisham api taj jyotih (the Light even of all lights — not a light among lights but the light by which all lights are perceived). Tamasah param ucyate (said to be beyond darkness — the primordial Light untouched by ignorance). Jnanam jneyam jnana-gamyam (it is simultaneously the knowing, the known, and the process of knowing — the three aspects of any knowledge-act are all the One). Hrdi sarvasya vishthitam (seated in the heart of all beings). The teaching reaches its peak here: Brahman is not out there but in every heart. The Light that illumines all thought, all knowledge, all experience — is Brahman, dwelling in you.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ज्योतिषाम् | jyotisham | of all lights, among all luminaries |
| ज्योतिः | jyotih | light — the supreme luminosity, not physical light |
| तमसः परम् | tamasah param | beyond darkness, transcending all ignorance |
| ज्ञानगम्यम् | jnana-gamyam | attained through knowledge, reached by knowing |
| हृदि | hrdi | in the heart — the center of being |
| विष्ठितम् | vishthitam | seated, established, dwelling firmly |
| ज्योतिषाम् | jyotiṣām | of luminaries |
| अपि | api | even |
| तत् | taj jyotiḥ | that light |
| तमसः | tamasaḥ param | beyond darkness |
| उच्यते | ucyate | is said to be |
| ज्ञानम् | jñānam | knowledge |
| ज्ञेयम् | jñeyam | the knowable |
| ज्ञान-गम्यम् | jñāna-gamyam | attainable by knowledge |
| हृदि | hṛdi | in the heart |
| सर्वस्य | sarvasya | of all |
| विष्ठितम् | viṣṭhitam | dwelling, established |
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