Bhagavad Gita BG 13.5
Chapter 13, Verse 5 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
ऋषिभिर्बहुधा गीतं छन्दोभिर्विविधैः पृथक् । ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैश्चैव हेतुमद्भिर्विनिश्चितैः ॥
rshibhir bahudha gitam chandobhir vividhaih prthak brahma-sutra-padaish caiva hetumadbhir viniscitaih
Meaning
This has been sung by the sages in many ways, separately in various Vedic hymns, and also in the well-reasoned and definitive words of the Brahma Sutras.
Understanding
Before giving his own teaching, Krishna acknowledges the scriptural lineage: rshibhir bahudha gitam (sung by the seers in many ways). Chandobhir vividhaih prthak (in various meters/hymns separately — the Vedas, Upanishads). Brahma-sutra-padaish caiva (and in the Brahma Sutras — Vedanta's systematic synthesis). Hetumadbhir viniscitaih (with logical reasoning and definitively established). Krishna is not presenting a new teaching but the eternal teaching — sung by rishis, encoded in Vedic hymns, systematized in Brahma Sutras. His own teaching in the Gita is the living transmission of this ancient understanding.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ऋषिभिः | rshibhih | by the seers/sages (rishis) |
| बहुधा | bahudha | in many ways, variously, in multiple forms |
| छन्दोभिः | chandobhih | in Vedic meters/hymns, in the Upanishadic texts |
| ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैः | brahma-sutra-padaih | in the words/aphorisms of the Brahma Sutras |
| हेतुमद्भिः | hetumadbhih | with logical reasoning, with proper grounds |
| विनिश्चितैः | viniscitaih | definitively established, conclusively determined |
| ऋषिभिः | ṛṣibhiḥ | by the sages |
| बहुधा | bahudhā | in many ways |
| गीतम् | gītam | sung, described |
| छन्दोभिः | chandobhiḥ | by Vedic hymns |
| विविधैः | vividhaiḥ | various, diverse |
| पृथक् | pṛthak | separately, distinctly |
| ब्रह्म-सूत्र-पदैः | brahma-sūtra-padaiḥ | by the Brahma-sutras |
| च | caiva | and also |
| हेतुमद्भिः | hetumadbhiḥ | with reasonings |
| विनिश्चितैः | viniścitaiḥ | with definitive conclusions |