Bhagavad Gita BG 15.11

Chapter 15, Verse 11 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation

यतन्तो योगिनश्चैनं पश्यन्त्यात्मन्यवस्थितम् । यतन्तोऽप्यकृतात्मानो नैनं पश्यन्त्यचेतसः ॥

yatanto yoginash cainam pashyanty atmany avasthitam yatanto 'py akrtatmano nainam pashyanty acetasah

Meaning

The yogis who strive see him in themselves. But those of unrefined selves (akrtatmanah), even while striving, do not see him — being without (purified) consciousness.

Understanding

The contrast between two kinds of strivers: yatantah yoginah (striving yogis) pashyanti enam atmani avasthitam (see him established in the Self — the jiva as it truly is). But yatanto 'py akrtatmanah (even those who strive — but whose self is unrefined, uncultivated, not worked-upon) na pashyanti (do not see) — cetasah (being without the needed consciousness/mind-refinement). The critical word is akrtatmana: a + krta (not + made/cultivated) + atman (self). The self has not been krta (refined, worked upon, cultivated through practice). The difference is not effort alone (both groups yatante — strive) but whether the inner instrument has been properly refined. Without inner purification, even spiritual effort does not yield the vision of the jiva. This is why the entire Gita is about inner transformation — not just intellectual understanding.

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