Bhagavad Gita BG 8.16
Chapter 8, Verse 16 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
आब्रह्मभुवनाल्लोकाः पुनरावर्तिनोऽर्जुन । मामुपेत्य तु कौन्तेय पुनर्जन्म न विद्यते ॥
a-brahma-bhuvanal lokah punar avartino 'rjuna mam upetya tu kaunteya punar janma na vidyate
Meaning
From the realm of Brahma downward, all worlds are subject to return, O Arjuna. But having reached Me, O Kaunteya, rebirth does not occur.
Understanding
The cosmic scope of the previous verse's promise. A-brahma-bhuvanal (up to and including Brahma's own realm — even the highest cosmic destination still within the creation) — lokah punar avartinah (all worlds involve return). This is the Gita's most sweeping statement: even reaching Brahmaloka (the highest plane within the creation) does not end the cycle. Only one destination ends rebirth: mam upetya (reaching Me, Krishna — the Absolute beyond the creation). Tu (but — contrastive) — the difference: na vidyate (does not exist, does not occur). The only absolutely final destination is the Absolute itself.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| आब्रह्मभुवनात् | a-brahma-bhuvanat | up to and including Brahma's realm (the highest cosmic world) |
| पुनरावर्तिनः | punar-avartinh | subject to return, involving coming back |
| तु | tu | but (contrastive — the key word) |
| न विद्यते | na vidyate | does not exist, does not occur, is not found |
| आ-ब्रह्म-भुवनात् | ā-brahma-bhuvanāt | up to the realm of Brahma |
| लोकाः | lokāḥ | worlds, planes |
| पुनः | punaḥ | again |
| आवर्तिनः | āvartinaḥ | subject to return, recurring |
| अर्जुन | arjuna | O Arjuna |
| माम् | mām | Me |
| उपेत्य | upetya | having reached |
| कौन्तेय | kaunteya | O Arjuna (son of Kunti) |
| पुनः | punaḥ | again |
| जन्म | janma | birth |
| न | na | not |
| विद्यते | vidyate | exists, occurs |
📖 Learn "Beyond Return: The Great Souls and the Cycles of Creation" →