Bhagavad Gita BG 8.22
Chapter 8, Verse 22 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
पुरुषः स परः पार्थ भक्त्या लभ्यस्त्वनन्यया । यस्यान्तःस्थानि भूतानि येन सर्वमिदं ततम् ॥
purushah sa parah partha bhaktya labhyas tv ananyaya yasyantah-sthani bhutani yena sarvam idam tatam
Meaning
That Supreme Purusha, O Partha, is attained only by undivided devotion (ananya-bhakti). Within Him all beings dwell; by Him all this is pervaded.
Understanding
How is this supreme abode attained? Bhaktya ananyaya — by ananya-bhakti (undivided devotion — devotion that is not for anything other, single-pointed). The paradox of the Absolute: yasya antah-sthani bhutani (within whom all beings abide — He contains all) AND yena sarvam idam tatam (by whom all this is pervaded — He pervades all). Both simultaneously: all is within Him (immanence) and He pervades all (also immanence, from within). This is not a remote god but the immediate ground of all existence.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| परः पुरुषः | parah purushah | the Supreme Purusha/Person |
| भक्त्या | bhaktya | by devotion |
| अनन्यया | ananyaya | undivided, not directed to anything other |
| अन्तःस्थानि | antah-sthani | dwelling within, abiding inside |
| ततम् | tatam | pervaded, spread through, permeated |
| पुरुषः | puruṣaḥ | the Supreme Person |
| सः | saḥ | that |
| परः | paraḥ | supreme |
| पार्थ | pārtha | O Arjuna |
| भक्त्या | bhaktyā | by devotion |
| लभ्यः | labhyaḥ | attainable, obtainable |
| तु | tu | but |
| अनन्यया | ananyayā | by undivided, exclusive devotion |
| यस्य | yasya | within whom |
| अन्तः-स्थानि | antaḥ-sthāni | are contained, abide within |
| भूतानि | bhūtāni | all beings |
| येन | yena | by whom |
| सर्वम् | sarvam | all this |
| इदम् | idam | this universe |