Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 14 (BG 10.14) — Meaning, Translation & Commentary

Here Arjuna clarifies the sentiments of his heart and expresses his unwavering faith toward his Teacher. Whatever you speak to me, I regard as truth. The word Keshava means one whose hair is beautiful, or the slayer of the demon Keshi. Although he accepts Krishna's words as truth, he cannot fully grasp their complete meaning. The point is that his heart holds perfect faith in the Lord's words, yet his intellect remains unsatisfied. Driven by his thirst for knowledge, Arjuna's dissatisfied nature seems to cry out. This thirst for knowledge resonates in the second line where he says: neither the celestial beings nor the demons know your true nature. The demons were the sons of Danu, who constantly attacked the heavens, obstructed sacrifices and rituals, and lived demonic lives. In contrast, according to the Puranas, the celestial beings dwell in heaven and possess greater physical, mental, and intellectual capacities than mortal humans. From a personal perspective, the celestial and demonic represent the auspicious and inauspicious tendencies of our mind respectively. When Arjuna says that the nature of the Self cannot be determined either by the perception of the subtle and auspicious, nor by the demonic tendency, his despair becomes evident. Neither can our divine inclinations embrace truth, nor can demonic qualities summon it for battle and present it as an enemy before us. In the world, we encounter things and persons in only two forms: as the beloved and the unbeloved, or as friend and foe. The Self's nature cannot be recognized through either of these categories, for it is the witness to the expressions of yoga and divine manifestations. If truth cannot be known by anyone, then why does Arjuna request Lord Krishna to describe it? What special quality do they possess that enables them to describe that which no one else can even know?