Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 42 (BG 10.42)

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Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 42 — Meaning & Commentary | Live Gita

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अथवा बहुनैतेन किं ज्ञातेन तवार्जुन |
विष्टभ्याहमिदं कृत्स्नमेकांशेन स्थितो जगत् ||१०-४२||

athavā bahunaitena kiṃ jñātena tavārjuna . viṣṭabhyāhamidaṃ kṛtsnamekāṃśena sthito jagat ||10-42||

But, of what avail to thee is the knowledge of all these details, O Arjuna? I exist, supporting this whole world by one part of Myself.

In simple words

Krishna closes the chapter: "But what is the point of knowing all these details, Arjuna? Just know this one thing — I hold up this entire universe with a single fraction of Myself."

Word-by-word meanings

अथवाorबहुना(by) manyएतेन(by) thisकिम्whatज्ञातेनknownतवto theeअर्जुनO Arjunaविष्टभ्यsupportingअहम्Iइदम्thisकृत्स्नम्allएकांशेनby one partस्थितःexistजगत्the world

Commentaries

Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.

Swami Sivananda

10.42 अथवा or? बहुना (by) many? एतेन (by) this? किम् what? ज्ञातेन known? तव to thee? अर्जुन O Arjuna? विष्टभ्य supporting? अहम् I? इदम् this? कृत्स्नम् all? एकांशेन by one part? स्थितः exist? जगत् the world.Commentary The Lord concludes Having established or pervaded this whole world with one fragment of Myself? I remain.This verse is based on the declaration in the Purusha Sukta (RigVeda10.90.3) that One arter of Him is all the cosmos the three arters are the divine transcendent Reality.I exist supporting this whole world by one part? by one limit? or by one foot. One part of Myself constitutes all beings.All beings form His foot (Taittiriya Aranyaka 3.12). The whole world is one Pada or foot of the Lord. Amsa (part) or Pada (foot) is mere Kalpana or imagination or account of our own ignorance,or limiting adjunct. In reality Brahman is without any such parts or limbs and is formless.Arjuna has now a knowledge of the glories of the Lord. He is fit to behold the magnificent cosmic form of the Lord. Lord Krishna prepares Arjuna for this grand vision by giving him a description of His glories.Arjuna says O Lord? I now realise that the whole world is filled by Thee. I now wish to behold the whole universe in Thee with my eye of intuition.Thus in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad Gita? the science of the Eternal? the scripture of Yoga? the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna? ends the tenth discourse entitledThe Yoga of the Divine Glories.,

Swami Chinmayananda

This interpretation draws on a specific tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.

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Commentaries

Contemporary scholarly and practical interpretations for modern seekers.

Swami Sivananda

Swami Chinmayananda

# BG 10.42 Though Sri Krishna, in the spontaneous outpouring of affection and friendship, had promised Arjuna to describe His manifestations—His cosmic form and His yoga, His individual expressions—yet as He proceeded to give example after example, He found Himself utterly unable to complete the task. How could the infinite expansion of an infinite reality be adequately described? This inability brought Him sorrow; yet His profound love for His disciple moved Him to offer the essence of the entire chapter in this final verse. What purpose does it serve you to know all this in such detail? In truth, the attempt to display the infinite reality in each limited form is futile, for it is impossible. Just as it is impossible to show clay in every pot one by one, or water in every wave individually, so too is this task beyond accomplishment. What alone can be done is to teach the student, through certain examples, the art of perceiving the ultimate truth. This very method is employed in the teaching of mathematics. I sustain this entire universe by a mere fraction of My being. In Vedanta, the word "universe" encompasses all experiences we obtain through our senses, mind, and intellect. In brief, all objects we know in visible form fall within the definition of the universe. This includes material substances, emotions, thoughts, and the sense organs and faculties that perceive them. In the second line of this verse, Sri Krishna speaks from the perspective of the Self, declaring that this entire universe is sustained within but a fraction of His being. This statement carries a deeper philosophical meaning: the greater portion of ultimate truth remains entirely unattached to this universe and its modifications. Though the indivisible truth pervades everywhere equally and cannot truly be divided into parts, this is the Upanishadic method of pointing toward the transcendent reality through the limited language of worldly expression. Thus concludes the tenth chapter, named the Yoga of Manifestations, of the Sri Bhagavad Gita Upanishad—the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna, which is the science of Brahman and the yoga of liberation.

This interpretation draws on a specific tradition and may not represent the view of any single school. For authoritative guidance within a specific tradition, seek a qualified teacher.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10, Verse 42 (BG 10.42) — Meaning, Translation & Commentary

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