FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Bhagavad-gītā 10.15

स्वयमेवात्मनात्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम । भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते ॥ १५ ॥
svayam evātmanātmānaṁ
[svayam evaatmanaatmaanam]
vettha tvaṁ puruṣottama
[vettha tvam purushottama]
bhūta-bhāvana bhūteśa
[bhoota-bhaavana bhootesha]
deva-deva jagat-pate
[deva-deva jagat-pate]
Word-for-word
svayam — personally eva — certainly ātmanā — by Yourself ātmānam — Yourself vettha — know tvam — You puruṣa - uttama — O greatest of all persons bhūta - bhāvana — O origin of everything bhūta - īśa — O Lord of everything deva - deva — O Lord of all demigods jagat - pate — O Lord of the entire universe .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
svayam evātmanātmānaṁ
svayam
personally
eva
certainly
ātmanā
by Yourself
ātmānam
Yourself
vettha tvaṁ puruṣottama
vettha
know
tvam
You
puruṣa - uttama
O greatest of all persons
bhūta-bhāvana bhūteśa
bhūta - bhāvana
O origin of everything
bhūta - īśa
O Lord of everything
deva-deva jagat-pate
deva - deva
O Lord of all demigods
jagat - pate
O Lord of the entire universe .
Important Words
  • ātmanā — by Yourself
    Instrumental of ātman. The means of Kṛṣṇa's self-knowledge is His own self — not borrowed senses, not external instruments. He knows by being, not by perceiving.
  • ātmānam — Yourself
    Accusative of ātman. The same root recurs in three cases in this verse (ātmā-ātmanā-ātmānam in the original), creating an emphatic loop: the Self knows the Self by the Self alone.
  • puruṣa - uttama — O greatest of all persons
    Vocative compound: puruṣa (person) + uttama (highest). The same title used in chapter 15 to distinguish Kṛṣṇa from the kṣara and akṣara puruṣas. Arjuna places Kṛṣṇa at the top of every personal category.
  • bhūta - bhāvana — O origin of everything
    Compound vocative: bhūta (beings) + bhāvana (one who brings into being). Names Kṛṣṇa's role as cosmic generator — picking up the prabhavaḥ-thread from verse 8.
  • deva - deva — O Lord of all demigods
    Vocative reduplication. Not 'one god' but 'the god of gods.' Arjuna stacks his addresses so each one closes a possible misreading.
  • jagat - pate — O Lord of the entire universe
    Vocative compound: jagat (moving universe) + pati (lord, master). Spatial range — every realm has Kṛṣṇa as its master. With the previous addresses, all of personhood, divinity, and cosmos are placed under Him.
Indeed, You alone know Yourself by Your own internal potency, O Supreme Person, origin of all, Lord of all beings, God of gods, Lord of the universe!
Classical Sanskrit analysis शास्त्रीय विश्लेषण
How Sanskrit scholars read this verse — split, rearranged, grammar-tagged. For the plain English distilled meaning, jump to Plain meaning below.
Auto-generated study layers — original analysis of the public-domain śloka. Review against a published edition for academic work.
Plain meaning (तात्पर्य · Tātparya)
Stacking five vocatives, Arjuna confesses that self-knowledge of Kṛṣṇa is intrinsic to Kṛṣṇa alone — the Lord is His own epistemic ground. The verse is a humility-formula: 'Tell me, because no one else can.'
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
The reflexive triple svayam-ātmanā-ātmānaṁ is grammatically elegant and philosophically loaded — only the Supreme Self has Self as instrument, object, and agent simultaneously. The vocative cascade moves outward in cosmic scope: Puruṣottama (metaphysical), bhūta-bhāvana (origin), bhūteśa (lord), deva-deva (above gods), jagat-pati (cosmic master). It primes the request in 10.16.
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
हे पुरुषोत्तम! हे भूत-भावन! हे भूत-ईश! हे देव-देव! हे जगत्-पते! त्वं स्वयम् एव आत्मना आत्मानं वेत्थ ।
he puruṣottama! he bhūta-bhāvana! he bhūta-īśa! he deva-deva! he jagat-pate! tvaṃ svayam eva ātmanā ātmānaṃ vettha |
O Supreme Person, O originator of beings, O Lord of beings, O God of gods, O Master of the world — You alone, by Yourself, know Yourself.
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
स्वयम् एव आत्मना आत्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम । भूत-भावन भूत-ईश देव-देव जगत्-पते ॥
svayam eva ātmanā ātmānaṃ vettha tvaṃ puruṣottama | bhūta-bhāvana bhūta-īśa deva-deva jagat-pate ||
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
SanskritIASTGrammarMeaning
स्वयम् एव svayam eva ind. (indeclinable) + ind. (indeclinable) by Yourself alone
आत्मना ātmanā आत्मन् (m.) ins.sg. (instrumental singular) through (Your own) Self
आत्मानम् ātmānam आत्मन् (m.) acc.sg. (accusative singular) (Your) Self
वेत्थ vettha √विद् perf. (perfect) 2sg.par. (with present sense) You know
त्वम् tvam युष्मद् nom.sg. (nominative singular) You
पुरुषोत्तम puruṣottama पुरुष + उत्तम (adj.) voc.sg. (vocative singular)m., karmadhāraya O Supreme Person
भूत-भावन bhūta-bhāvana भूत (n.) + भावन (m./adj.) voc.sg. (vocative singular)m., tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) O originator/sustainer of beings
भूत-ईश bhūta-īśa भूत + ईश (m.) voc.sg. (vocative singular), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) O Lord of beings
देव-देव deva-deva देव + देव (m.) voc.sg. (vocative singular), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) O God of gods
जगत्-पते jagat-pate जगत् (n.) + पति (m.) voc.sg. (vocative singular), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) O Master of the world
Purport

The Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, can be known by persons who are in a relationship with Him through the discharge of devotional service, like Arjuna and his followers. Persons of demonic or atheistic mentality cannot know Kṛṣṇa. Mental speculation that leads one away from the Supreme Lord is a serious sin, and one who does not know Kṛṣṇa should not try to comment on Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā is the statement of Kṛṣṇa, and since it is the science of Kṛṣṇa, it should be understood from Kṛṣṇa as Arjuna understood it. It should not be received from atheistic persons. As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.11) : vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate The Supreme Truth is realized in three aspects: as impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and at last as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So at the last stage of understanding the Absolute Truth, one comes to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. A common man or even a liberated man who has realized impersonal Brahman or localized Paramātmā may not understand God’s personality. Such men, therefore, may endeavor to understand the Supreme Person from the verses of Bhagavad-gītā, which are being spoken by this person, Kṛṣṇa. Sometimes the impersonalists accept Kṛṣṇa as Bhagavān, or they accept His authority. Yet many liberated persons cannot understand Kṛṣṇa as Puruṣottama, the Supreme Person. Therefore Arjuna addresses Him as Puruṣottama. Yet one still may not understand that Kṛṣṇa is the father of all living entities. Therefore Arjuna addresses Him as Bhūta-bhāvana. And if one comes to know Him as the father of all the living entities, still one may not know Him as the supreme controller; therefore He is addressed here as Bhūteśa, the supreme controller of everyone. And even if one knows Kṛṣṇa as the supreme controller of all living entities, still one may not know that He is the origin of all the demigods; therefore He is addressed herein as Deva-deva, the worshipful God of all demigods. And even if one knows Him as the worshipful God of all demigods, one may not know that He is the supreme proprietor of everything; therefore He is addressed as Jagat-pati. Thus the truth about Kṛṣṇa is established in this verse by the realization of Arjuna, and we should follow in the footsteps of Arjuna to understand Kṛṣṇa as He is.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
15. O supreme among the creators, the lord of creators of all creators, the performer of pastimes, the master of all in this universe, You alone know Yourself by Yourself.
Commentary

Therefore, You alone know about Yourself. Your devotee knows that actually You do have birth and are also without birth, though such a condition is difficult to exist. But he also does not know by which method it can happen. You alone (eva) know that. You know through Yourself (ātmanā) alone, not through any other means. Therefore, among all the puruṣa avatāras, who are creators of the mahat-tattva and other elements, You are supreme (uttama). Not only are You supreme among them. You are the lord of those lords up to Brahmā, who have become the creators of all material bodies (bhūtā-bhāvana-bhūteśa). Not only are You the lord of all of them, You are also the performer of pastimes (deva ), [Note: The word deva comes from the root div and means “one who plays.”] taking the devas as instruments in Your pastimes (deva-deva ). Moreover, out of Your infinite mercy, You are the master of those like me (just a dāsa) dwelling within the universe (jagat-pate). All four of these terms starting with puruṣottama and ending with jagat-pate are in the vocative case. Another meaning is as follows. These words may be taken as terms describing the nature of being the supreme person (puruṣottama). You are father of all creatures (bhūtā-bhāvana). But since sometimes a father is not respected, Arjuna says “You are the controller of all creatures (bhūteśa).” But sometimes even a controller is not so worthy of worship. Therefore he says “You are the deva among all the devas.” Though the devas are worshipable, sometimes they do not give protection. Therefore he says “You are the protector of the universe (jagat-pate).”

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa Gauḍīya
Translation
15. O supreme among the creators, the lord of creators of all creators, the performer of pastimes, the master of all in this universe, You alone know Yourself by Yourself.
Commentary

You know completely about Yourself by Your own power of knowledge. Those who are devotees among the devas and dānavas substantially known Your form as described, but they do not know that form as it really is. That is suggested by the word eva. O Lord of all people (puruṣottama)! Further delineating His lordship of all people, Arjuna continues to address Kṛṣṇa. O Source of all creatures (bhūta bhāvana)! Though He is the source, He may not be respected. Therefore he says, O controller of all living beings (bhūteśa)! Although He is the controller, He may not be worthy of worship. Therefore Arjuna says, O person who is worshipped by those who are worthy of worship (devadeva)! Though a person is worthy of worship, He may not protect others. Therefore he says, O one who protect of the universe, by giving means of livelihood and teachings to both the good and evil people (jagat pate)! In this way Your true nature has been described perfectly.

Bhūrijana Dāsa Gauḍīya
Translation
Indeed, You alone know Yourself by Your own internal potency, O Supreme Person, origin of all, Lord of all beings, God of gods, Lord of the universe! (com) Five addresses due to affectionate emotions of Arjuna. Visvanath: "You know Yourself by Yourself eva only, signifies Lord's birth and activities are difficult to understand and even devotees only understand how the Lord performs His inconceivable pastimes, such as Lord's birth, although unborn. Krsna also, doesn't use any other means to know Himself other than Himself. Therefore You are the best person amongst all persons, not only that but You are bhuta bhavan, the creator of all living entities. You are not only creator, but controller, but also You are playing with them as if toys, You are also protecting them." best, creator, controller, player with, protector of ‑ all living entities. These other addresses are adjectives of Purushottam, best person, father of living entities, controller, worshipable Deity (deva deva), protector. Gita Bhushan: "You Yourself know Yourself with Your own knowledge as they are. Others know something about You, only You know everything about Yourself." "How do You protect this world? Through Your teachings to the living entities."
Commentary

Here Arjuna calls Krsna, 'Purusuttama', which means Supreme Person. But He Himself, the Supreme Person, is the only one who knows Himself completely. And then after describing Krsna as the Supreme Person, Arjuna uses many adjectives to glorify that Supreme Person. He call Him: 'the origin of all', 'the creator', 'Lord of everything', 'the controller', 'the Lord of the universe', 'the protector' ...etc. In this way Arjuna is glorifying Krsna and taking shelter of Him.

[2. Arjuna asks Krsna of His opulences so he can always think of and remember Krsna. (16‑18) ]

Study Notes — Gauranga Priya Dāsa
Gauranga Priya Dāsa Study
Bhakti-śāstrī Notes, ISKCON Chowpatty (2009)
Theme

‘Tell me more’ – In the next 5 verses (10.15 – 10.19) Arjuna asks Krishna to tell him more of His glories

Arjuna says “Only the Lord can fully know Himself by His own internal potency”
Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
Sri Shankaracharya did not comment on this sloka
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
Sri Ramanuja did not comment on this sloka
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
Sri Abhinavgupta did not comment on this sloka
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
Swami Sivananda did not comment on this sloka
Commentary

10.15 स्वयम् Thyself? एव only? आत्मना by Thyself? आत्मानम् Thyself? वेत्थ (Thou) knowest? त्वम् Thou? पुरुषोत्तम O Purusha Supreme? भूतभावन O source of beings? भूतेश O Lord of beings? देवदेव O God of,gods? जगत्पते O ruler of the world.Commentary Purushottama means the best among all Purushas. He assumes the four forms? viz.? the source of beings? the Lord of beings? God of gods and ruler of the world. Hence He is called Purushottama.Devadeva is He who is worshipped even by Indra and other gods.Jagatpati The Lord protects the world and guides the people through the instructions given in the Vedas. Hence the name ruler of the world.

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
Swami Gambirananda did not comment on this sloka
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
Shri Purohit Swami did not comment on this sloka
Related values & verses
Related values
Tyaga (Renunciation / Letting Go)Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)Ahimsa (Non-violence / Compassion)Tapas (Austerity / Discipline)Guru Bhakti (Reverence for Teacher)Atma Nigraha (Self-control)Daksya (Resourcefulness / Skill)Maitri (Friendship / Goodwill)Abhaya (Fearlessness)
Related verses
BG 7.26 BG 7.25 BG 11.43 SB 10.14.7 SB 1.9.16 SB 8.5.26 CC Ādi 2.83 CC Madhya 21.1 CC Madhya 25.30 Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.2.23Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8
Concepts
Bhava
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
You alone know Yourself by Yourself — O Supreme Person, source and Lord of all beings, God of gods, master of the universe.
Practical Applications
  • Acknowledge that He alone fully knows Himself.
  • Approach Him through Himself, not through speculation.
  • Use scripture as His self-revelation.
Reflection Questions
  • Where am I trying to know Him by other means than His self-revelation?
  • What scripture am I underusing?
Analogy

Only the sun can see itself by its own light; every other vision of the sun is borrowed and partial. So only Kṛṣṇa, by His own internal potency, fully knows Himself — and any glimpse the rest of us receive is a gift He chooses to give, never a discovery we make.

Stories
Brahmā's confession

After his calf-stealing episode (see verse 2), Brahmā stood before the boy-Kṛṣṇa and offered the Brahmā-stuti. The opening note was confession: 'I do not know You.' The creator of the universe, born from Viṣṇu's navel, acknowledged that the One in front of him exceeded his own founding intelligence.

Arjuna's verse here echoes Brahmā's posture. Svayam evātmanātmānam vettha — only You know Yourself. It is not flattery. It is the structural truth of the relationship between created and uncreated.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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