FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Bhagavad-gītā 8.9

कविं पुराणमनुशासितार- मणोरणीयांसमनुस्मरेद्य: । सर्वस्य धातारमचिन्त्यरूप- मादित्यवर्णं तमस: परस्तात् ॥ ९ ॥
kaviṁ purāṇam anuśāsitāram
[kavim puraanam anushaasitaaram]
aṇor aṇīyāṁsam anusmared yaḥ
[anor aneeyaamsam anusmared yah]
sarvasya dhātāram acintya-rūpam
[sarvasya dhaataaram achintya-roopam]
āditya-varṇaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt
[aaditya-varnam tamasah parastaat]
Word-for-word
kavim — the one who knows everything purāṇam — the oldest anuśāsitāram — the controller aṇoḥ — than the atom aṇīyāṁsam — smaller anusmaret — always thinks of yaḥ — one who sarvasya — of everything dhātāram — the maintainer acintya — inconceivable rūpam — whose form āditya - varṇam — luminous like the sun tamasaḥ — to darkness parastāt — transcendental .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
kaviṁ purāṇam anuśāsitāram
kavim
the one who knows everything
purāṇam
the oldest
anuśāsitāram
the controller
aṇor aṇīyāṁsam anusmared yaḥ
aṇoḥ
than the atom
aṇīyāṁsam
smaller
anusmaret
always thinks of
yaḥ
one who
sarvasya dhātāram acintya-rūpam
sarvasya
of everything
dhātāram
the maintainer
acintya
inconceivable
rūpam
whose form
āditya-varṇaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt
āditya - varṇam
luminous like the sun
tamasaḥ
to darkness
parastāt
transcendental .
Important Words
  • kavim — the one who knows everything
    Originally 'poet, seer' — one who sees. The Vedic kavi is the cosmic seer, the one whose vision encompasses all. Applied to the Supreme, kavi means omniscience not as data-storage but as poetic, total vision.
  • purāṇam — the oldest
    From purā — ancient. The Lord is named as the most ancient — older than any rival deity, any cosmic structure, any age. The same word names the Purāṇas, the 'ancient histories' — both share the connotation of primordial authority.
  • anuśāsitāram — the controller
    Anu (along) + śās (to govern) + agentive suffix. The one who governs continuously, by ongoing direction rather than initial decree. Not a clockmaker who wound the universe and walked away — a controller present in every motion.
  • aṇīyāṁsam — smaller
    Comparative of aṇu — atomic. 'Smaller-than'. The Upaniṣadic paradox: He who is greater than the greatest is also smaller than the smallest. Compactness so refined that no material instrument can locate Him.
  • dhātāram — the maintainer
    From dhā — to place, to sustain. The one who holds all things in place. The same root that gives dharma (that which holds) and dhāman (abode, that which is held). The Supreme is named as the very principle of cosmic stability.
  • acintya — inconceivable
    A (not) + cintya (to be thought). Beyond the reach of independent reasoning. Not anti-rational, but trans-rational — the qualities can be heard and meditated upon, but cannot be derived by the mind from below. Hence the necessity of revelation.
  • āditya - varṇam — luminous like the sun
    Āditya (the sun) + varṇa (color, appearance). The Lord's effulgence is sun-like — self-luminous, source of all derivative light. The image is constant across the Upaniṣads (Īśopaniṣad 16, Śvetāśvatara 3.8) and Kṛṣṇa here brings it into the meditative repertoire.
  • tamasaḥ parastāt — transcendental to darkness
    Tamas (darkness, ignorance) + parastāt (beyond). The Lord is not merely brighter than darkness; He is on the far side of it. The dichotomy is not light vs. dark but the entire luminous register vs. its opposite, and He stands beyond even that pair.
One should meditate upon the Supreme Person as the one who knows everything, as He who is the oldest, who is the controller, who is smaller than the smallest, who is the maintainer of everything, who is beyond all material conception, who is inconceivable, and who is always a person. He is luminous like the sun, and He is transcendental, beyond this material nature.
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)
Kṛṣṇa unfolds a sequence of contemplative epithets for the Supreme Person — seer, primordial, ruler, smaller than the smallest, sustainer of all, beyond conception, sunlight-bright, past all darkness. The verse is the chapter's praṇidhāna, the meditator's litany.
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
The metre shifts to triṣṭubh (11-syllable lines) for the high-meditation verses 8.9-11, marking solemnity. Many epithets echo Upaniṣadic phrasing: 'aṇor aṇīyāṁsam' from Kaṭha 1.2.20, 'āditya-varṇaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt' from Śvetāśvatara 3.8. By stitching śruti phrases into His self-description, Kṛṣṇa identifies the meditation-object of the Upaniṣadic sages with Himself.
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
यः कविम् पुराणम् अनुशासितारम् अणोः अणीयांसम् सर्वस्य धातारम् अचिन्त्य-रूपम् आदित्य-वर्णम् तमसः परस्तात् [स्थितम् पुरुषम्] अनुस्मरेत्…
yaḥ kavim purāṇam anuśāsitāram aṇoḥ aṇīyāṃsam sarvasya dhātāram acintya-rūpam āditya-varṇam tamasaḥ parastāt [sthitam puruṣam] anusmaret…
He who meditates on [the Person who is] the seer, ancient, ruler, smaller than the atom, sustainer of all, of unthinkable form, the colour of the sun, beyond darkness…
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
कविम् पुराणम् अनुशासितारम् अणोः अणीयांसम् अनुस्मरेत् यः । सर्वस्य धातारम् अचिन्त्य-रूपम् आदित्य-वर्णम् तमसः परस्तात् ॥
kavim purāṇam anuśāsitāram aṇoḥ aṇīyāṃsam anusmaret yaḥ | sarvasya dhātāram acintya-rūpam āditya-varṇam tamasaḥ parastāt ||
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
SanskritIASTGrammarMeaning
कविम् kavim कवि (m.) acc.sg. (accusative singular) the seer, the omniscient one
पुराणम् purāṇam पुराण (adj.) acc.sg. (accusative singular)m. ancient, primordial
अनुशासितारम् anuśāsitāram अनु + √शास् → अनुशासितृ (agent-noun) acc.sg. (accusative singular)m. ruler, governor
अणोः aṇoḥ अणु (adj./m.) abl.sg. (ablative singular), as compar. (comparative) base than the atom
अणीयांसम् aṇīyāṃsam अणु compar. (-īyas) acc.sg. (accusative singular)m. smaller
अनुस्मरेत् anusmaret अनु + √स्मृ opt. (optative) 3sg.par. (parasmaipada / active voice) should constantly remember
यः yaḥ यद् rel. pron. (pronoun) nom.sg. (nominative singular)m. who
सर्वस्य sarvasya सर्व (adj.) gen.sg. (genitive singular)n. of all
धातारम् dhātāram √धा → धातृ (agent-noun) acc.sg. (accusative singular)m. sustainer, creator
अचिन्त्य-रूपम् acintya-rūpam अचिन्त्य (gerundive) + रूप (n.) acc.sg. (accusative singular)m., bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) 'one whose form is unthinkable' of inconceivable form
आदित्य-वर्णम् āditya-varṇam आदित्य (m.) + वर्ण (m.) acc.sg. (accusative singular)m., bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) 'sun-coloured' luminous like the sun
तमसः tamasaḥ तमस् (n.) abl.sg. (ablative singular) from darkness
परस्तात् parastāt ind. (indeclinable), post-positional beyond
Purport

The process of thinking of the Supreme is mentioned in this verse. The foremost point is that He is not impersonal or void. One cannot meditate on something impersonal or void. That is very difficult. The process of thinking of Kṛṣṇa, however, is very easy and is factually stated herein. First of all, the Lord is puruṣa, a person – we think of the person Rāma and the person Kṛṣṇa. And whether one thinks of Rāma or of Kṛṣṇa, what He is like is described in this verse of Bhagavad-gītā. The Lord is kavi; that is, He knows past, present and future and therefore knows everything. He is the oldest personality because He is the origin of everything; everything is born out of Him. He is also the supreme controller of the universe, and He is the maintainer and instructor of humanity. He is smaller than the smallest. The living entity is one ten-thousandth part of the tip of a hair, but the Lord is so inconceivably small that He enters into the heart of this particle. Therefore He is called smaller than the smallest. As the Supreme, He can enter into the atom and into the heart of the smallest and control him as the Supersoul. Although so small, He is still all-pervading and is maintaining everything. By Him all these planetary systems are sustained. We often wonder how these big planets are floating in the air. It is stated here that the Supreme Lord, by His inconceivable energy, is sustaining all these big planets and systems of galaxies. The word acintya (“inconceivable”) is very significant in this connection. God’s energy is beyond our conception, beyond our thinking jurisdiction, and is therefore called inconceivable ( acintya ). Who can argue this point? He pervades this material world and yet is beyond it. We cannot comprehend even this material world, which is insignificant compared to the spiritual world – so how can we comprehend what is beyond? Acintya means that which is beyond this material world, that which our argument, logic and philosophical speculation cannot touch, that which is inconceivable. Therefore intelligent persons, avoiding useless argument and speculation, should accept what is stated in scriptures like the Vedas, Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and follow the principles they set down. This will lead one to understanding.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
9-10. At the time of death, a person endowed with devotion and with unwavering mind, who concentrates between the brows through the strength of yoga practice, and who remembers He who is omniscient, beginningless, the teacher, smaller than the smallest, the container of everything, the inconceivable, an independent form like the sun, who is above prakṛti—that person attains the transcendental supreme person.
Commentary

Without practice of yoga it is difficult to withdraw the mind from sense objects. Without withdrawing the mind from sense objects, it is difficult to think constantly of the Lord. Therefore one should execute bhakti along with some type of yoga practice. The Lord here speaks of such bhakti mixed with aṣṭāṅga-yoga (yoga-miśra-bhakti) in five verses. The Lord is omniscient (kavi). But though one may be omniscient, like Sanaka and others, one may not be eternal. Therefore, the Lord is described as purāṇa, without beginning. Though He is both omniscient and without beginning, this does not indicate that He becomes the instructor of bhakti as Paramātmā. Therefore He is called anuśāsitāram, the teacher, who by His mercy gives instructions about devotion to Himself when He appears as Kṛṣṇa or Rāma. Though He is merciful, He is still a difficult object to know factually: compared to the smallest He is even smaller. Then, is He like the jīva, the size of an atom? No, He is also of the greatest size, spreading everywhere, since everything is contained within Him (sarvasya dhātāram). Thus He is said to be inconceivable in form (acintya-rūpam). Though He appears of medium size, as a human being, His manifestation is independent of all others. Thus He has a form (varṇa) which is like that of the sun (āditya), revealing both Himself and all others. Thus, though He is the possessor of māyā-śakti (prakṛti), His form is transcendental to prakṛti or māyā (tamasaḥ parastāt). At the time of death (prayāṇa-kāle), with unwavering mind, engaged in bhakti with constant remembrance of Me as described above, the yogī attains Me. How does he attain unwavering mind? He attains it through the strength of his practice of yoga (yoga-balena). The yoga process is then described. Fixing his prāṇa in the ājñā-cakra (bhruvor madhye), he attains Me. [Note: From verse 13 it seems that attaining the Lord means attaining His abode, attaining a distant relationship with the Lord.]

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa Gauḍīya
Translation
9-10. At the time of death, one who remembers with devotion the person who is omniscient, without beginning, the teacher, smaller than the smallest, the container of everything, the inconceivable, an independent form like the sun, who is above prakṛti, with unwavering mind concentrating between the brows through strength of yoga practice, attains that transcendental supreme person.
Commentary

Unwavering concentration of the mind mentioned in the previous verse is very difficult to achieve, unless one practices yoga. Yoga miśra bhakti is therefore described in five verses. One should remember He who is omniscient (kavim); who gives beneficial teachings as in the case of Rāma (anuśāsitāram); who has the power to enter within the jīva and is thus smaller than the jīva (aṇor aṇīyāmsam). The śruti also says antaḥ praviṣṭaḥ śāstā janānām: He has entered within and is the teacher of men. (Taittirīya Āraṇyaka 3.11) And though He is very small, He is spread everywhere: he holds the whole universe within Himself (sarvasya dhātāram). But how is that possible? His very form is inconceivable (acintya rūpam). It is said: ekam eva brahma puruṣa-vidhatvena madhyama-parimāṇam aṇor aṇīyāṁsam This one brahman is of medium size in the form of a man, and also smaller than the smallest. paramāṇu-parimāṇaṁ sarvasya dhātāram He is the size of the smallest atom and the container of the universe. paraṁ mahā-parimāṇaṁ He is great in size. There is no opportunity to use logic here. The Lord is self-revealing. Like the sun (aditya varṇam), He reveals Himself and others. He is not touched by māyā (tamasaḥ parastāt). He is situated above māyā. The maker of māyā is beyond māyā. He who remembers such a person at every moment attains that supreme person. The lines of this verse connect with last line of the next verse. He who remembers that person with undeviating mind at the time of death, with prema for paramātmā (bhaktyā), through the accumulation of impressions arising from the experience of samādhi (yoga balena), carefully establishing the prāṇa in the ājñā cakra (here the yoga process is described), attains that person.

Bhūrijana Dāsa Gauḍīya
Commentary

Krsna has 'acintya‑rupam', He has an inconceivable form ‑ always a person. Now, in the remaining verses of this Section, Krsna is going to explain more about remembering Him. But now He is going to explain 'Yoga misra bhakti'. This is actually what was referred to at the end of Chapter Seven, 'about those who want to become liberated from birth and death.' That was a hint of yoga misra bhakti, because that was a sakama devotee. Here the explanation of yoga misra bhakti is being given:

[ 2 . Yogamisra bhakti: If one practices celibacy, utters 'omkara', detaches himself from his senses, and thinks of the Supreme Personality of Godhead when quitting the body, he reaches the spiritual planets. (10‑13) ]

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

Mentions 10 ways of thinking/meditating on the Supreme

How to think of Krishna (This includes all the points of the purport) 1. Kavi – Knower of everything (past, present and future) 2. Oldest – All born out of Him 3. Controller 4. Smaller than the smallest
Enters into each atom
Enters into the heart of the living entity; who is one ten-thousandth the tip of a hair

5. Maintainer of everything

6. Beyond all material conception – All big planets are floating by His energy

7. Achintya – Inconceivable

God’s energy is beyond our thinking jurisdiction
Logic and philosophical speculation cannot touch Him
Sign of real intelligence –
Accept the principles of sastra as it is
Avoid useless arguments and speculations

8. Always a person – As indicated by the word ‘rupam’

9. Luminous like sun

10. Transcendental, beyond this material nature

Text 8.9 refutes “Absolute Truth as impersonal”; Recommends meditation on personality LINK BETWEEN TEXTS 8.9 & 8.10: Krishna is thus discussing Bhakti, but Bhakti mixed with aspirations of a yogi seeking liberation from birth and death “yoga mishra bhakti”. Meditating on Him as possessor of

these qualities enables one to realize Supersoul who is the goal of yoga practice done by yogis

Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
8.9 Yah, he who, anyone who; anusmaret, meditates on; kavim, the Omniscient, the Knower of things past, present and future; puranam, the Ancient, the Eternal; anusasitaram, the Ruler, the Lord of the whole Universe; aniyamsam, subtler; anoh, than the subtle; dhataram, the Ordainer; sarvasya, of every-thing-one who grants the fruits of actions, in all their varieties, individually to all creatures; acintya-rupam, who is of inconceivable form-His form, though always existing, defies being conceived of by anybody; aditya-varnam, who is effulgent like the sun, who is manifest as eternal Consciousness like the effulgence of the sun; and parastat, beyond; tamasah, darkness-beyond the darkness of delusion in the form of ignorance-(he attains the supreme Person). This verse is to be connected with the earlier itself thus: 'by meditating (on Him)৷৷.he attains Him.' Further,
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
8.9 - 8.10 He who focusses his life-breath between the eyrows at the time of death with a mind rendered unswerving through its purification achieved by the strength of Yoga conjoined with Bhakti practised day after day; and he who contemplates on the 'Kavi' i.e., the Omniscient, the 'Primeval', i.e., who existed always, 'the Ruler,' i.e., who governs the universe, 'who is subtler than the subtle,' i.e., who is subtler than the individual self, 'who is the Dhata' of all, i.e., the creator of all, 'whose nature is inconceivable,' i.e., whose nature is other than everything else, 'who is sun-coloured and beyond darkness,' i.e., who possesses a divine form peculiar to Himself - he who concentrates on Him, the Divine Person described above, between the eyrows, attains Him alone. He attains His state and comes to have power and glory similar to His. Such is the meaning. Then He describes the mode of meditation to be adopted by the seeker of Kaivalya or the Jijnasu (i.e., of one who seeks to know his own self or Atman in contrast to one whose object is God-realisation).
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
8.9 See Comment under 8.10
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
8.9 Whosoever meditates on the Omniscient, the Ancient, the Ruler (of the whole world), minuter than an atom, the supporter of all, of inconceivable form, effulgent like the sun and beyond the darkness of ignorance.
Commentary

8.9 कविम् Omniscient? पुराणम् Ancient? अनुशासितारम् the Ruler (of the whole world)? अणोः than atom? अणीयांसम् minuter? अनुस्मरेत् remembers? यः who? सर्वस्य of all? धातारम् supporter? अचिन्त्यरूपम् one whose form is inconceivable? आदित्यवर्णम् effulgent like the sun? तमसः from the darkness (of ignorance)? परस्तात् beyond.Commentary Kavim The sage? seer or poet? the omniscient.The Lord dispenses the fruits of actions of the Jivas (individual souls). He is the Ruler of the world. It is very difficult to conceive the form of the Lord. He is selfluminous and He illumies everything like the sun.

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
8.9 He who meditates on the Omniscient, the Anceint, the Ruler, subtler than the subtle, the Ordainer of everything, of inconceivable form, effulgent like the sun, and beyond darkness-(he attains the supreme Person).
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
8.9 Whoso meditates on the Omniscient, the Ancient, more minute than the atom, yet the Ruler and Upholder of all, Unimaginable, Brilliant like the Sun, Beyond the reach of darkness;
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)Maitri (Friendship / Goodwill)Daksya (Resourcefulness / Skill)
Related verses
BG 10.8 BG 11.38 BG 15.6 SB 2.2.8 SB 2.9.33 SB 8.3.2 CC Ādi 2.117 CC Madhya 20.152 CC Ādi 1.3 Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 3.8Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.2.20
Concepts
Maya
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Meditate on the omniscient, the most ancient, the controller, smaller than the smallest, maintainer of all, of inconceivable form, effulgent like the sun, transcendental beyond darkness.
Practical Applications
  • Use these epithets as a meditation on Kṛṣṇa's nature.
  • Don't reduce Him to one attribute; hold the breadth.
  • Recite this verse as a meditative anchor.
Reflection Questions
  • Which epithet feels most distant from my current sense of Him?
  • Why?
Analogy

Kṛṣṇa hands the meditator a string of pearls, each pearl a name: omniscient, oldest, controller, smallest of the small, maintainer, inconceivable, sun-luminous, beyond darkness. The instruction is not to choose one — it is to thread them all, slowly, one after the other, until the whole strand drapes over the heart. Each pearl is a doorway; together they prevent the meditator from shrinking the Lord to any single attribute.

Stories
Vidura's contemplation

Vidura, having renounced the Kuru court, traveled the holy places and meditated long on the Lord's qualities — the Bhāgavatam records his exchanges with Maitreya and Uddhava as exactly the sustained anusmaraṇa that 8.9 prescribes.

When Vidura finally met Uddhava and heard the news of Kṛṣṇa's departure, the years of holding the divine attributes in mind bore fruit: he received the knowledge of the Supreme without obstruction. The string of pearls had been threaded patiently; at the moment of need, the whole strand was around his neck.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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