Brahman

Sannyasas tu maha-baho duhkham aptum ayogatah, yoga-yukto munir brahma na cirenadhigacchati

True renunciation is difficult to attain without the discipline of yoga; the sage who is united in yoga reaches Brahman without delay. Renunciation without inner purification through practice is painful and fruitless.

Ihaiva tair jitah sargo yesham samye sthitam manah, nirdosham hi samam brahma tasmad brahmani te sthitah

Even here in this world, those whose minds rest in equanimity have conquered birth; since Brahman is flawless and equal, they are established in Brahman. Equanimity of mind is not merely a virtue — it is the direct perception of Brahman's nature.

Yo 'ntah-sukho 'ntar-araamas tathantar-jyotir eva yah, sa yogi brahma-nirvanam brahma-bhuto 'dhigacchati

One who finds happiness within, who finds delight within, and who finds light within — that yogi, being one with Brahman, attains the peace of Brahman. The highest joy is self-luminous and inward, not dependent on any external condition.

Jara-marana-mokshaya mam ashritya yatanti ye, te brahma tad viduh kritsnam adhyatmam karma cakhilam

Those who strive for liberation from old age and death, taking refuge in Me, come to know Brahman in its entirety — the nature of the Self and all karma. Taking refuge in God with the sincere desire to be freed from the cycle of birth and death opens the door to complete spiritual knowledge.

Arjuna uvaca: Kim tad brahma kim adhyatmam kim karma purushottama, adhibhutam ca kim proktam adhidaivam kim ucyate

Arjuna said: O Supreme Person, what is Brahman? What is the Self (adhyatma)? What is karma? What is called the material manifestation (adhibhuta)? And what is said to be the divine element (adhidaiva)? Arjuna poses seven fundamental questions that frame Chapter 8, seeking clarity on the deepest metaphysical concepts.

Shri bhagavan uvaca: Aksharam brahma paramam svabhavo 'dhyatmam ucyate, bhuta-bhavodbhava-karo visargah karma-samjnitah

The Supreme Lord said: The indestructible, transcendental living entity is Brahman, and its eternal nature is called the self (adhyatma). The action pertaining to the development of the material bodies of the living entities is called karma. Krishna gives precise definitions answering Arjuna's questions, grounding the cosmic framework in clear terms.

Yad aksharam veda-vido vadanti vishanti yad yatayo vita-ragah, yad icchanto brahma-caryam caranti tat te padam sangrahena pravakshye

Persons learned in the Vedas speak of the indestructible imperishable Brahman. The great sages, freed from attachment, enter into it. Those who seek this goal practice celibacy (brahmacharya). I shall now explain to you concisely this imperishable goal. Krishna prepares to describe Om and the method of attaining the imperishable Brahman, connecting Vedic wisdom to direct practice.

Om ity ekaksharam brahma vyaharan mam anusmaran, yah prayati tyajan deham sa yati paramam gatim

The one-syllable Om is Brahman. One who departs the body while chanting Om and remembering Me attains the supreme destination. Om is the sonic form of Brahman — the primordial sound that contains all of creation. Departing while vibrating Om while holding God in mind leads to the highest goal.

Agnir jyotir ahah shuklah shan-masa uttarayanam, tatra prayata gacchanti brahma brahma-vido janah

Those who know the Absolute, who pass away in fire, in light, in the daytime, in the bright fortnight, or in the six months when the sun travels in the northern sky — they go to the Absolute. The path of light (devayana) — associated with fire, day, the bright lunar fortnight, and the northern solstice — leads those who know Brahman to liberation.

Arjuna uvaca: param brahma param dhama pavitram paramam bhavan, purusham shashvatam divyam adi-devam ajam vibhum

Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate abode, the greatest purifier, the eternal divine Person, the original God, the unborn, the omnipresent. Arjuna's declaration shows a transformative understanding — he now recognises Krishna not merely as a charioteer or friend but as the Supreme Absolute.

tasmad om ity udahritya yajna-dana-tapah-kriyah, pravartante vidhanoktah satatam brahma-vadinam

Therefore, acts of sacrifice, charity, and austerity as prescribed by scripture are always begun with the utterance of 'Om' by those who study the Brahman.