The supreme reality is inside and outside all beings, moving and unmoving. Because it is subtle, it cannot be known; it is far away and near at hand.
— Krishna
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Bhagavad Gita · 13.16
Hindi · हिन्दी
वे परमात्मा सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंके बाहरभीतर परिपूर्ण हैं और चरअचर प्राणियोंके रूपमें भी वे ही हैं एवं दूरसेदूर तथा नजदीकसेनजदीक भी वे ही हैं । वे अत्यन्त सूक्ष्म होनेसे जाननेका विषय नहीं हैं ॥
Themes:
Word by word
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Tap a word to focus on it.
बहिःoutsideअन्तःinsideचandभूतानाम्of beingsअचरम्unmovingचरम्movingएवindeedचandसूक्ष्मत्वात्because of subtletyतत्thatअविज्ञेयम्not knowableदूरस्थम्far awayचandअन्तिकेnearचandतत्that
Read literallyoutside · inside · and · of beings · unmoving · moving · indeed · and · because of subtlety · that · not knowable · far away · and · near · and · that
Understanding the verse
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Inside and outside all beings, moving and still, far and near: Brahman is too subtle to grasp, Krishna says.
The supreme reality fills everything, inside and outside all beings. It is both moving and still, yet too subtle to grasp directly. It feels far away and also very near.
02
On the battlefield
Context & commentary
While Arjuna stands frozen between two armies, Krishna keeps unfolding the nature of what pervades existence. After describing it as beyond senses, he now says it is inside and outside all beings, moving and unmoving, near and far.
03
In your life
What it looks like today
A daughter in Toronto feels her mother in Lucknow is impossibly far, yet the mother is in every thought she has. Krishna describes Brahman like that: far away and close at hand, too subtle to grasp.
The takeaway
“Closeness and distance are both misleading when reality is subtler than the senses.”
The supreme reality fills everything, inside and outside all beings. It is both moving and still, yet too subtle to grasp directly. It feels far away and also very near.
Who speaks Bhagavad Gita 13.16?
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga" (Field and Knower of the Field).
Which chapter of the Bhagavad Gita contains verse 13.16?
Verse 16 sits in Chapter 13 of the Bhagavad Gita — Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga, "Field and Knower of the Field". The chapter has 35 verses in total.
Why does Bhagavad Gita 13.16 matter today?
A daughter in Toronto feels her mother in Lucknow is impossibly far, yet the mother is in every thought she has. Krishna describes Brahman like that: far away and close at hand, too subtle to grasp.
Inside and outside all beings, moving and still, far and near: Brahman is too subtle to grasp, Krishna says.
What this verse means
The supreme reality fills everything, inside and outside all beings. It is both moving and still, yet too subtle to grasp directly. It feels far away and also very near.
Context & commentary
While Arjuna stands frozen between two armies, Krishna keeps unfolding the nature of what pervades existence. After describing it as beyond senses, he now says it is inside and outside all beings, moving and unmoving, near and far.
What it looks like today
A daughter in Toronto feels her mother in Lucknow is impossibly far, yet the mother is in every thought she has. Krishna describes Brahman like that: far away and close at hand, too subtle to grasp.
“Closeness and distance are both misleading when reality is subtler than the senses.”