A core teaching · reflective in mood · a little context helps
“Even timeless wisdom disappears when no one keeps receiving it.”
O scorcher of foes, this yoga was known by the royal sages through an unbroken lineage. In the course of great time, this yoga was lost in this world.
The verse in reading order — each Sanskrit word with its meaning beneath. Tap a word to focus on it.
Read literallythus · received through succession · this · royal sages · knew · that · by time · here · great · yoga · lost · O scorcher of foes
This ancient yoga was passed down from teacher to student and known by wise rulers, but over time it faded from the world.
Krishna speaks this verse, on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, in the chapter titled "Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga" (Knowledge and Renunciation of Action).
Verse 2 sits in Chapter 4 of the Bhagavad Gita — Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga, "Knowledge and Renunciation of Action". The chapter has 42 verses in total.
A skill your grandfather knew may survive only as a half-remembered family story. Without living transmission, even the most valuable wisdom can vanish between generations.
Did you like this verse?
Royal sages once passed this yoga down in an unbroken line, until time wore it away.
What this verse means
This ancient yoga was passed down from teacher to student and known by wise rulers, but over time it faded from the world.
Context & commentary
Krishna says it once moved through an unbroken line of wise rulers, but over long ages it has nearly disappeared from human life.
What it looks like today
A skill your grandfather knew may survive only as a half-remembered family story. Without living transmission, even the most valuable wisdom can vanish between generations.
“What is deepest can still be forgotten; it must be handed on, not merely admired.”
Explore related themes: jnana yoga (13 verses)