Bhagavad Gita 7.26
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 26 of 30
वेदाहं समतीतानि वर्तमानानि चार्जुन | भविष्याणि च भूतानि मां तु वेद न कश्चन ||२६||
vedāhaṃ samatītāni vartamānāni cārjuna | bhaviṣyāṇi ca bhūtāni māṃ tu veda na kaścana || 26 ||
I know all beings — past, present, and future, O Arjuna — but Me, none knows.
Word by word (3)
- veda ahaṃ samatītāni vartamānāni ca arjuna bhaviṣyāṇi ca bhūtāni
- — I know all past beings, and present, O Arjuna, and those that are to come · veda = I know (from √vid = to know; veda = I know — the same root as Veda, the body of knowledge; here first-person singular: 'I know'). ahaṃ = I. samatītāni = all past (sam = fully, completely; atīta = past, gone by; samatītāni = all the past beings/events — the complete past). vartamānāni = the present (vartamāna = what is presently existing — the present-moment beings and events). ca = and. arjuna = O Arjuna. bhaviṣyāṇi = the future (bhaviṣya = what will be — the future beings and events). ca = and. bhūtāni = beings (from √bhū = to be; bhūta = that which has become, a being — here referring to all beings across the three times). The declaration: Krishna knows ALL beings — past (samatītāni), present (vartamānāni), and future (bhaviṣyāṇi). This is the claim of temporal omniscience — the Divine's awareness encompasses all three temporal dimensions simultaneously, something impossible for the time-bound human knower.
- māṃ tu veda na kaścana
- — but Me — none knows · māṃ = Me (accusative — the object). tu = but (strong contrastive). veda = knows (same verb — 'knows Me'). na = not. kaścana = any, anyone (na kaścana = no one, none at all — the universal negative). The asymmetry: I know all beings across all three times (V26a); but no one (kaścana) knows Me (V26b). This is the asymmetry between the Divine and the world: the Divine is the omniscient knower of all beings across time; the beings are the unknowing-of-the-Divine (due to yoga-māyā, V25). The asymmetry is not permanent: V27-30 will describe those who ARE in the process of coming to know the Divine. But for the world in general: māṃ tu veda na kaścana — the Divine knows all; all do not know the Divine.
- V26's temporal omniscience — why it matters for yoga practice
- — knowing all beings across past, present, and future — the Divine's knowing is from the vantage of the timeless, not from within time · V26's temporal omniscience (knowing the past, present, and future simultaneously) is not just a claim about Krishna's power — it is a pointer to the nature of the Divine's knowing itself. Human knowing is sequential: we know the present from within the present, recall the past as memory, anticipate the future as inference. The Divine's knowing is simultaneous — all three times are present to the avyakta (V24) ground that is prior to time. This is why the Divine 'knows' the future: not as prediction but as the timeless ground from which all temporal events arise. The jñānī who realizes 'vāsudevaḥ sarvam' (V19) participates in this timeless knowing — hence their quality of nitya-yukta (V17's perpetual union) which is independent of the present moment's content.
I know the beings of the past, the present, and those yet to come, O Arjuna; but no one truly knows Me.
A modern analogy
The ocean knows every wave that has ever arisen in it, is arising, and will arise — because the ocean IS the ground of all waves. The individual wave does not 'know' the ocean in the same way — it arises from the ocean but does not encompass it. This verse's asymmetry: the ocean-Divine knows all wave-beings; the wave-beings do not know the ocean-Divine.
What it does NOT mean
This verse does NOT say the Divine's omniscience is oppressive or surveillance-like. The knowing is from the vantage of the timeless ground, not a cosmic monitoring system. The verses that follow will show that the path from 'none knows Me' here to 'those who know Me' later is the arc of this chapter's teaching.
Take with you
- This verse's temporal omniscience means the Divine is never surprised by anything — not by your struggles, your failures, your ignorance, your growing. All of it is known within the timeless ground. This is simultaneously humbling (no hiding) and liberating (no need to hide).
- The phrase 'māṃ tu veda na kaścana' (none knows Me) refers to the world in its default state — veiled by yoga-māyā. The verses that follow will immediately begin describing those who ARE coming to know the Divine — those who have crossed the delusion of dualities. This verse is the diagnosis; what follows is the path.
- This verse as motivation: the Divine knows you completely — past, present, and future. And yet you don't know the Divine. This asymmetry is not a threat but an invitation: what would it be like to know the One who knows you so completely?
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
I know all past beings, and present, O Arjuna, and those that are to come; but Me none knoweth. [1]
I know, O Arjuna, the beings of the whole past, and the present, and the future, but Me none knoweth. [4]
I know the beings that are past, that are present, that are to come, O Arjuna, but no one knoweth Me. [5]
I know everything that hath existed, doth exist, and shall exist, O Arjuna; but none of them knoweth me. [6]
All I know, Arjuna, how all beings were in time gone by, and all that are, and all that yet shall be. But there is none who knoweth Me! [7]
I know those that are past, those that are present, O Arjuna, and those that are to come, but nobody knoweth Me. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Veiled by yoga-māyā, I am not manifest to all — this deluded world does not recognize Me, the Unborn, the Imperishable.
All beings fall into complete delusion at birth — through the dvandva-moha arising from desire and aversion.
Both of us have had many births. I know all of them — you do not. That is the difference.
You grieve for those who should not be grieved for — and call it wisdom.
Your body changed from childhood to age without 'you' dying — changing bodies is no different.
The wisdom-yoked person rises above good and bad karma alike. Yoga is supreme skill in action.
Verse 26 of 30 · back to Chapter 7