Bhagavad Gita 8.11
Spoken by Krishna · Verse 11 of 28
यदक्षरं वेदविदो वदन्ति विशन्ति यद्यतयो वीतरागाः | यदिच्छन्तो ब्रह्मचर्यं चरन्ति तत्ते पदं संग्रहेण प्रवक्ष्ये ||११||
yad akṣaraṃ veda-vido vadanti viśanti yad yatayo vīta-rāgāḥ | yad icchanto brahmacaryaṃ caranti tat te padaṃ saṃgraheṇa pravakṣye || 11 ||
That which Vedic knowers call the Imperishable — that Brahmacharins seek, ascetics enter — I will declare it briefly.
Word by word (3)
- yad akṣaraṃ veda-vidaḥ vadanti / viśanti yad yatayaḥ vīta-rāgāḥ
- — That Imperishable which Vedic knowers declare / that which the passion-free ascetics enter · yad = that which (relative pronoun — pointing to what will be declared). akṣaraṃ = the Imperishable (a = not; kṣara = perishable — akṣara = the not-perishable; same word as the chapter title Akṣara Brahma Yoga, and as the akṣaram brahma paramaṃ of V3). veda-vidaḥ = those who know the Vedas (veda = knowledge/the Vedas; vid = one who knows; veda-vidaḥ = plural — 'the Veda-knowers'). vadanti = they declare, they call (from √vad = to speak — vadanti = they say, they declare). viśanti = enter (from √viś = to enter — viśanti = they enter into). yad = that which (same relative). yatayaḥ = ascetics, the striving ones (from √yat = to strive, to control oneself — yati = one who strives, an ascetic). vīta-rāgāḥ = freed from passion (vīta = free from, gone beyond; rāga = passion, attachment — vīta-rāgāḥ = those from whom passion has departed). The Imperishable: what the learned call by this name, what the passion-free enter into.
- yad icchantaḥ brahmacaryaṃ caranti / tat te padaṃ saṃgraheṇa pravakṣye
- — That which, desiring, they observe brahmacharya / that goal I shall declare to you briefly · yad = that which (third relative pronoun — three parallel 'that which' clauses: veda-vidaḥ declare, yatayaḥ enter, icchantaḥ observe brahmacharya for). icchantaḥ = desiring, wishing (present participle from √iś = to wish — icchantaḥ = those who wish/desire that). brahmacaryaṃ = brahmacharya (brahma = Brahman; carya = practice, conduct, going toward — brahmacharya = the practice/life oriented toward Brahman; traditionally includes celibacy but broader meaning = all disciplines of the student of Brahman: study, non-attachment, self-control). caranti = they practice (from √car = to move, to practice — caranti = they move in, they practice). tat = that. te = to you (Arjuna). padaṃ = the goal, the state, the foothold (pada = foot, foothold, position, state, goal — here it means the supreme destination). saṃgraheṇa = briefly (saṃgraha = compression, gathering together; saṃgraheṇa = in compressed form, briefly). pravakṣye = I shall declare (pra + √vac = to speak out; future first person — 'I will now declare'). V11's function: it announces that what follows (V12-V13) is the practical instruction for reaching the akṣara that V3 defined as Brahman. The three-fold description (Vedic knowledge, ascetic entry, brahmacharya practice) establishes the importance of the goal before giving the method.
- V11's three descriptions of those who seek the akṣara — the teaching's authority
- — Veda-knowers declare it; passion-free ascetics enter it; brahmacharins practice for it — establishing the goal before the method · V11 uses three parallel descriptions to establish the supreme importance of the akṣara before declaring the practical method (V12-V13). By saying: (1) the Vedic scholars declare it (learned tradition endorses it), (2) the ascetics enter it (the renouncers actually attain it), (3) the brahmacharins practice life-disciplines for it (the students dedicate their lives to pursuing it) — Krishna establishes that this is the highest goal across all three paths of traditional Indian spiritual life: scholarship (jñāna), asceticism (tapas), and disciplined student-life (brahmacharya). V11 then says: I will declare this to you briefly (saṃgraheṇa pravakṣye) — what follows (V12-V13) is the most compact summary of what Vedas teach, ascetics achieve, and brahmacharins live for. The brevity (saṃgraheṇa) makes V12-V13 maximally concentrated: two verses that contain the essence of what entire traditions of study and practice point toward.
I shall briefly declare to you that goal which the knowers of the Veda call imperishable, which the desireless ascetics enter, and seeking which they live a life of self-restraint.
A modern analogy
Before giving a recipe, a great chef says: 'This dish is what Escoffier perfected, what the best French kitchens serve, and why culinary students practice for years.' The three endorsements establish the recipe's importance before you learn it. This verse is Krishna doing the same: 'This is what the scholars teach, what the saints attain, and what dedicated seekers train for — and I'll tell you how in the next two verses.'
What it does NOT mean
This verse's 'brahmacharya' does not mean only celibacy. Its literal meaning is 'the conduct of one moving toward Brahman' — it encompasses all the disciplines of sincere spiritual aspiration: study, self-restraint, single-pointed devotion to the highest goal. The celibacy aspect is one expression of this non-attachment, not the whole meaning.
Take with you
- This verse establishes that what follows — the yogic departure-technique and the OM-meditation of the next two verses — is the concentrated essence of three great traditions: scholarly study, ascetic practice, and brahmacharya life-discipline. This gives the technique enormous authority — it is not a new invention but the living center of all traditional paths.
- This verse's three categories — the knower of the Veda, the ascetic, and the brahmacharin — represent three types of seekers in any tradition: the scholar who studies the truth, the renunciant who lives for the truth, and the student who dedicates their life to reaching the truth. The verse says all three roads lead to the same akṣara. Whatever your type of seeking, the method given in the next two verses is the destination.
- This verse's saṃgraheṇa pravakṣye (I will declare briefly) is important: what follows is a SUMMARY, not the full teaching. Two verses cannot contain all of what thousands of years of tradition point toward. This is not a complete meditation manual — it is the concentrated pointing, the essential gesture, that must be filled out through traditional study and practice.
Public-domain translations (5) compare all →
What the knowers of the Veda speak of as Imperishable, what the self-controlled (Sannyasis), freed from attachment enter, and to gain which goal they live the life of a Brahmachari, that I shall declare unto thee in brief. [4]
That which the knowers of the Vedas call the Indestructible; that which the self-subdued, the passion-freed, enter; that desiring which they live the life of the student — that will I briefly tell thee. [5]
That which the Vedas declare, that in which the ascetics enter, and for the sake of which men lead lives of holiness — that I will briefly teach thee. [6]
That place which they who know the Vedas name AKSHARAM, 'Ultimate;' whereto have striven Saints and ascetics--their road is the same. [7]
I will tell you briefly about the seat, which those who know the Vedas declare to be indestructible; which is entered by ascetics from whom all desires have departed; and wishing for which, people pursue the mode of life of Brahmacharins. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Brahman is the Imperishable; Adhyātma is its presence in each body; Karma is the cosmic offering sustaining all beings.
Close all nine gates, hold mind in heart, fix prāṇa in the head — the body's yoga posture for final departure.
Approach the teacher with prostration, inquiry, and service. The knowers of truth will instruct you in jñāna.
You have always existed. You will always exist. There was no time before you, and there will be no time without you.
Die and win heaven. Conquer and enjoy the earth. Either way you gain — so rise and fight.
Action arises from Brahman, Brahman from the Imperishable. The all-pervading ultimate is present in every act of yajna.
Verse 11 of 28 · back to Chapter 8