Bhagavad Gita — Akshara Brahma Yoga, Shloka 1

Akshara Brahma Yoga

Devanagari script

अर्जुन उवाच । किं तद्ब्रह्म किमध्यात्मं किं कर्म पुरुषोत्तम । अधिभूतं च किं प्रोक्तमधिदैवं किमुच्यते ॥ ८.१ ॥

Transliteration

arjuna uvāca | kiṁ tad brahma kim adhyātmaṁ kiṁ karma puruṣottama | adhibhūtaṁ ca kiṁ proktam adhidaivaṁ kim ucyate || 8.1 ||

Translation

Arjuna said: O Supreme Person, what is that Brahman? What is adhyātma? What is karma? What is called adhibhūta, and what is termed adhidaiva?

Gita Press Meaning

Arjuna said: O Supreme Person, what is that Brahman? What is the Self (adhyātma)? What is action (karma)? What is called the perishable (adhibhūta), and what is said to be the divine (adhidaiva)?

Critical Edition Meaning

Arjuna asks Kṛṣṇa to define key technical categories: Brahman (the imperishable absolute), adhyātma (the inner self-nature), karma (productive action/causation), adhibhūta (the domain of perishable beings), and adhidaiva (the domain of the presiding divine principle).

Comparative Note

Most recensions agree on the sequence of terms. Interpretive differences mainly concern whether 'adhyātma' is the individual self (jīva/ātman) or 'svabhāva' (one’s intrinsic nature), clarified in 8.3.

Word by Word

• अर्जुनः: Arjuna
• अर्जुनः: Karta
• Root: अर्जुन

• उवाच: said
• Root: √वच्

• किम्: what?
• Root: किम्

• तत्: that
• Root: तद्

• ब्रह्म: Brahman; the Absolute
• Root: ब्रह्मन्

• किम्: what?
• Root: किम्

• अध्यात्मम्: the inner self; pertaining to the self
• Root: अध्यात्म

• किम्: what?
• Root: किम्

• कर्म: action; deed
• Root: कर्मन्

• पुरुषोत्तम: O Supreme Person
• Root: पुरुषोत्तम

• अधिभूतम्: the element presiding over beings; the material aspect
• Root: अधिभूत

• च: and
• Root: च

• किम्: what?
• Root: किम्

• प्रोक्तम्: said; declared
• Root: √वच् (प्र+√वच्)

• अधिदैवम्: the divine presiding principle
• Root: अधिदैव

• किम्: what?
• Root: किम्

• उच्यते: is said; is called
• Root: √वच्

Speakers

• Arjuna

Primary Concepts

• Brahman
• Ātman/Adhyātma
• Karma
• Cosmological taxonomy

Key Themes

• Request for definitions
• Metaphysical clarification
• Linking cosmology and practice

FAQs

Psychological significance?

The verse frames a cognitive need for clear categories: Arjuna seeks conceptual precision to stabilize understanding and guide attention, especially relevant to disciplined contemplation.

Metaphysical meaning?

It introduces a structured ontology—absolute (Brahman), inner principle (adhyātma), causal efficacy (karma), perishable field (adhibhūta), and divine governance (adhidaiva)—preparing for a doctrine of liberation through right understanding and remembrance.

Contextual relevance?

At the start of Chapter 8, Arjuna requests definitions that connect the prior teaching on devotion and disciplined mind to a more technical account of reality and liberation.

Modern Application?

As a study method, it encourages asking for operational definitions of key terms before applying a philosophy to ethics, meditation, or daily decision-making.