Shloka 38

Varṇāśrama Dharma, Ethical Virtues, and Aṣṭāṅga-Yoga Culminating in ‘Ahaṃ Brahma’

Devanagari script

ब्रह्म विज्ञानमानन्दः स तत्त्वमसि केवलम् / अहं ब्रह्मास्म्यहं ब्रह्म अशरीरमानिन्द्रियम्

Transliteration

brahma vijñānamānandaḥ sa tattvamasi kevalam / ahaṃ brahmāsmyahaṃ brahma aśarīramānindriyam

Translation

Brahman adalah kesadaran murni dan kebahagiaan: “Tat tvam asi”, engkau sungguh Itulah. “Aku adalah Brahman, aku adalah Brahman”—tanpa tubuh, melampaui indria.

Word by Word

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• vijñāna-ānandaḥ: knowledge and bliss
• vijñāna-ānandaḥ: Pradhāna-vākya-predicative (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vijñāna (प्रातिपदिक) + ānanda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; द्वन्द्वः (knowledge and bliss) used as predicate/apposition

• saḥ: that (he/it)
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• tat: that
• tat: Pradhāna-vākya-predicative (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; in mahāvākya ‘tat tvam asi’

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, मध्यमपुरुषार्थे; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• asi: are
• asi: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• kevalam: only, solely
• kevalam: Viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kevala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावार्थे क्रियाविशेषणवत् (adverbial use: ‘only/merely’)

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Pradhāna-vākya-predicative (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; predicate with asmi

• asmi: am
• asmi: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Pradhāna-vākya-predicative (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• aśarīram: bodiless
• aśarīram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-śarīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; नञ्-समासपूर्वक विशेषण (bodiless)

• anindriyam: without senses/organs
• anindriyam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: an-indriya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; नञ्-समासपूर्वक विशेषण (without senses)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra, teaching non-dual knowledge as liberation-wisdom)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Identity of jīva and Brahman: Brahman is vijñāna and ānanda; ‘tat tvam asi’; ‘ahaṃ brahmāsmi’; the Self is aśarīra and anindriya.

Vedantic Theme: Negation of upādhis (body/senses) and affirmation of svarūpa (consciousness-bliss); mahāvākya triad harmonization.

Application: Contemplate: ‘I am not the body/senses’; rest as awareness itself; use ‘tat tvam asi’ as a corrective whenever identification with sensory experience arises.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.49.37 (ahaṃ brahma as samādhi); Garuda Purana 1.49.39 (beyond mind/buddhi/ahaṅkāra)

Characters & Entities

• Brahman

FAQs

What is the importance of 'tattvam asi' in the Garuda Purana?

In this verse it functions as a direct identity-teaching: the individual self, when rightly known, is none other than Brahman—pure consciousness and bliss—pointing to moksha rather than fear of death.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

It reframes the soul’s journey by emphasizing the innermost reality as bodiless and beyond the senses; realizing this identity ('aham brahmāsmi') is presented as liberation-wisdom that transcends embodied states.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Cultivate discrimination and meditation on the self as awareness (not merely body and senses), supporting ethical living and steadiness—especially useful during grief, last rites, and contemplation of mortality.