Verse 2.16
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सतः। उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभिः॥
Transliteration (IAST)
nāsato vidyate bhāvo nābhāvo vidyate sataḥ ubhayor api dṛṣṭo 'ntas tv anayos tattva-darśibhiḥ
Word-by-Word Meanings
asataḥ-of the unreal/non-existent
bhāvaḥ-existence
sataḥ-of the real/existent
abhāvaḥ-non-existence
tattva-darśibhiḥ-by seers of truth
Translation
The unreal has no existence, and the real never ceases to be. The truth about both has been seen by the seers of reality.
Commentary
This is one of the most philosophically dense verses in the Gita. It establishes the ontological distinction between sat (being/reality) and asat (non-being/unreality). The body, being subject to change, belongs to the category of the unreal; the Self, being changeless, is the only reality. This forms the metaphysical basis of Vedanta.
Themes
jnanaatman