Verse 8.1
Speaker: Arjuna
Sanskrit
अर्जुन उवाच | किं तद्ब्रह्म किमध्यात्मं किं कर्म पुरुषोत्तम | अधिभूतं च किं प्रोक्तमधिदैवं किमुच्यते ||१||
Transliteration (IAST)
arjuna uvāca | kiṁ tad brahma kim adhyātmaṁ kiṁ karma puruṣottama | adhibhūtaṁ ca kiṁ proktam adhidaivaṁ kim ucyate ||1||
Word-by-Word Meanings
Translation
Arjuna said: O Supreme Person, what is Brahman? What is the Self? What is action? What is said to be the physical manifestation? And what is declared to be the divine?
Commentary
Arjuna poses seven fundamental questions that arose from Krishna's concluding statements in Chapter 7. Shankaracharya notes these questions systematically address the entire range of metaphysical categories. The questions about Brahman, adhyatma, karma, adhibhuta, adhidaiva, adhiyajna, and death form the framework for the entire chapter's teaching.