Verse 8.21
Speaker: Krishna
Sanskrit
अव्यक्तोऽक्षर इत्युक्तस्तमाहुः परमां गतिम् | यं प्राप्य न निवर्तन्ते तद्धाम परमं मम ||२१||
Transliteration (IAST)
avyakto 'kṣara ity uktas tam āhuḥ paramāṁ gatim | yaṁ prāpya na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama ||21||
Word-by-Word Meanings
avyaktaḥ-unmanifest
akṣaraḥ-imperishable
paramām gatim-the supreme goal
prāpya-having attained
na nivartante-do not return
dhāma-abode
paramam-supreme
mama-My
Translation
That which is called the Unmanifest and Imperishable is said to be the supreme goal. Those who attain it never return. That is My supreme abode.
Commentary
Krishna identifies the eternal unmanifest as His supreme abode (parama dhama). Ramanuja explains that this is Vaikuntha, the transcendent realm beyond material creation. Shankaracharya interprets it as the state of Brahman-realization from which there is no return to samsara. Both agree on the finality of this attainment.
Themes
mokshabhaktijnana