Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 11, Verse 12
दिवि सूर्यसहस्रस्य भवेद्युगपदुत्थिता।
यदि भाः सदृशी सा स्याद्भासस्तस्य महात्मनः।।
यदि भाः सदृशी सा स्याद्भासस्तस्य महात्मनः।।
divi sūrya-sahasrasya bhaved yugapad utthitā
yadi bhāḥ sadṛśī sā syād bhāsas tasya mahātmanaḥ
also searched as "divi surya sahasrasya bhaved yugapad utthita"
Translation
If a thousand suns were to rise at once in the sky, the resulting splendour would be like the splendour of that mighty One.
Vāṇi's rendering
If a thousand suns rose at once in the sky, their blaze might approach the splendour of the Lord.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| दिविdivi | in the sky |
| सूर्यसहस्रस्यsūrya-sahasrasya | of a thousand suns |
| भवेत्bhavet | were to be, should there be |
| युगपत्yugapad | all at once, simultaneously (sandhi with the following word) |
| उत्थिताutthitā | risen, blazing up |
| यदिyadi | if |
| भाःbhāḥ | light, blaze |
| सदृशीsadṛśī | resembling, comparable to |
| साsā | that (light) |
| स्यात्syāt | might be, could perhaps be (sandhi with the following word) |
| भासःbhāsas | to the splendour |
| तस्यtasya | of that |
| महात्मनःmahātmanaḥ | of the vast One, the great Self |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 Verse 12 mean?
It is a measurement that admits its own failure. A thousand suns rising together in one sky — and even that might only come near the splendour Arjuna is seeing. The verse does not describe the form. It describes the collapse of description, and asks you to trust the collapse.
What does divi surya sahasrasya bhaved yugapad utthita mean?
Divi is the sky, sūrya-sahasrasya a thousand suns, utthitā risen all at once. Sanjaya piles up the largest brightness a human mind can hold and then says sadṛśī sā syāt — that light might resemble it. Might. The whole force of the verse sits in that unfinished word.
Why does the Gita compare Krishna's form to a thousand suns?
Because the sun is the brightest fact anyone shares. Krishna has just granted Arjuna divine sight, and no ordinary object will carry the weight, so the comparison multiplies the one image everyone already knows. It is not exaggeration. It is arithmetic reaching upward and still falling short.
Who is speaking in Bhagavad Gita 11.12?
Sanjaya, narrating to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Arjuna is inside the vision and cannot yet speak of it; Sanjaya stands outside, granted sight of the same field, and must find words for a king who has none. The most staggering verse in the chapter comes from a second-hand witness.
Themes in this verse
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Commentary
Sanjaya is speaking here, not Arjuna — the reporter, telling a blind king what his eyes cannot reach. And even he stumbles. He takes the brightest thing anyone knows, multiplies it by a thousand, and then hedges: might approach. Not equal. Approach. Arjuna is inside the sight and silent; the one outside it is left counting suns. This is what happens when something too large arrives — your language turns to approximation, and the honest word becomes perhaps. You have had your own smaller version of it. Do not tidy the account. Let the hedge stand where the thing outran your words.