Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 13, Verse 4
ऋषिभिर्बहुधा गीतं छन्दोभिर्विविधैः पृथक्।ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैश्चैव हेतुमद्भिर्विनिश्चितैः।।
ṛṣibhir bahudhā gītaṁ cchandobhir vividhaiḥ pṛthak
brahma-sūtra-padaiś caiva hetumadbhir viniścitaiḥ
also searched as "rishibhir bahudha gitam chhandobhir vividhaih prithak"
Translation
It has been sung by seers in various ways, in various distinctive hymns, and also in the well-reasoned and conclusive words of the Brahma-sutras.
Vāṇi's rendering
Seers have sung the truth of the field many ways — in varied hymns, and in the reasoned, settled verses on the eternal.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| ऋषिभिःṛṣibhiḥ | by the seers, those who saw the truth first |
| बहुधाbahudhā | in many ways, many times over |
| गीतम्gītam | sung, chanted |
| छन्दोभिःcchandobhiḥ | in metres, in sacred hymns (initial doubling by sandhi) |
| विविधैःvividhaiḥ | of varied kinds |
| पृथक्pṛthak | each distinctly, separately |
| ब्रह्मसूत्रपदैःbrahma-sūtra-padaiḥ | in the words of the aphorisms on the eternal |
| चca | and (joined as caiva) |
| एवeva | indeed, precisely |
| हेतुमद्भिःhetumadbhiḥ | carrying their reasons with them, argued |
| विनिश्चितैःviniścitaiḥ | settled, conclusively established |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 13 Verse 4 mean?
Krishna is placing his teaching in a long line. Before he explains the field and its knower, he says the seers have already sung this — in hymns of many metres, and in reasoned, settled verses on the eternal. The truth being told to Arjuna is old, tested, and arrived at by many roads.
What is the meaning of 'rishibhir bahudha gitam chhandobhir vividhaih prithak'?
It means the ṛṣis have sung this truth in many ways, in various hymns, each distinctly. Not one voice but many, and each with its own music. Bahudhā matters — the same seeing came through different mouths in different centuries, and it did not break in the passing.
Why does Krishna mention both hymns and reasoned aphorisms?
Because the truth of the field survives both kinds of testing. It can be sung, and it can be argued. Chandas is devotion set to metre; hetumadbhiḥ viniścitaiḥ is cold reasoning brought to a conclusion. Whichever way your mind works, there is already a road cut for you.
Why does it matter that this teaching is ancient?
Because you are not being asked to trust a novelty in your hour of difficulty. Others have stood where you are standing and come through, and left careful words behind. When your own understanding wavers, the weight of those many singers holds the ground steady under you.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
View on the App Store
Commentary
Krishna pauses before teaching to say that he is not teaching anything new. The knowledge of the field has been sung already — by seers in hymns, by careful thinkers in reasoned verse. Song and argument, both. That matters more than it seems. Arjuna is about to hear something enormous, and Krishna wants him to know it has been heard before, in other words, by other people, and it held. You are not the first to stand where you stand. What you are about to understand about yourself was understood long ago and set down carefully, so that when you arrived, it would be waiting.