Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 7, Verse 18
उदाराः सर्व एवैते ज्ञानी त्वात्मैव मे मतम्।
आस्थितः स हि युक्तात्मा मामेवानुत्तमां गतिम्।।
आस्थितः स हि युक्तात्मा मामेवानुत्तमां गतिम्।।
udārāḥ sarva evaite jñānī tvātmaiva me matam
āsthitaḥ sa hi yuktātmā mām evānuttamāṁ gatim
also searched as "udarah sarva evaite jnani tvatmaiva me matam"
Translation
All these are indeed generous, but I deem the man of knowledge to be My very self; for he, integrated, is devoted solely to Me as the highest end.
Vāṇi's rendering
All of them are noble. But the knower is my very self — settled in me as the highest goal.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| उदाराःudārāḥ | noble, large-hearted, generous |
| सर्वेsarve | all of them (appears as sarva before the following eva) |
| एवeva | indeed (joined with ete as evaite) |
| एतेete | these ones — the four who come to Krishna |
| ज्ञानीjñānī | the one who knows |
| तुtu | but, yet (joined with ātmā as tvātmā) |
| आत्माātmā | my own self |
| एवeva | very, none other (joined as ātmaiva) |
| मेme | my |
| मतम्matam | held view, what I hold to be so |
| आस्थितःāsthitaḥ | settled, taken his stand |
| सःsaḥ | he |
| हिhi | for, because |
| युक्तात्माyukta-ātmā | one whose self is joined, steadied |
| माम्mām | in me |
| एवeva | alone (joined with anuttamām as evānuttamām) |
| अनुत्तमाम्anuttamām | than which there is nothing higher |
| गतिम्gatim | goal, the place one is going |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7 Verse 18 mean?
Krishna has just named four who turn to him — the suffering, the curious, the one seeking gain, the one who knows. Here he says all of them are noble; none is refused. But the jñānī he calls his own self, because that one is āsthitaḥ, settled, having taken Krishna as the goal beyond which nothing is wanted.
What does 'udarah sarva evaite jnani tvatmaiva me matam' mean?
It means: all of these are large-hearted, but the knower is my very self — that is my view. Udārāḥ is not faint praise. Krishna honours every reason a person comes to him, and then says of one that there is no longer any distance left to speak of.
If everyone who comes to Krishna is noble, why is the knower called his very self?
Not because the others are lesser, but because the knower asks for nothing further. The three who come with a need still have somewhere else to go once the need is met. The jñānī has arrived at anuttamā gati — the goal with nothing above it — and stays. Nearness, not rank.
Is it wrong to pray for what I need instead of praying for knowledge?
Krishna does not say so. He calls the one who asks for relief, or for wealth, or out of plain curiosity, noble. Come with what you actually have. What the verse quietly asks is what remains of your turning toward him after the asking is answered.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Four kinds of people came to Krishna in the verse before — the hurt, the curious, the one who wants something, the one who knows. Here he refuses to rank them by worth. Nothing in your reason for coming makes you unwelcome; the ache that brought you is a good enough door. But he does mark a difference. The other three come for something and can leave with it. The knower has nothing left to ask for, and so does not leave — he is settled where he stands. Notice what you would do if what you came for were granted.