Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 7, Verse 26
वेदाहं समतीतानि वर्तमानानि चार्जुन।
भविष्याणि च भूतानि मां तु वेद न कश्चन।।
भविष्याणि च भूतानि मां तु वेद न कश्चन।।
vedāhaṁ samatītāni vartamānāni cārjuna
bhaviṣyāṇi ca bhūtāni māṁ tu veda na kaścana
also searched as "vedaham samatitani vartamanani carjuna"
Translation
I know all beings, O Arjuna, past, present, and those to come; but no one knows Me.
Vāṇi's rendering
I know every being that was, that is, that will be. But no one knows me.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| वेदveda | I know |
| अहम्aham | I (sandhi: vedāhaṁ = veda + aham) |
| समतीतानिsamatītāni | those wholly gone by, the past |
| वर्तमानानिvartamānāni | those existing now, the present |
| चca | and (sandhi: cārjuna = ca + arjuna) |
| अर्जुनarjuna | Arjuna |
| भविष्याणिbhaviṣyāṇi | those yet to come, the future |
| चca | and |
| भूतानिbhūtāni | beings, living things |
| माम्māṁ | me |
| तुtu | but |
| वेदveda | knows |
| नna | not |
| कश्चनkaścana | anyone at all |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7 Verse 26 mean?
Krishna says his knowing covers every being across past, present and future, while no one knows him. It is a statement of asymmetry, not of cruelty. You live inside a knowing you cannot survey from outside. The verse asks you to stop auditing Krishna and notice that you are already accounted for.
vedaham samatitani vartamanani carjuna - what is the meaning of this line?
It opens with veda ahaṁ — I know. Krishna names what has passed away and what stands now, and in the next breath what has not yet arrived. Time is not a sequence he watches; it is held whole. The line places Arjuna, and you, inside a gaze that misses nothing.
If no one can know Krishna, why bother with devotion at all?
Because devotion was never an act of investigation. What the verse rules out is knowledge that seizes and possesses — Krishna made an object. What remains open is bhakti, where you are the one known. The chapter later says those who take refuge come to him. Refuge asks nothing of your understanding.
How can Krishna know the future if beings act freely?
The Gītā does not present this knowing as a schedule read in advance. It is knowing without standing outside — the way you know your own hand moving. Arjuna's choice on the field is real; it does not fall outside what Krishna holds. Your freedom and his knowing are not competing for the same room.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna claims all three tenses at once — was, is, will be — and then adds the sentence that stings: no one knows me. Arjuna is standing beside him, has known him since boyhood, rides into battle with him at the reins. Even that is not knowing. The asymmetry is the point. You are known completely, down to the thought you have not finished thinking; the one who knows you does not appear on your terms. This is not a locked door. It is the plain shape of the relation — being seen before you can see. Stop trying to inspect him. Let yourself be known.