Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 7, Verse 3
मनुष्याणां सहस्रेषु कश्चिद्यतति सिद्धये।
यततामपि सिद्धानां कश्चिन्मां वेत्ति तत्त्वतः।।
यततामपि सिद्धानां कश्चिन्मां वेत्ति तत्त्वतः।।
manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye
yatatām api siddhānāṁ kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ
also searched as "manushyanam sahasreshu kashchid yatati siddhaye"
Translation
Among thousands of men, some strive for perfection; even among those who strive for perfection, only some know Me; and among those who know Me, only some truly know Me.
Vāṇi's rendering
Among thousands, perhaps one truly strives. Among those who strive and arrive, perhaps one truly knows me.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| मनुष्याणाम्manuṣyāṇāṁ | among human beings |
| सहस्रेषुsahasreṣu | in thousands |
| कश्चित्kaścid | someone, perhaps one |
| यततिyatati | strives, makes real effort |
| सिद्धयेsiddhaye | for perfection, for arriving |
| यतताम्yatatām | of those who strive |
| अपिapi | even |
| सिद्धानाम्siddhānāṁ | of those who have arrived |
| कश्चित्kaścin | someone, perhaps one (sandhi before mām) |
| माम्māṁ | me |
| वेत्तिvetti | knows |
| तत्त्वतःtattvataḥ | as it truly is, in essence |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 7 Verse 3 mean?
Krishna says real striving is rare, and knowing him as he actually is, rarer still. It is not a discouragement but a measurement of honesty. Most admiration for the path is not yet effort, and most effort is not yet knowing. The verse asks where your own practice genuinely stands today.
What does manushyanam sahasreshu kashchid yatati siddhaye teach us?
That siddhi is not reached by crowds. Among thousands, one turns from talking about the path to walking it. The line does not name that one, because naming would let you check yourself off a list. It leaves the question open so you keep answering it with effort.
Is Krishna saying most people will fail?
No. He is saying most people never truly begin. Failure is a word for those who have started; this verse is about the distance between interest and striving. Nowhere does Krishna close a door. He describes how few walk through the open one, and then keeps speaking to Arjuna.
How can I know if I am truly striving?
Striving in this verse means effort that costs something and continues when no one is watching. Not intensity of feeling — steadiness of practice. Ask what you did today that you would still have done unseen and unpraised. That answer, repeated over years, is what yatati means here.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna is not flattering you by counting. He is describing a narrowing. Thousands live; a few actually strive — not wish, not admire, strive. And among those who strive and arrive, one comes to know him as he is, not as an idea held carefully in the mind. This could sting, and Arjuna is not told it to sting him. It is told because the odds are not the point; the striving is. You cannot know how many stand where you stand. You can know whether today's effort was real. Count nothing. Strive, and let the number take care of itself.