Bhagavad Gita 10.15: meaning and translation
Chapter 10: Vibhuti Yoga. Arjuna says
Arjuna says that Krishna alone knows himself by himself, and calls him Supreme Person (puruṣottama), source of beings, lord of beings, god of gods, lord of the world.
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Bhagavad Gita 10.15
स्वयमेवात्मनाऽऽत्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम ।भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते ॥
Svayamevatmanatmanam vettha tvam purushottamaBhutabhavana bhutesha devadeva jagatpate
svayamevātmanā’’tmānaṃ vettha tvaṃ puruṣottama |bhūtabhāvana bhūteśa devadeva jagatpate ||
Our explanation Arjuna says that Krishna alone knows himself by himself, and calls him Supreme Person (puruṣottama), source of beings, lord of beings, god of gods, lord of the world.
हिंदी अर्थ अर्जुन कहते हैं कि कृष्ण स्वयं ही अपने को अपने द्वारा जानते हैं, और उन्हें पुरुषोत्तम, भूतों के उत्पत्तिकर्ता, भूतों के ईश्वर, देवों के देव और जगत के स्वामी कहकर पुकारते हैं।
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- स्वयम् svayam · yourself (indeclinable) Dictionary: svayam, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 1278, col. 2 “self, one's self”
- एव eva · alone (indeclinable) Dictionary: 1. eva, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 232, col. 2 “just, exactly, very, same, only, even, alone, merely”
- आत्मना ātmanā · by yourself (noun (masculine), instrumental singular) Dictionary: ātman, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 135, col. 1 “is used as reflexive pronoun for all three persons and all three genders”
- आत्मानम् ātmānam · yourself (noun (masculine), accusative singular) Dictionary: ātman, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 135, col. 1 “is used as reflexive pronoun for all three persons and all three genders”
- वेत्थ vettha · know (present, 2nd person singular) Dictionary: 1. vid, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 963, col. 2 “to know, understand, perceive, learn”
- त्वम् tvam · you (pronoun, nominative singular) Dictionary: yuṣmad, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 855, col. 3 “the base of the 2nd pers. pron. as used in comp.”
- पुरुषोत्तम puruṣottama · O Supreme Person (compound (masculine), vocative singular) Dictionary: puruṣottama, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 637, col. 3 “the highest being, Supreme Spirit, N. of Vishṇu or Kṛishṇa”
- भूतभावन bhūtabhāvana · O source of beings (compound (masculine), vocative singular) Dictionary: bhūta-bhāvana, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 762, col. 1 “creating or causing the welfare of living beings; N. of Śiva or Vishṇu or Brahmā”
- भूतेश bhūteśa · O lord of beings (compound (masculine), vocative singular) Dictionary: bhūteśa, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 762, col. 3 “'lord of beings,' N. of Brahmā or Kṛishṇa”
- देवदेव devadeva · O god of gods (compound (masculine), vocative singular) Dictionary: deva-deva, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 493, col. 2 “'the god of gods'”
- जगत्पते jagatpate · O lord of the world (compound (masculine), vocative singular) Dictionary: jagat-pati, Monier-Williams 1899, p. 408, col. 1 “the lord of the world”
1 printing differs
Edition differences. Another printing or text reads this place differently.
- Spelling A digital text reads Same words. The 1922 edition marks the merged vowel with an avagraha (आत्मनाऽऽत्मानं); this e-text does not.
Old translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 87–88.
You only know your self by your self. O best of beings! creator of all things! lord of all things! god of gods! lord of the universe! be pleased to declare without exception your divine emanations, by which emanations you stand pervading all these worlds.
This sentence covers verses 10.15 to 10.16.
Compare 3 translations
Kashinath Trimbak Telang, 1882. Public domain. Page 87–88.
You only know your self by your self. O best of beings! creator of all things! lord of all things! god of gods! lord of the universe! be pleased to declare without exception your divine emanations, by which emanations you stand pervading all these worlds.
This sentence covers verses 10.15 to 10.16.
You are reading this one
Annie Besant, 1895. Public domain. Page 97–98.
Thyself indeed knowest Thyself by Thyself, O Purushottama! Source of beings, Lord of beings, God of Gods, Ruler of the World!
You are reading this one
Swami Swarupananda, 1909 (first printed 1907). Public domain. Page 200.
Verily, Thou Thyself knowest Thyself by Thyself, O Purusha Supreme, O Source of beings, O Lord of beings, O Deva of Devas, O Ruler of the world.
You are reading this one
Cite this verse
The translation: K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), pp. 87–88. Bhagavad Gita 10.15–16.
The translation: Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), pp. 97–98. Bhagavad Gita 10.15.
The translation: Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 200. Bhagavad Gita 10.15.
Our explanation: “Bhagavad Gita 10.15: meaning and translation.” Pujadeep. Updated October 25, 2026. https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/10/15/
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Bhagavad Gita 10.15
स्वयमेवात्मनाऽऽत्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम ।
भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते ॥
“You only know your self by your self. O best of beings! creator of all things! lord of all things! god of gods! lord of the universe! be pleased to declare without exception your divine emanations, by which emanations you stand pervading all these worlds.”
(K. T. Telang, The Bhagavadgîtâ (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1882), pp. 87–88, public domain)
This sentence covers verses 10.15 to 10.16.
“Thyself indeed knowest Thyself by Thyself, O Purushottama! Source of beings, Lord of beings, God of Gods, Ruler of the World!”
(Annie Besant, The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song (London: Theosophical Publishing Society, 1895), pp. 97–98, public domain)
“Verily, Thou Thyself knowest Thyself by Thyself, O Purusha Supreme, O Source of beings, O Lord of beings, O Deva of Devas, O Ruler of the world.”
(Swami Swarupananda, Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita (Mayavati: Prabuddha Bharata Press, 1909; first printed in Prabuddha Bharata, 1907–1909), p. 200, public domain)
Sanskrit: G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922.
https://pujadeep.com/bhagavad-gita/10/15/ Nothing is sent from this site. Your own app sends it, to the chat you choose. The picture quotes the translation you chose on this page, with its name and year.
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. Source and changes
Questions families ask
Who speaks Bhagavad Gita 10.15?
Arjuna speaks this verse, in chapter 10 (Vibhuti Yoga).
Where does the Sanskrit text come from?
Sanskrit text: The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation, 1922. Meanings: written for Pujadeep and checked against the cited edition. See the source
Is the meaning on this page a translation?
Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
Source and licence
- Sanskrit text
- The Bhagavad-Gita, or The Lord's Song, with the text in Devanagari and an English translation (Annie Besant, G. A. Natesan & Co., Madras, 1922). Public domain. The Sanskrit on these pages was read from this printing’s page images.
- Translation
- The Bhagavadgîtâ with the Sanatsugâtîya and the Anugîtâ, translated by Kâshinâth Trimbak Telang (The Sacred Books of the East, vol. VIII, ed. F. Max Müller) (Kashinath Trimbak Telang, F. Max Müller, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1882). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- The Bhagavad Gîtâ, or The Lord's Song, translated by Annie Besant (Annie Besant, Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1895). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Translation
- Srimad-Bhagavad-Gita, with Sanskrit Text; Paraphrase with Word-by-word Literal Translation; English Rendering and Comments, Index, &c., by the Swami Swarupananda (Himalayan Series, No. XX) (Swami Swarupananda, The Editors and Publishers, Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, Prabuddha Bharata Press, Mayavati, Almora, Himalayas, 1909). Public domain. Shown verbatim, as printed.
- Common wording
- In this text, 32 words follow today's common wording, checked against sanskritdocuments.org; Sanskrit Wikisource; Gita Press, Gorakhpur; GRETIL, Göttingen and Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
- Our explanation
- Explanation written for this site from the sources listed here, and checked against the cited edition. It is not a translation and not the only way to read the text. Free to quote with credit.
- Checked
- Checked against the cited edition, October 15, 2026.
- Updated
- October 25, 2026