Sanskrit
नमः पुरस्तादथ पृष्ठतस्ते नमोऽस्तु ते सर्वत एव सर्व । अनन्तवीर्यामितविक्रमस्त्वम् सर्वं समाप्नोषि ततोऽसि सर्वः ॥
namaḥ purastād atha pṛṣṭhatas te namo'stu te sarvata eva sarva anantavīryāmitavikramas tvam sarvaṃ samāpnoṣi tato'si sarvaḥ
Translation
Prostrate in front of Thee, prostrate behind; Prostrate on every side to Thee, O All. In power boundless, measureless in strength, Thou holdest all: then Thou Thyself art All.
Annie Besant · The Bhagavad-Gita, translated by Annie Besant (4th ed., 1922) — Wikisource · Public Domain
Explanation
The spatial totality first described back in verse 20 — the space between earth and heaven filled by this one form — becomes, here, a formal argument rather than an observation: “sarvaṃ samāpnoṣi tato ‘si sarvaḥ,” Thou pervadest all, therefore Thou art all. That “tataḥ,” therefore, marks a real inference, not just accumulating praise — pervasion is being used as proof of identity. The fourfold “namaḥ,” prostration, from front, behind, and every side, completes the spatial picture the hymn has been building since it began at verse 36: there is no longer a “there” from which Krishna could be approached, only directions that all lead back into him. Sarvaṃ samāpnoṣi tato ‘si sarvaḥ — “you pervade all, therefore you are all” — that tataḥ, “therefore,” is a real inference: pervasion used as proof of identity. The fourfold prostration completes the spatial picture: no “there” left from which Krishna could be approached.
Study deeper
Word by word
- namaḥ purastād atha pṛṣṭhatas teनमः पुरस्ताद् अथ पृष्ठतस् ते
- homage to you from in front and from behind (namaḥ + purastāt + atha + pṛṣṭhataḥ + te)
- namo'stu te sarvata eva sarvaनमोऽस्तु ते सर्वत एव सर्व
- homage to you from every side, O all (namaḥ + astu + te + sarvataḥ + eva + sarva)
- anantavīryāmitavikramas tvamअनन्तवीर्यामितविक्रमस् त्वं
- of infinite power and measureless might, you (ananta-vīrya-amita-vikramaḥ + tvam)
- sarvaṃ samāpnoṣi tato'si sarvaḥसर्वं समाप्नोषि ततोऽसि सर्वः
- you pervade all, therefore you are all (sarvam + samāpnoṣi + tataḥ + asi + sarvaḥ)
Commentary
Site Commentary
The word doing the real work here is “tataḥ,” therefore — the verse isn’t content to just describe pervasion, it explicitly claims pervasion as proof of identity, that filling all space and being all things are the same fact stated twice. It’s worth noticing that as an inference rather than an observation: the leap from present everywhere to identical with everything is being asserted, not merely described.
Original commentary written for this site · © Amit Singh — original commentary
Concepts
Apply this verse
Lessons
Personal
- Being deeply present in every part of your life — work, family, health — doesn't automatically mean those parts have become the same thing; notice when you're sliding from 'this touches everything I do' to 'this is everything I am,' because that's a claim, not just an observation.
Professional
- A platform or a leader being involved in every team's decisions doesn't logically mean their judgment should be treated as identical to the org's collective judgment — pervasive presence and correctness are two separate claims worth keeping apart.
Family & Social
- A parent or partner being involved in every corner of your life doesn't mean their view and your own have become the same view — pervasiveness of presence and identity of judgment are different things, even when it's tempting to let the first stand in for the second.
Ask yourself
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