आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेन- माश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्यः। आश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्यः शृणोति श्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित्॥
āścaryavat paśyati kaścid enam āścaryavad vadati tathaiva cānyaḥ / āścaryavac cainam anyaḥ śṛṇoti śrutvāpy enaṃ veda na caiva kaścit
The self is spoken of, heard of, seen as a wonder — and yet, even hearing, no one truly knows it.
Word by word (4)
- āścaryavat paśyati kaścit enam
- — someone sees this as a wonder · 'Āścaryavat' — with wonder, as a miracle, as something marvelous. Three modes of encounter with the Atman: seeing, speaking, hearing. All three are described as 'like a wonder.'
- āścaryavat vadati tathā eva ca anyaḥ
- — another speaks of it as a wonder
- āścaryavat ca enam anyaḥ śṛṇoti
- — and yet another hears of it as a wonder
- śrutvā api enam veda na ca eva kaścit
- — and yet even having heard it, no one truly knows it · The paradox: the Atman is spoken of, heard, and seen — and yet remains ultimately beyond ordinary knowing. It can only be known through direct experience (anubhava), not through description.
'Someone sees this — the self — as a wonder. Another speaks of it as a wonder. Another hears of it as a wonder. And yet — even having heard of it — no one truly knows it.'
A modern analogy
You can read every book about love and not know love. You can study every description of the color red and still not know red if you have never seen it. The Atman is like this: it can be pointed to, described, marveled at — but it can only be known through direct experience. The wonder of V29 is the acknowledgment: this teaching can open the door, but you must walk through.
Take with you
- The Atman is 'āścaryavat' — like a wonder, miraculous. Even those who know it speak of it with awe.
- The gap between hearing and knowing is the gap that meditation and practice are designed to close.
- This verse is humble about the limits of verbal teaching: the Gita is pointing at something the Gita cannot contain.
Verse 29 is simultaneously the most humble and the most exalted verse in the immortality section. Having described the Atman in great detail (V12-28), Krishna acknowledges that the description cannot capture the reality. Three modes of encounter — seeing, speaking, hearing — and all three are 'āścaryavat' (like a wonder). This is the mark of genuine mystery: not obscurity or difficulty, but the kind of thing that generates wonder even in those who know it best. The final line — 'śrutvāpy enaṃ veda na caiva kaścit' — is the Gita's admission of the limits of its own teaching. Words can point; only direct experience (anubhava) can confirm. This is why the Gita is accompanied by a practice path, not just a philosophy lecture.
Advaita lens
Shankaracharya: the inability to know the Atman through hearing is not a deficiency of the teaching but the nature of the Atman. It is 'acintyaḥ' (inconceivable, V25) — beyond the reach of thought. Therefore no amount of instruction alone is sufficient; the instruction must be accompanied by śravaṇa (hearing), manana (reflection), and nididhyāsana (meditation) — the three-step Vedantic practice.
Public-domain translations (4) compare all →
Some perceive this (the self) as a wonder; similarly others speak of it as a wonder; still others hear of it as a wonder; and there are those who, having heard of it, know it not at all. [1]
Some look upon this as a wonder; another speaks of it as a wonder; another hears of it as a wonder; and yet no one, having heard of it, knows it. [4]
One sees It as a marvel, another speaks of it as a marvel, another hears It as a marvel; but even hearing, no one knows. [7]
By some great soul this soul is seen as wonderful; and similarly it is told as wonderful, and heard as wonderful, and yet no one knows it on hearing. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
I am your student. My mind is bewildered about what is right. Teach me.
Nothing in this world purifies like jñāna. The karma-yogi finds it within themselves in time.
Of all yogis, the one whose inner self is merged in Me, worshipping with śraddhā — that one I hold to be most united.
Arjuna asks: what does the truly wise person look like? How do they speak, sit, and move?
Steady wisdom begins here: when all desires fall away and the Self finds fullness in itself alone.
The self-conquered yogi finds the Supreme Self equally present through cold, heat, joy, pain, honour and dishonour.