Chapter Overview
Chapter 8 answers seven questions Arjuna asks at the end of Chapter 7: What is Brahman? What is adhyatma? What is karma? What is adhibhuta and adhidaiva? What is adhiyajna? And how are You known at the time of death?
Krishna explains that the moment of death is crucial - whatever one thinks of at that moment determines their next destination. He then describes the two paths: the path of light (shukla) leading to liberation, and the path of darkness (krishna) leading to return. The chapter emphasizes constant remembrance of God throughout life to ensure proper remembrance at death.
Key Themes
- Seven Terms Explained: Brahman, adhyatma, karma, adhibhuta, adhidaiva, adhiyajna, antakala
- Thought at Death: What we think of at death determines our next birth
- Constant Remembrance: The practice of thinking of God at all times
- The Sacred OM: Uttering OM while dying leads to liberation
- Two Paths: The path of light (no return) and path of darkness (return)
Key Verses to Study
anta-kale cha mam eva smaran muktva kalevaram
"And whoever, at the end of life, quits the body remembering Me alone, at once attains My nature. Of this there is no doubt. Whatever state of being one remembers when quitting the body, that state one will attain without fail."
The profound law: the mind's final content determines the soul's next destination.
tasmat sarveshu kaleshu mam anusmara yudhya cha
"Therefore, Arjuna, you should always think of Me in the form of Krishna and at the same time continue your prescribed duty of fighting. With your activities dedicated to Me and your mind and intelligence fixed on Me, you will attain Me without doubt."
The practical solution: constant remembrance while performing one's duties.
kavim puranam anushashitaram
"One should meditate upon the Supreme Person as the one who knows everything, as He who is the oldest, who is the controller, who is smaller than the smallest, who is the maintainer of everything... At the time of death, one should fix the life air between the eyebrows and engage in devotion with full determination."
Specific technique for conscious dying: focus at the third eye, remember God's attributes.
om ity ekaksharam brahma vyaharan mam anusmaran
"After being situated in this yoga practice and vibrating the sacred syllable OM, the supreme combination of letters, if one thinks of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and quits the body, one will certainly reach the spiritual planets."
The power of OM at the moment of death - the single syllable that represents Brahman.
ananya-chetah satatam yo mam smarati nityashah
"For one who always remembers Me without deviation, I am easy to obtain, O son of Pritha, because of his constant engagement in devotional service."
The promise: if you remember God always, God will be easy to reach.
avyakto 'kshara ity uktas tam ahuh paramam gatim
"That which the Vedantists describe as unmanifest and infallible, that which is known as the supreme destination, that place from which, having attained it, one never returns—that is My supreme abode."
The goal: reaching Krishna's abode, from which there is no return to material existence.
The Seven Definitions (8.1-4)
Krishna defines the key terms Arjuna asked about:
- Brahman: The indestructible, transcendental reality (akshara)
- Adhyatma: The living entity, the self, one's own spiritual nature
- Karma: Actions that create the material bodies of living beings
- Adhibhuta: The physical nature (constantly changing matter)
- Adhidaiva: The universal form, the cosmic being (Purusha)
- Adhiyajna: The Lord of sacrifice, Krishna Himself in all bodies
- Antakala: The time of death (answered in subsequent verses)
The Two Paths (8.24-26)
| Shukla Marga (Path of Light) |
Krishna Marga (Path of Darkness) |
|
Fire, light, daytime, bright fortnight, six months of sun's northern course
|
Smoke, night, dark fortnight, six months of sun's southern course
|
|
Leads to Brahman (liberation)
|
Leads to return (rebirth)
|
|
No return
|
Returns to material world
|
Note: These symbolic references represent states of consciousness rather than literal times. The "light path" represents clarity and knowledge; the "dark path" represents ignorance.
Cosmic Cycles (8.17-19)
Krishna describes the vast scales of cosmic time:
- Brahma's day: 1,000 yugas (4.32 billion human years)
- Brahma's night: Equal duration of cosmic dissolution
- Manifestation: All beings come forth at Brahma's day
- Dissolution: All merge back at Brahma's night
- Eternal cycle: This creation-dissolution continues forever
The insight: even the highest material realms are temporary. Only Krishna's abode (8.21) is eternal. Seeking any material destination means eventual return; only the supreme destination offers permanent liberation.