Seek what does not perish.
Krishna speaks to Arjuna
परस्तस्मात्तु भावोऽन्योऽव्यक्तोऽव्यक्तात्सनातनः |यः स सर्वेषु भूतेषु नश्यत्सु न विनश्यति ||८-२०||
parastasmāttu bhāvo.anyo.avyakto.avyaktātsanātanaḥ . yaḥ sa sarveṣu bhūteṣu naśyatsu na vinaśyati ||8-20||
Use this verse when changing forms create fear.
Meaning
But beyond that unmanifest is another eternal unmanifest reality, which does not perish when all beings perish.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
There is an eternal reality beyond perishing existence.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
Krishna points beyond even cosmic cycles to the eternal unmanifest. This gives the seeker a higher anchor. Everything changing is not the final truth. There is a reality that remains when all forms disappear.
Read the traditional commentary
Having described the cycles of manifestation and dissolution, Krishna now points beyond them. Higher even than the unmanifested source from which worlds arise, there exists another unmanifested reality — eternal (sanatana) — which is not destroyed when all beings are destroyed.
This is a crucial distinction. The 'unmanifested' of the previous verses is the seed-state of creation, the dormant phase that still belongs to the cycle of cosmic day and night. But there is a higher avyakta, utterly beyond time, untouched by the dissolution that claims all else.
While universes appear and vanish, this eternal reality abides changeless. Here Krishna lifts Arjuna's gaze from the impermanent — even the subtle, cosmic impermanent — to the truly imperishable. This is the abode the seeker is meant to long for: not another state within the great rhythm of becoming, but the unchanging ground that remains when everything that can perish has perished.
In daily life
Anchor your identity in the eternal, not only in changing roles.
A person may lose a role or title, but the deeper Self and Divine reality remain.
Try this today
Reflect on one eternal value beneath changing circumstances.
I anchor myself in the imperishable reality.Reflect
What am I holding that will not last?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘अव्यक्तात् सनातनः’ mean in this verse?
The Gita on imperishable, in other chapters
- Verse 11.37 · ArjunaThe Supreme is the source of all sources, transcending even being and non-being — worthy of all beings' reverence.
- Verse 2.19Your essential Self cannot be the perpetrator or the victim of any action — the soul is the eternal witness beyond cause and effect.
- Verse 7.10Your intelligence and brilliance are borrowed light from the eternal Source — hold your gifts with gratitude, not pride.
- Verse 10.3Knowing the eternal, unborn Divine dissolves the delusion at the root of all wrongdoing.
Swipe left for 8.21 · The supreme goal is beyond return.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 8.20
Who says Bhagavad Gita 8.20, and to whom?
Krishna speaks to Arjuna in verse 8.20, in Chapter 8, Aksara Brahma Yoga (Aksara Brahma Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 8.20 mean?
But beyond that unmanifest is another eternal unmanifest reality, which does not perish when all beings perish. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 8.20 for daily life?
Anchor your identity in the eternal, not only in changing roles. A person may lose a role or title, but the deeper Self and Divine reality remain.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 8.20 mean?
परः तस्मात् तु — but higher than that; भावः अन्यः — another existence; अव्यक्तः — unmanifested; अव्यक्तात् सनातनः — eternal, beyond the unmanifested; यः सः — that which.
Where does verse 8.20 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 20 of 28 in Chapter 8, Aksara Brahma Yoga. The next verse is 8.21.