Bhagavad Gita Chapter 8, Verse 21

English Translation

He who has been mentioned as the Unmanifested, the Immutable, they call Him the supreme Goal. That is the supreme abode of Mine, reaching which they do not return.

Detailed Commentary

Commentary on 8.21: 'Avyakto'kṣara... tad dhāma paramaṁ mama' (My supreme abode). The Lord, unifying all that He referred to as 'mām' (Me) in verses 28, 29, and 30 of the seventh chapter, and as 'akṣaraṁ Brahma' in verse 3, 'adhiyajñaḥ' in verse 4, 'mām' in verses 5 and 7, 'paramaṁ puruṣaṁ divyam' (the supreme, divine Puruṣa) in verse 8, 'kaviṁ purāṇam anuśāsitāram' (the omniscient, ancient, controller) and so on in verse 9, 'mām' in verses 13, 14, 15, and 16, and 'avyaktaḥ' (unmanifest) and 'sanātanaḥ' (eternal) in verse 20 of the eighth chapter, states that the same is called Avyakta and Akṣara. That is the supreme destination, attaining which beings do not return. That is My Parama Dhāma, meaning My highest form. Thus, the oneness of that reality which has been described in many forms is established here. Similarly, in verse 27 of the fourteenth chapter, the Lord declared the oneness of the attainable reality by stating, 'I am the abode of Brahman, the imperishable, the immortal, eternal Dharma, and absolute bliss.' People believe that the fruit of Saguṇa Upāsanā (worship of the qualified personal God) is different from the fruit of Nirguṇa Upāsanā (worship of the unqualified impersonal Absolute). To dispel this notion, the unity of all is described in this verse. According to human inclination, faith, and capacity, there are different forms of worship (Upāsanā), but there is no difference in their ultimate fruit. The attainable reality for all is one and the same. Just as one experiences absence when there is no food and satisfaction when there is, similarly, one experiences emptiness in the absence of the Paramātmā and completeness upon His realization, even if the forms of worship differ. The essence is that whether we worship the Paramātmā (Supreme Self) as Saguṇa-Nirākāra (qualified-formless), Nirguṇa-Nirākāra (unqualified-formless), or Saguṇa-Sākāra (qualified-with-form), in the end, everyone attains the one and same Paramātmā. All the realms (lokas) such as Brahma-loka are subject to recurrence; that is, beings who go there must return to the cycle of birth and death, because all those realms are subordinate to Prakriti (Nature) and are perishable. However, Bhagavad-dhāma (the abode of the Lord) is beyond Prakriti and is imperishable. Beings who reach there do not have to return, bound by the guṇas (qualities of nature), nor do they take birth again. Yes, just as the Lord takes Avatāra (incarnation) by His own will, similarly, they (liberated beings) can descend upon this Earth, by the will of the Lord, as instrumental personalities for the deliverance of others.