Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 13, Verse 11

अध्यात्मज्ञाननित्यत्वं तत्त्वज्ञानार्थदर्शनम् । एतज्ज्ञानमिति प्रोक्तमज्ञानं यदतोऽन्यथा

adhyātmajñānanityatvaṃ tattvajñānārthadarśanam | etajjñānamiti proktamajñānaṃ yadato'nyathā

Translation

Constancy in Self-knowledge, perception of the end of the knowledge of truth. This is declared to be knowledge, and what is opposed to it is ignorance.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

adhyātmajñānanityatvam

of the concerning the Self, in the knowledge, constancy

tattvajñānārthadarśanam

of the essence, by the knowledge, of the object, the realisation

etat

this

jñānam

knowledge

iti

thus

proktam

said

ajñānam

ignorance

yat

which

ataḥ

than

anyathā

otherwise

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

Self-knowledge: knowledge of the Self. "Perception of the end": knowledge of truth results from the mature development of such attributes as humility (xiii.7), which are the means of attaining knowledge. The end of this knowledge is mokṣa, the cessation of saṃsāra. The end should be kept in view; for it is only when one perceives the end of the knowledge of truth that one will endeavour to cultivate the attributes which are the means of attaining it. These attributes — from 'humility' to 'perception of the end of the knowledge of truth' — are declared to be knowledge, because they are conducive to knowledge. What is opposed to this — pride, hypocrisy, cruelty, impatience, insincerity and the like — is ignorance, which should be known and avoided as tending to the perpetuation of saṃsāra.