Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2, Verse 29

आश्चर्यवत्पश्यति कश्चिदेन- माश्चर्यवद्वदति तथैव चान्यः । आश्चर्यवच्चैनमन्यः शृणोति श्रुत्वाप्येनं वेद न चैव कश्चित्

āścaryavatpaśyati kaścidena- māścaryavadvadati tathaiva cānyaḥ | āścaryavaccainamanyaḥ śṛṇoti śrutvāpyenaṃ veda na caiva kaścit

Translation

One sees Him as a wonder; and so also another speaks of Him as a wonder; and as a wonder another hears of Him; and though hearing, none understands Him at all.

— Alladi Mahadeva Sastri

Word meanings

āścaryavat

as marvellous (wonderful)

paśyati

sees

kaścit

some one

enam

this

āścaryavat

as wonderful

vadati

speaks

tathā

so

eva

even

ca

and

anyaḥ

another

āścaryavat

as wonderful

ca

and

enam

this

anyaḥ

another

śṛṇoti

hears

śrutvā

having heard

api

even

enam

this

veda

knows

na

not

ca

and

eva

also

kaścit

anyone

Śaṅkarācārya's commentary

The Self is hard to know. One man, by special qualification, sees Him as a wonder — as one sees a wonderful thing. Another, who has perceived Him, speaks of Him to others as a wonder. Another, having heard Him spoken of, hears Him as a wonder. And there is yet another who, even after hearing, seeing, and speaking of Him, does not really understand Him at all. The verse is meant to convey that knowledge of the Self is extremely difficult to attain; in any case, lamentation has no place with regard to such a Self.