Aspects of Light in the Bhagavad Gita
In the Bhagavad Gita , light unfolds in layered brilliance. Krishna speaks of the supreme reality as self-luminous in 15.6 : “ न तद्भासयते सूर्यो न शशाङ्को न पावकः ” na tad bhāsayate sūryo na śaśāṅko na pāvakaḥ “That realm is not illumined by the sun, nor the moon, nor fire,” where √भास् reveals a light that needs no external source. Then in 10.11 , he declares, “ ज्ञानदीपेन भास्वता ” jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā “With the shining lamp of knowledge,” invoking √दीप्, the light that is kindled within the heart by divine grace. And in 14.11 , describing the rise of sattva, he says, “ सर्वद्वारेषु देहेऽस्मिन्प्रकाश उपजायते ” sarva-dvāreṣu dehe’smin prakāśa upajāyate “When illumination arises in all the gates of the body,” where √काश् as prakāśa signifies clarity and lucidity of awareness. Thus the Gita moves from the Absolute Light that simply is, to the kindled flame of inner transformation, to the serene radiance of purified perception, guiding the seeker from outer glow to inward ignitio...