2.46
Chapter 2, Verse 46
यावानर्थ उदपाने सर्वतः संप्लुतोदके। तावान्सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानतः৷৷
yāvānartha udapānē sarvataḥ saṅplutōdakē. tāvānsarvēṣu vēdēṣu brāhmaṇasya vijānataḥ৷৷
Translation
As a man can drink water from any side of a full tank, so the skilled theologian can wrest from any scripture that which will serve his purpose.
Translation — Purohit Swami
Commentary
यावान् as much, अर्थः use, उदपाने in a reservoir, सर्वतः everywhere, संप्लुतोदके being flooded, तावान्,so much (use), सर्वेषु in all, वेदेषु in the Vedas, ब्राह्मणस्य of the Brahmana, विजानतः of the knowing. Commentary: Only for a sage who has realised the Self, the Vedas are of no use, because he is in possession of the infinite knowledge of the Self. This does not, however, mean that the Vedas are useless. They are useful for the neophytes or the aspirants who have just started on the spiritual path.All the transient pleasures derivable from the proper performance of all actions enjoined in the Vedas are comprehended in the infinite bliss of Selfknowledge.
Commentary — Swami Sivananda
Sanskrit and transliteration of the Bhagavad Gita. Corpus compiled from the vedabase and the IIT Kanpur Gita Supersite.