Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 8: The Imperishable Absolute

Bhagavad Gita 8.1

kiṃ tadbrahma kimadhyātmaṃ kiṃ karma puruṣottama | adhibhūtaṃ ca kiṃ proktamadhidaivaṃ kimucyate ||

What is that Brahman? What is the inner self? What is action, O Supreme Person? What is called the basis of beings, and what is said to be the basis of the gods?

Modern context

Krishna ended the last chapter with a string of terms, and Arjuna asks what each one means. It is a good student's habit. A teacher who uses a technical word assumes the listener knows it; often the listener is too embarrassed to ask. Arjuna is not. He lists every term he did not understand and asks plainly. The habit saves a great deal of confusion later, in any field.