Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 2/Verse 12

Chapter 1/Verse 12

न त्वेवाहं जातु नासं न त्वं नेमे जनाधिपाः ।
न चैव न भविष्यामः सर्वे वयमतः परम् ॥२- १२॥

na tvevāhaṃ jātu nāsaṃ na tvaṃ neme janādhipāḥ ।
na caiva na bhaviṣyāmaḥ sarve vayamataḥ param ॥2- 12॥

But indeed, never was I not, were you not, nor these rules of people were not, and indeed nor we all will not be, henceforth. 


Word-for-word translation

na (adverb) (indeclinable) = not

tu (conjunction) (indeclinable) = but 

eva (adverb) (indeclinable) = indeed

aham (pronoun, 1st person, nominative, singular) = I

jātu (adverb) (indeclinable) = never 

na (adverb) (indeclinable) = not

āsam (past tense, 1st person, singular) = I was 

na (adverb) (indeclinable) = not

tvam (pronoun, 2nd person, nominative, singular) = you 

na (adverb) (indeclinable) = not

ime (pronoun, nominative, plural) = these 

janādhipās (jana + adhipās) (compound) (nominative, plural) = rulers of people  

na (adverb) (indeclinable) = not

ca (conjunction) (indeclinable) = and

eva (adverb) (indeclinable) = indeed

na (adverb) (indeclinable) = not

bhaviṣyāmas (future tense, 1st person, plural) = we will be 

sarve (adjective) (nominative, plural) = all

vayam (pronoun, 1st person, nominative, plural) = we

atas (adverb) (indeclinable) =  hence

param (adverb) (indeclinable) = forth


Commentary

This sentence is quite a mouthful with the abundance of negatives. 

The second chapter is very thick with the philosophy at the time of the writing of the Bhagavad Gita. This verse forwards the idea that we never die in spirit. We have always existed and will continue to exist. There is no absolute death.