The Bhagavad Gita (14 page)

10-11  “To those who give Me their whole hearts I confer
buddhi
(beyond worldly intellect), the power of discriminating between the Real and not-Real. As familiarity with My power and glory grows they are ever more ardently drawn toMe. I
am
their wisdom, Arjuna. Out of compassion I choose to dwell in their hearts, and from there I dispel dark ignorance with the light of knowing that they are the Divinity within.”

12-15  Arjuna, in awe, begins to review his dawning understanding of God’s power and glories. “Dearest Krishna! You
are
the Godhead, the Supreme Presence! In Your manifested (visible) form You are the entire universe; in Your unmanifested (invisible) form You exist as the Godhead, Pure Consciousness.

“You are the underlying essence of all things, the origin and the dwelling place of everything visible and invisible in this universe. You are all of nature, and yet You are beyond that, everlasting. You are everywhere in everything as the Omnipresent. Those who have used special intuitive powers to understand and reach You, extol this.

“Now from Your own lips You are confirming it! Ah, and yet Your coming in this human body remains unknown to even the gods! You alone know Your glory in its entirety.

16-18  “Krishna, please tell me more about Your Divine glories. Tell me how I can develop constant awareness of
You. Tell me again, O Divine One, of Your powers and attributes, for I never grow weary of hearing of them.”

19    Krishna replies, “Very well O warrior friend. Absorption in the attributes of the Divine is as good as absorption in Divinity itself. But because
all
the splendors of nature are attributes of My majesty, I will only give you a glimpse of a few. From this partial knowledge you may infer My infinitude.

20  “I am the innermost True Self, the
Atma
seated in the hearts of all beings. And I am the beginning, middle, and end of all beings.

21  “Of the deities presiding over light, I am the one for January, loved by all for turning the world’s course toward warmth. Of the wind gods who bring immense good in the world, I am the whirlwind. Of the daytime luminaries I am the radiant sun, and of the lights of the night I am the moon.

22  “Of the ancient scriptures I am the foremost, the
Sama Veda
.
^*
Of the secondary gods I am Indra, the chief among them. Of the sense organs I am the mind that records all sensations. Of the numerous levels of life awareness that exist in all life-forms, I am Pure Consciousness.

23  “Of the eleven deities of destruction I am Shiva, destroyer of evil in the mind, who brings humanity’s lasting welfare. And I am Rudra, who brings grace to humanity through sorrow. Of the celestial beings who
acquire and hoard wealth (
Yakshas
and
Rakshasas),
I am their king, Kubera, the lord of fabulous wealth. Of the eight elements in the structure of nature (earth, fire, water, air, space, mind, intellect, and ego), I am fire, the one who brings warmth and life. And of all mountains I am Mount Meru, which in the human structure equates with the life force in the spinal column.

24  “Of the high spiritual teachers who administer the code of conduct, know Me to be Brihaspati, the Chief Priest, Holy even among the gods. Among the warrior-chiefs I am Skanda, who leads the world to victory over the demons. Of all the bodies of water I am the ocean, into which all the rest merge.

25  “Among the
rishis
(seers) I am Bhrigu, ever in the highest plane of superconsciousness. Of sacrifices I am the most potent,
japa,
repetition of the name of the Divine. Of all utterances I am
Om,
the most sacred of sound symbols. And of fixed, stationary things I am the Himalayas.

26  “Of the trees, Arjuna, I am the holy fig tree
(Ashvatta,
the
peepul
tree), which represents the ‘upside-down’ tree of life with its roots above in spirit and its branches below in the earth. Among the most spiritually enlightened Divinities I am Narada, the foremost of those who teach the principle of unity amidst the world’s vast diversity. Of the celestial beings I am their king, Chitraratha. Of those high-perfected souls
(siddhas)
I am Kapila, the best of the best.

27  “Of horses I am
Ucchiasravas,
the nectar-born one. Of elephants I am
Airavata,
the one from the sea of milk. And of all humans, I am born as royalty, the monarch.

28  
“Of weapons I am God’s thunderbolt, which descends on wickedness. Of cows I am
Kamadhenu,
the celestial milk cow of cheerful and willing mind with the power to satisfy all requirements of life. Among instincts I am the procreative urge. Of snakes I am
Vasuki,
god of snakes, symbol of
kundalini,
the coiled up reservoir of cosmic energy in each person.

29  “Among nonpoisonous snakes I am
Ananta,
symbol of the five elements of nature, on whom I rest. Of water deities I am
Varuna,
their king. I am the presiding deity of the departed ancestors
(Aryama).
And of the controllers of the universe I am
Yama,
the god of death.

30  “Of those who defy evil, iniquity, and injustice, I am
Prahlada,
who is virtuous even though he is the son of the sworn enemy of the gods. Among those who keep records I am the unfailing reckoner, Time itself. Of animals I am the lion. Of birds I am the Lord’s eagle,
Garuda.

31  “Of the four purifiers in nature—earth, water, fire, and air—I am the wind, which purifies the other purifiers. Of those who wield deadly weapons I am
Rama,
who uses his weapon only for the good of humanity. Of all fish I am the shark, the most powerful. Among rivers I am Ganges with its sanctifying water.

32  “Of all things created, Arjuna, I am the beginning, the middle, and end. Of all sciences I am spiritual knowledge —
Atma
knowledge — the science of Self that makes ignorance vanish. Of all humanity’s instruments for inquiry and debate, I am pure logic.

33  “Of the sum total of all sound in the cosmos I am the letter A. In grammar I am the compound word, the
most powerful of words. As I am time itself, I am without beginning and end. I mete out the
karma
of all beings, and thus am called the Disburser-Whose-Face-Is-Turned-Everywhere.

34  “I am the certain death that devours all, and I am also the seed of all that are to be. Of the qualities that, due to their grace and tenderness, are termed ‘female,’ I am fame and fortune, sweet speech, memory, intelligence, steadfast perseverance, loyalty, and forgiveness.

35  “Of the great
Sama Vedas
I am the best
(Brihat
Saman).
Of poetic meters I am the foremost, the
Gayatri
adoration. Of the months, I am
Margasirsha
(parts of November-December), the most favorable time for spiritual practice. Of the seasons, I am the flowery spring.

36  “Among deceitful practices I am the roll of the dice. I am the splendor and radiance of the physically strong. Of that which takes humanity forward, I am effort. Of the three constituents of nature I am goodness (
sattva
).

37  “Among the Vrishni clan I am Krishna. Among the Pandavas I am Arjuna. Among the great, God-realized sages I am Vyasa, known as an incarnation of Divinity. Among the omniscient seers
(kavis)
I am Usana, the foremost of them.

38  “Among those who punish others I am the scepter, the symbol of measured justice. I am the art of statesmanship in those who seek victory by noble means. I am the silence of things secret. I am the wisdom of the wise.

39  “O Arjuna, beloved comrade, I am the source of everything in creation, the origin of all beings, all
lives. In fact, I am whatever can be thought, imagined, or conceived. Nothing in this world, animate or inanimate, can exist without Me.

40-41  “There is no end to My Divine manifestations (
vibhutis
). What I have described is but a tiny glimpse into My glories. Whatever is beautiful, mighty, or glorious in this world has emanated from just a part of My infinite power.

42  “And finally, Arjuna, as this variety of details is of little use to you, just know that I, Brahman, exist, and that I stand holding this entire creation by a small fraction of My Supreme Glory.”

^*
Sama
is the essence of other
vedas
set to music.The
vedas
comprise a mass of Divine knowledge in the form of scores of thousands of mystical and spiritual chants and aphorisms.

1-2  Arjuna sighs, his eyes glistening. “Thank You, Krishna, for this wondrous revelation of Your glories; it has removed my delusion. Thank You for Your detailed account of the evolution and dissolution of beings, and for Your exquisite description of Your splendor.

3-4  “I now know that You are what You say You are, Divine One, but I would like to actually see You in Your true God form, rather than just this Krishna body. If appropriate, and if I am worthy, please show me now.”

5-7  Krishna says, “You are worthy, Arjuna. I will have you behold millions of My shapes, forms, and colors, for
naught exists outside Me. And I will have you see within Me the many classes of celestial beings and more marvels not previously revealed. And you will view the entire creation of animate and inanimate beings concentrated within the Cosmic Me, and witness whatever else your inner thoughts may bring.”

  8  “But you cannot perceive any of this with human eyes composed of natural elements and thus able to grasp only physical nature. I will have to grant you special eyes to see beyond that. So now, using Divine vision, behold My Divine Cosmic Form.”

9-11  Back in the chambers of the old blind king, Sanjaya begins describing the unfolding, his eyes wide in amazement. “O King!” Sanjaya exclaims, “Lord Krishna is all at once a marvelous sight: thousands of facial features, countless mouths and eyes, clothes adorned with ornaments of beauty never seen before. He’s holding many weapons uplifted as symbols of His infinite powers, showing Himself arrayed in heavenly garments, garlands of flowers — I can even smell His celestial perfumes. He seems to be facing in all directions!

12  “It is impossible to describe in earthly words the dazzling light emanating from Him — it is as if a thousand suns were suddenly blazing in the sky; even that is insufficient tribute to the splendor and brilliance of His aura.

13  “Arjuna is now ‘seeing’ the entire universe, with all its myriad forms, within Krishna’s cosmic body — planets, distant stars, living beings, multitudes of animals,
the vast plant kingdom — all expressions of the same consciousness that lives within the Divine One. The celestial worlds are also there for Arjuna to see; all the regions within and without are all united, concentrated at once within this vision of the Supreme One; all contained within the one being, the Divinity of Divinities.”

14-15  Arjuna gasps, “It’s awesome, Krishna! I bow my head in reverence to You. I can hardly find my voice. I … I see things I’ve never seen or heard about or even conceived. I see all the deities, O Divine One, and all kinds of living creatures within Your being. I see all the multitudes of lesser deities and animals that You earlier proclaimed to exist. I see all the seers and saints, and celestial serpents — all these beings are contained in You!

16-17 “But I cannot see to the far reaches of You, Krishna. I see no limits to Your Cosmic God form, no boundaries or demarcation points to Your spectrum of existence. I see countless eyes and arms, mouths, and bellies, but I find no end or beginning to it all. It simply is, without any restrictions of space or time or thought.

“I perceive crowns, and all the tools and symbols of Your rule over the worlds. The luminosity surrounding You is so brilliant it’s hard on even these Divine eyes that You granted me.

18  “From all this I can only conclude that You are indeed the Imperishable Supreme Being, the one and only thing to be known. You are the ultimate refuge for all, the guardian and support for the universe. You are the very basis of the universe’s functioning, what is called the Eternal
Dharma.
You are the everlasting Cosmic
Spirit
(Purusha).
I am now convinced of these truths, O beloved Krishna.

19  “And I see You as birthless and deathless with total, absolute power and strength, as if possessing a million arms. Your mouth is the fire that warms the universe, and Your radiance lights it as though the sun and moon were Your eyes.

20  “Your vast, limitless presence fills all the space between heaven and earth, and extends far beyond all that. You
are
all-pervasive! I also see fierceness and terror in You, Krishna, and I watch beings in all the three worlds
^*
tremble.