Chapter 10.3 Vibhuti Yoga (Yoga of the Divine Glories) Slokas 31-42
Lord Sri Krishna continues to describe His glories to Arjuna.
31. Pavanah pavaatam asmi raamah shastrabhrutaam aham
Jhashaanaam makarashchhashmi srotasaam asmi jaahnavi
Among purifiers, I am the “wind”; among the wielders of weapons, I am “Rama”; among fishes, I am the “Shark”; and among rivers, I am Jaahnavi (the “Ganga”).
Among the elements of earth, water, air and fire, air (wind) is all pervading and purifies even other elements and so it is God’s Glory. Lord Rama is an Incarnation of Vishnu Bhagavan, and so Sri Krishna identifies with Him. Even though Lord Rama had the deadliest of weapons (Brahmastra), He used it only for the good of the people. Shark is the most powerful among fishes, whose power comes from God.
The river Ganga is the most sacred of rivers, and she flowed from Lord Shiva’s hair. Saints and sages have performed tapas (penance) on the banks of the river Ganga for centuries. When Ganga was flowing from Lord Shiva, she flooded the sacred field of the sage Jaahnu. Sage Jaahnu got irritated and swallowed her. Later he allowed her to come out of his ear. The river Ganga is also called Jaahnavi because of this.
32. Sarganam adir antas ca madhyam caivaham arjuna
adhyatma-vidya vidyanam vadah pravadatam aham
Among creations, I am the “beginning, the middle and also the end”, O Arjuna! Among all sciences, I am the science of the “Self”, and I am the “logic” in all arguments (reasons).
The Lord mentions earlier in this chapter also, that He is the beginning, the middle and the end. This makes sense because He is the cause, sustenance and also the destroyer of all creation and He cannot be separate Himself from His own creation.
Bhagavan says that among the sciences, He is the Adhyaatma Vidya (Knowledge of the Atma, the Self).
This Self Knowledge is understanding that we are not this perishable body, mind and intellect equipment (object) but we are the Imperishable Self (the subject) as per Advaida(m), teaching of Adi Shankaracharya. Hence, “Vedanta is the science of the study of the subject” as opposed to all other material sciences (e.g., Law, Engineering, Medicine, Business, Oceanography, Meteorology, etc.), which are study of objects.
The Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and puranas like Srimad Bhagavatam tell us that “This Self Knowledge makes us Realize our own true nature”.
“Brahmavit Brahmaiva bhavathi” (“The knower of Brahman becomes Brahman”) - Mundaka Upanishad.
Sri Krishna also says “Among debates (arguments), I am logic (vaada) “.
As per Swami Chinmayanandaji, there are 3 types of arguments in all walks of life. They are
1) Jalpa – destructive, arrogant criticism to smother the opposition.
2) Vitanda - criticizing just to destroy the other person’s point of view.
3) Vaada - object here is to directly come to the truth through reasoning without indulging in unnecessary arguments.
Of these, the first two are to soften the other person where as vaada alone leads to actual victory in debate. So, pure reason (logic) is a Glory of God.
33. Among letters I am the letter A (akaara), and among compound words I am the dual (dvandva). I am also inexhaustible time, and I am the (All-faced) Dispenser (of fruits of our actions) having faces in all directions.
Om is written as Aum. He is the first and foremost letter among this and so He is letter A (akaara).
There are certain word principles in Samaskritham as per scholars. Dvandva is dual compound. When two words are compounded, they retain equal importance. For example, when Rama and Krishna are compounded, it becomes Ramakrishna, with both maintaining their individualities. Sri Krishna says, “among compound words I am the dual (dvandva)”.
Time was created by the Lord from His Maya Shakthi. Divisions of time such as minute, hour, day, month and year have a beginning and an end. But He is beginningless and so endless as we saw Bhagavan explaining earlier in this chapter. Lord here says, “Among time, I am inexhaustible”.
As we saw earlier, He is the dispenser of the fruits of all our actions. Since Bhagavan is present in all of us, He is considered as “all faced”, facing in all directions.
34. I am all-devouring “Death”, and I am the generating principle of all that is yet to be. Among feminine qualities I am fame, prosperity, speech, memory, intelligence, firmness and forgiveness.
Lord has the final word and death does not differentiate between the rich, the poor, the strong, the weak, the kings and the people. Death should be viewed as a change from one plane of consciousness to another and a new beginning. Reincarnation is one of the hallmarks of teaching in Sanatana (Eternal) Dharma (Hinduism). As the Lord says here “I am the generating principle of all that is yet to be” (means I am the beginning of all future beings).
Fame, prosperity, speech, memory, intelligence, firmness and forgiveness are listed here as “feminine qualities” because of their gentleness and grace. These are also God’s attributes and His Blessing.
35. Among the hymns in the Saama Veda, I am the “Brihat-saaman”; among metres I am “Gayatri”; Among months, I am “Margasirsa”; among seasons, I am the “flowery Spring”.
Brihat-saaman is the most difficult hymn in Saama veda. Both Lord Siva and Narayana Bhagavan are said to be fond of Saaman hymns. It is said that Ravana pleased Lord Siva by singing the Saaman.
The Vedas contain various types of metres. The Gayatri metre is the foremost among them.
The Gayatri mantram is very powerful, divine and poetic. It goes as follows.
“Om
Bhur Bhuva Svaha
Tat Savitur Varenyam
Bhargo Devasya Dhimahi
Dhiyo Yo nah Prachodhayaatu” (Yajur Veda 36.3)
By chanting the mantra, we are praying to the all-powerful Sun God (Savitr) to grant us
the Light (of Self Knowledge).
Margasirsa (or Markazhi) is the most auspicious among months (December – January) and is one of Gods Glories.
36. I am the gambling of the fraudulent; I am the splendor among the splendid; I am victory, I am determination (of those who are determined); I am the goodness of the good.
Sri Krishna here wants us to realize that when we see someone doing things where cheating is involved, we should still see God in their action. This is clear when He says, “I am the gambling of the fraudulent”. This should appeal to Arjuna since he is reminded of his brother Yudhishthira’s addiction to gambling.
The other three vibhutis that He states here are “I am the splendor among the splendid”; “I am victory”, “I am determination (of those who are determined);” “I am the goodness of the good”.
In other words, Lord Krishna in this sloka says that He's the best among the best and He's the worst among the worst. This should be obvious to a student of Bhagavad Gita since God is in everything.
37. vrsninaam vaasudevo ’smi pandavaanaam dhananjayah
muninaam apy aham vyaasah kavinaam usanaa kavih
Among the descendants of Vrishnis, I am “Vaasudeva”, and among the Pandavas, I am “Arjuna”. Among the Munis, I am “Vyasa”, and among great poets, I am “Ushana”, the great Seer.
The Yadavas are from Vrishni race and so Lord Krishna belongs to the Vrishni clan. He, being the son of Vasudeva, is called Vaasudeva.
Arjuna is called Dhananjaya since he got the treasures of many kings, who hoarded them without being of use to their people. Arjuna utilized them all for good deeds.
Among the Pandavas, Sri Krishna says He is Dhananjaya (Arjuna). By doing so, Lord Krishna reminds Arjuna that he has no individuality apart from Him (Lord).
Bhagavan Krishna here says, “Among the Munis, I am Vyasa”. Muni is a person who turns his mind within and Realizes his divinity. All of us must know some details about Veda Vyasa.
Veda Vyasa compiled the four Vedas, the Mahabharata and eighteen major puranas. He is the father of Suka Brahman, who narrated Srimad Bhagavatham to King Parikshit.
Vishnu Sahasranaamam says,
“Vyasaaya Vishnu rupaaya vyasa rupaaya vishnave
Namovai brahma nidhaye Vaashishtaya namo namaha”
The meaning is “My salutations to sage Vyasa who is an incarnation of Vishnu; and to Vishnu Bhagavan, who has taken the form of Vyasa, the sage who is born in the family of Vashishta and possesses Brahma Vidya” (Self Knowledge).
In modern times, the word “Kavi” has come to be associated with a poet. In the Upanishads, Kavi meant “a Seer of the Vaidika mantras”. A Seer is one who, either in their deep meditative state or after their Realization, is able to verbalize words that become the Vedas. Ushana Kavi, also called Sukra, was a great Seer, and the Lord here says, “Among poets, I am Ushana, the great Seer”.
38. Among the punishers, I am the “sceptre”; among those who seek victory, I am “statesmanship”; and among secrets, I am “silence”; and I am the “Knowledge” among knowers.
The sceptre is the symbol of measured punishment and justice. It is done by people with authority like a king or judge. Here, the Lord asserts he is the “dandah” (sceptre).
Just a physical conquest of a country or people is not a complete victory. Only when the conqueror is able to instill in the minds of the conquered, his (her) philosophy, the victory is complete. This must be done not by force but in a peaceful manner by having a sound policy (statesmanship) acceptable to both sides. Here Bhagavan says, “among those who seek victory, I am Neeti” (statesmanship) since such an approach is divine as per Him.
It is said that when we chant Om a few times, the silence between the two Oms is also God. Here the Lord says, “among secrets, I am the silence”. He is the “Knowledge” among the knowers.
39. yac ca ‘pi sarva-bhutanam bijam tad aham arjuna
na tad asti vina yat syan maya bhutam caracaram
And whatsoever is the “seed of all beings”, that also am I, O Arjuna. There is no being, whether moving or unmoving, that can exist without Me.
The Lord declares that whatever came in this world, whether it is the sun or the moon or any other elements like the earth, water, fire or air, they all came from him. So, he is “the seed of all beings”.
Not only did they come from Him, but they cannot exist without His presence in them whether they are moving or unmoving, living or nonliving.
40. There is no end to My divine glories, O Parantapa (mighty conqueror of enemies); this is only a brief statement by Me of the particulars of My divine glories.
41. Whatever that is glorious, prosperous or powerful in any being, that know you to be a manifestation of a part of My splendor.
Let us not forget that “whatever is glorious, prosperous or powerful in any being, it is a manifestation of a part of His Glory”. In practicality, when we witness a beautiful shot by our favorite cricket player (e.g., Sachin Tendulkar) or tennis player (e.g., Rafael Nadal), after saying “what a glorious shot”, we should think of the Glory of Bhagavan and say a prayer. Then we are always thinking of the Glory of the Lord as opposed to human greatness.
42. But, of what avail to thee is the knowledge of all these details, O Arjuna? I exist, supporting this entire universe by one part of Myself.
The Lord concludes this chapter by asserting that all these are mere details of His Glories. There is no end to His Glories. He exists, supporting this entire universe, by only a part of Himself.
Om tat sat iti Srimad Bhagavadgitasu Upanishatsu Brahmavidyayam yogasastre
Sri Krishnarjuna samvade Vibhutiyogo nama dasamodhyayah.
Thus, in the Upanishads of the glorious Bhagavad-Gita, the Science of the Eternal, the Scripture of Yoga, the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna, ends the Tenth Discourse entitled: The Yoga of Divine Glories (Vibhuti Yoga).
Summary of the tenth chapter:
The tenth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita is called Vibhuti Yoga, (Yoga of the Divine Glories). Here, Lord Sri Krishna tells Arjuna that a person who knows Him as unborn and beginningless is liberated from all sins. Bhagavan further explains that even the devas and the rishis do not know of His origin. Arjuna praises the Lord and requests Him to guide him as to how he can constantly meditate upon the Lord and in what forms he should meditate upon him.
As requested by His devotee Arjuna, Lord Krishna describes his Divine Glories in extensive detail. After that, Lord Krishna concludes by asserting that all these are mere details of His Glories. He Exists, supporting this entire universe, by only a part of Himself.
Hari Om!
Dr. Shanmugam