BG Ch 10 – The Opulence of the Absolute (31 – 42)

All wonderous phenomena showing power, beauty, grandeur or sublimity, either in the material world or in the spiritual, are but partial manifestations of Kṛṣṇa's divine energies and opulence. As the supreme cause of all causes and the support and essence of everything, Kṛṣṇa is the supreme object of worship for all beings.

Radhika Raman Das
By Radhika Raman Das 2.4k Views Add a Comment 21 Min Read

TEXT 31

pavanaḥ pavatām asmi
rāmaḥ śastra-bhṛtām aham
jhaṣāṇāṁ makaraś cāsmi
srotasām asmi jāhnavī

SYNONYMS
pavanaḥ—the wind; pavatām—of all that purifies; asmi—I am; rāmaḥ—Rāma; śastra-bhṛtām—of the carriers of weapons; aham—I am; jhaṣāṇām—of all fish; makaraḥ—the shark; ca—also; asmi—I am; srotasām—of flowing rivers; asmi—I am; jāhnavī—the River Ganges.

TRANSLATION
Of purifiers I am the wind, of the wielders of weapons I am Rāma, of fishes I am the shark, and of flowing rivers I am the Ganges.

PURPORT
Of all the aquatics the shark is one of the biggest and is certainly the most dangerous to man. Thus the shark represents Kṛṣṇa.

TEXT 32

sargāṇām ādir antaś ca
madhyaṁ caivāham arjuna
adhyātma-vidyā vidyānāṁ
vādaḥ pravadatām aham

SYNONYMS
sargāṇām—of all creations; ādiḥ—the beginning; antaḥ—end; ca—and; madhyam—middle; ca—also; eva—certainly; aham—I am; arjuna—O Arjuna; adhyātma—vidyā—spiritual knowledge; vidyānām—of all education; vādaḥ—the natural conclusion; pravadatām—of arguments; aham—I am.

TRANSLATION
Of all creations I am the beginning and the end and also the middle, O Arjuna. Of all sciences I am the spiritual science of the self, and among logicians I am the conclusive truth.

PURPORT
Among the created manifestations, the first is the creation of the total material elements. As explained before, the cosmic manifestation is created and conducted by Mahā-Viṣṇu, Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu and Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and then again it is annihilated by Lord Śiva. Brahmā is a secondary creator. All these agents of creation, maintenance and annihilation are incarnations of the material qualities of the Supreme Lord. Therefore He is the beginning, the middle and the end of all creation.

For advanced education there are various kinds of books of knowledge, such as the four Vedas, their six supplements, the Vedānta-sūtra, books of logic, books of religiosity and the Purāṇas. So all together there are fourteen divisions of books of education. Of these, the book which presents adhyātma-vidyā, spiritual knowledge—in particular, the Vedānta-sūtra—represents Kṛṣṇa.

Among logicians there are different kinds of argument. Supporting one’s argument with evidence that also supports the opposing side is called jalpa. Merely trying to defeat one’s opponent is called vitaṇḍā. But the actual conclusion is called vāda. This conclusive truth is a representation of Kṛṣṇa.

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Raman (Radhika Raman Das) joined ISKCON in 2003 and got initiated by HH Bhakti Caitanya Swami Maharaj in 2011. As the Editor in Chief at "The Vaisnava - Online Magazine", he helps readers around the world hone in their Spiritual Curiosity, express their unique realizations as aspiring Vaisnava writers and enthusiasts, as well as to spread the digital seed of Srila Prabhupada's mission to spread Krishna Consciousness all around the globe.
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