To give Arjuna something the mind can hold, Krishna lists his glories among beings and things — the best of each order. Whatever is splendid and powerful is but a spark of his splendor.
WHERE WE ARE: Arjuna loves what he's hearing and wants more — something concrete the mind can grip. Krishna obliges with a catalogue: wherever you see excellence in the world, you're looking at him.
śrībhagavān uvāca | bhūya eva mahābāho śṛṇu me paramaṃ vacaḥ | yat te 'haṃ prīyamāṇāya vakṣyāmi hitakāmyayā ||
श्रीभगवान् · śrībhagavān
the Blessed Lord
उवाच · uvāca
said
भूयः एव · bhūyaḥ eva
once more
महाबाहो · mahābāho
O mighty-armed one
शृणु · śṛṇu
hear
परमम् वचः · paramam vacaḥ
the supreme word
प्रीयमाणाय · prīyamāṇāya
to you who are beloved, who take delight
हितकाम्यया · hitakāmyayā
desiring your welfare
“The Blessed Lord said: Once more, O mighty-armed one, hear my supreme word — which I shall speak to you, my beloved, desiring your welfare.”
— Original plain-language translation
Affection opens the chapter on divine glories: more is given because delight is seen in the hearer. Teaching here is an act of care, not mere instruction. The glories that follow are food for meditation.
न मे विदुः सुरगणाः प्रभवं न महर्षयः ।अहमादिर्हि देवानां महर्षीणां च सर्वशः ॥
na me viduḥ suragaṇāḥ prabhavaṃ na maharṣayaḥ | aham ādir hi devānāṃ maharṣīṇāṃ ca sarvaśaḥ ||
न विदुः · na viduḥ
they do not know
सुरगणाः · suragaṇāḥ
the hosts of gods
प्रभवम् · prabhavam
the origin, coming-forth
महर्षयः · maharṣayaḥ
the great seers
अहम् · aham
I
आदिः · ādiḥ
the beginning, source
देवानाम् · devānām
of the gods
सर्वशः · sarvaśaḥ
in every way
“Neither the hosts of gods nor the great seers know my origin — for I am the source of the gods and the great seers in every way.”
— Original plain-language translation
The effect cannot compass its cause: gods and seers alike derive from what they would explain. Sourcehood sets Krishna beyond every lineage. Wonder, not analysis, is the fitting response.
यो मामजमनादिं च वेत्ति लोकमहेश्वरम् ।असंमूढः स मर्त्येषु सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते ॥
yo mām ajam anādiṃ ca vetti lokamaheśvaram | asaṃmūḍhaḥ sa martyeṣu sarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate ||
यः · yaḥ
whoever
माम् · mām
me
अजम् · ajam
unborn
अनादिम् · anādim
beginningless
वेत्ति · vetti
knows
लोकमहेश्वरम् · lokamaheśvaram
as the great Lord of worlds
असंमूढः · asaṃmūḍhaḥ
undeluded
मर्त्येषु · martyeṣu
among mortals
प्रमुच्यते · pramucyate
is freed
सर्वपापैः · sarvapāpaiḥ
from all evils
“Whoever knows me as unborn and beginningless, the great Lord of worlds — undeluded among mortals, that one is freed from all evils.”
— Original plain-language translation
Right knowing carries liberating force: to see the Lord's eternity clearly is to stand free of confusion. Undeluded is the chapter's key praise. Freedom here flows from vision, not from rite.
“Understanding, knowledge, freedom from delusion, patience, truth, self-restraint, calm — pleasure and pain, coming-to-be and ceasing, fear and fearlessness...”
— Original plain-language translation
The catalogue of human states begins, continued in the next verse. Inner virtues and outer fortunes are gathered together. All will be claimed as issuing from Krishna alone.
ahiṃsā samatā tuṣṭis tapo dānaṃ yaśo 'yaśaḥ | bhavanti bhāvā bhūtānāṃ matta eva pṛthagvidhāḥ ||
अहिंसा · ahiṃsā
non-harming
समता · samatā
equanimity
तुष्टिः · tuṣṭiḥ
contentment
तपः · tapaḥ
austerity
दानम् · dānam
giving
यशः अयशः · yaśaḥ ayaśaḥ
fame and infamy
भावाः · bhāvāḥ
states of being
भूतानाम् · bhūtānām
of beings
मत्तः एव · mattaḥ eva
from me alone
पृथग्विधाः · pṛthagvidhāḥ
of various kinds
“...non-harming, equanimity, contentment, austerity, giving, fame and infamy — these manifold states of beings come from me alone.”
— Original plain-language translation
Good and hard alike are traced to one hand — even infamy has its source in him. Nothing in human experience stands outside divine causation. The thought steadies both pride and complaint.
“The seven great seers of old, and the four Manus, were born from my mind, of my being — from them come these creatures in the world.”
— Original plain-language translation
Cosmic ancestry is traced through mind-born sages to all peoples. Lineage theology makes every family a branch of Krishna's thought. The verse links creation-myth to devotion's object.
“Whoever knows in truth this glory and sovereign power of mine is joined by unwavering discipline — of this there is no doubt.”
— Original plain-language translation
Knowing the glories is not trivia but a yoga that steadies the heart. Truth-known majesty produces unshaken practice. This promise justifies the long catalogue that follows.
“I am the origin of all; from me all proceeds. Thinking thus, the awakened worship me, filled with loving feeling.”
— Original plain-language translation
IN SHORT Seeing one source behind everything fills your worship with love.
Theology flowers into affection: metaphysical insight wakes the heart. Wisdom and love are one movement here. This verse is the seed of the devotional climax in 10.9-11. It is like learning one dam powers a whole city and feeling thankful each time you switch on a light.
मच्चित्ता मद्गतप्राणा बोधयन्तः परस्परम् ।कथयन्तश्च मां नित्यं तुष्यन्ति च रमन्ति च ॥
maccittā madgataprāṇā bodhayantaḥ parasparam | kathayantaś ca māṃ nityaṃ tuṣyanti ca ramanti ca ||
मच्चित्ताः · maccittāḥ
with minds on me
मद्गतप्राणाः · madgataprāṇāḥ
with life-breath gone to me
बोधयन्तः · bodhayantaḥ
enlightening, awakening
परस्परम् · parasparam
one another
कथयन्तः · kathayantaḥ
speaking of, recounting
माम् नित्यम् · mām nityam
of me constantly
तुष्यन्ति · tuṣyanti
they are content
रमन्ति · ramanti
they rejoice
“With minds on me and life-breath resting in me, awakening one another and constantly speaking of me — they are content and they rejoice.”
— Original plain-language translation
Devotion is portrayed as shared life: mutual awakening through continual talk of God. Contentment and delight are its inward marks. Fellowship completes the private disciplines of earlier chapters.
“To them — ever disciplined, worshipping me with love — I give the discipline of understanding by which they come to me.”
— Original plain-language translation
IN SHORT Those who keep loving faithfully are given clearer understanding to grow.
Love is answered by illumination: God grants the very wisdom that reaches him. Grace and effort interlock — worship with love draws guiding insight. The gift and the goal are one arrival. It is like a coach giving personal tips to the player who shows up early with genuine love for the game.
“Out of compassion for them, dwelling within their selves, I destroy the darkness born of ignorance with the shining lamp of knowledge.”
— Original plain-language translation
The inward teacher kindles light where he already dwells. Compassion is the motive, ignorance-darkness the obstacle, the lamp the means. Arjuna's reply in 10.12-18 shows this lamp already burning.
“Arjuna said: You are the supreme Brahman, the supreme abode, the supreme purifier — the eternal divine Person, the primal God, unborn and all-pervading.”
— Original plain-language translation
Arjuna's confession gathers the whole teaching into titles of praise. The friend now names the charioteer as the Absolute. His questions about glories in 10.17-18 flow from this settled conviction.
“All the seers proclaim you so — Narada the divine seer, Asita, Devala, Vyasa — and you yourself declare it to me.”
— Original plain-language translation
Authority is triple-corded: ancient seers, named sages, and Krishna's own word agree. Arjuna stands within a tradition, not a private fancy. Testimony prepares him to ask for more.
सर्वमेतदृतं मन्ये यन्मां वदसि केशव ।न हि ते भगवन्व्यक्तिं विदुर्देवा न दानवाः ॥
sarvam etad ṛtaṃ manye yan māṃ vadasi keśava | na hi te bhagavan vyaktiṃ vidur devā na dānavāḥ ||
सर्वम् एतत् · sarvam etat
all this
ऋतम् · ṛtam
true
मन्ये · manye
I hold, believe
वदसि · vadasi
you say
केशव · keśava
O Keshava (Krishna)
भगवन् · bhagavan
O Blessed Lord
व्यक्तिम् · vyaktim
manifestation
विदुः · viduḥ
they know
देवाः · devāḥ
gods
दानवाः · dānavāḥ
demons
“All this that you tell me, O Keshava, I hold to be true. Neither gods nor demons know your manifestation, O Blessed Lord.”
— Original plain-language translation
Total trust precedes the request: Arjuna accepts before asking to hear more. Mystery acknowledged becomes the ground of faith. Incomprehensibility to gods only heightens his eagerness.
“You alone know yourself by yourself, O supreme Person — O bringer-forth of beings, Lord of beings, God of gods, Lord of the world.”
— Original plain-language translation
Self-knowledge belongs to God alone; all other knowing is received. Four vocatives pile up like garlands before the petition. Only the self-knowing One can worthily declare himself.
“You ought to declare fully your divine glories — those by which, pervading these worlds, you abide.”
— Original plain-language translation
Arjuna asks for the pervading marks by which the mind can catch the ungraspable. Pervasion is the theme: glories are footprints of presence. Fullness is requested, though finitude must settle for selection.
“How may I know you, O master of yoga, constantly meditating on you? In which things, O Blessed Lord, are you to be contemplated by me?”
— Original plain-language translation
The request is practical, not curious: Arjuna wants meditation-holds for constant thought. A second-person yoga is sought — where to find the Person in things. The catalogue answers exactly this need.
“Tell me again at length of your yoga and glory, O Janardana — for I find no satiety in hearing your nectar.”
— Original plain-language translation
Hunger that eating sharpens: the nectar-word never cloys. Arjuna's insatiability delights the teacher he loves. Devotion's ear is as endless as the glories themselves.
“The Blessed Lord said: Gladly I shall declare to you my divine glories — by way of the chief ones, O best of Kurus, for there is no end to my expanse.”
— Original plain-language translation
Glad consent with one condition: selection, since infinitude cannot be inventoried. Chief instances must stand for the endless rest. Verses 20-39 give that chosen garland.
“I am the self, O Gudakesha, dwelling in the hearts of all beings. I am the beginning, the middle, and the end of beings.”
— Original plain-language translation
IN SHORT The same living presence dwells in every heart, including yours.
The catalogue opens inward before ranging outward: the first glory is the indwelling self. Time's three joints are also claimed together. Every later splendor is a wave of this inward sea. It is like the same current inside every phone in a shop, present from morning opening to night closing.
“Among the Adityas I am Vishnu; among lights, the radiant sun. Among the Maruts I am Marichi, and among stars I am the moon.”
— Original plain-language translation
Heaven's brightest in each order are named: chief Aditya, chief light, chief wind, chief star. The pattern is set — the best of each class signals him. Worshippers may begin with the sun and moon overhead.
“Among Vedas I am the Sama Veda; among gods I am Indra. Among the senses I am the mind, and in living beings I am consciousness.”
— Original plain-language translation
Scripture, heaven, sense, and life each yield their finest: the sung Veda, the king of gods, the ruling sense, the bare aliveness in all. The inward pair — mind and consciousness — keeps the list intimate.
“Among Rudras I am Shankara; among yakshas and rakshasas, Kubera. Among Vasus I am fire, and among peaked mountains I am Meru.”
— Original plain-language translation
Fierce orders are included: even Rudras and wealth-guarding spirits have their chief in him. Fire and Meru anchor the list in rite and cosmos. No rank of being lacks his signature.
“Know me as Brihaspati, the chief among household priests, O Partha. Among generals I am Skanda, and among waters I am the ocean.”
— Original plain-language translation
Counsel, command, and depth: the gods' priest, the gods' general, and the sea itself. Arjuna the general might hear Skanda with a soldier's ear. Vastness you can stand before begins to teach infinitude.
“Among great seers I am Bhrigu; among utterances, the single syllable OM. Among sacrifices I am silent repetition, and among immovables the Himalaya.”
— Original plain-language translation
Sound and stillness meet here: the primal syllable, the quietest sacrifice, the stillest mountains. Japa is crowned above louder rites. The Himalaya gives meditators their visible icon of steadiness.
“Among all trees I am the ashvattha; among divine seers, Narada. Among gandharvas I am Chitraratha, and among perfected beings the sage Kapila.”
— Original plain-language translation
The sacred tree of 15.1 appears as his vegetal glory. Musicians, messengers, and philosophers each contribute their exemplar. Nature, art, and thought all carry his mark.
“Among horses know me as Uchchaishravas, born of the nectar. Among lordly elephants I am Airavata, and among men the king.”
— Original plain-language translation
Royal mounts from the ocean-churning myth stand beside human kingship. Noble power in any species points upward. Arjuna facing kings in war hears where true sovereignty lies.
“Among weapons I am the thunderbolt; among cows, the wish-yielding cow. I am Kandarpa, the cause of procreation, and among serpents I am Vasuki.”
— Original plain-language translation
War, nurture, desire, and dread each show their chief: Indra's bolt, the giver-cow, love itself, the serpent-king. Even fearful powers have their head in him. Compare 7.11 on desire aligned with dharma.
“Among nagas I am Ananta; among water-dwellers, Varuna. Among ancestors I am Aryaman, and among restrainers I am Yama.”
— Original plain-language translation
Depths and judgments gather here: the world-serpent, the ocean-lord, the ancestral chief, the judge of the dead. Law below and law above meet in one hand. Nothing that binds escapes his ordering.
प्रह्लादश्चास्मि दैत्यानां कालः कलयतामहम् ।मृगाणां च मृगेन्द्रोऽहं वैनतेयश्च पक्षिणाम् ॥
prahlādaś cāsmi daityānāṃ kālaḥ kalayatām aham | mṛgāṇāṃ ca mṛgendro 'haṃ vainateyaś ca pakṣiṇām ||
प्रह्लादः · prahlādaḥ
Prahlada
दैत्यानाम् · daityānām
among demons
कालः · kālaḥ
time
कलयताम् · kalayatām
among reckoners, counters
मृगाणाम् · mṛgāṇām
among beasts
मृगेन्द्रः · mṛgendraḥ
the lion, king of beasts
वैनतेयः · vainateyaḥ
Garuda, son of Vinata
पक्षिणाम् · pakṣiṇām
among birds
“Among demons I am Prahlada; among reckoners, time. Among beasts I am the lion, and among birds Garuda.”
— Original plain-language translation
Devotion redeems even demon-birth in Prahlada's person. Time the counter counts all counters down — a preview of 11.32. Lion and eagle give the eye two thrones of animal majesty.
“Among purifiers I am the wind; among wielders of arms, Rama. Among fishes I am the makara, and among flowing waters the Ganga.”
— Original plain-language translation
Krishna names his own past descent among warriors' glories — Rama the prince. Wind, river, and sea-beast complete the elemental sweep. The familiar Ganga makes glory touchable for every hearer.
“Of created things I am the beginning, the end, and the middle, O Arjuna. Among sciences I am the science of the self, and among speakers I am reasoned discourse.”
— Original plain-language translation
The frame of 10.20 returns as a refrain amid particulars. Knowing itself is crowned: self-knowledge among learnings, honest reasoning among speeches. The Gita's own method is thus glorified.
“Among letters I am the letter A; among compounds, the pairing dual. I am imperishable time itself, and the ordainer facing every way.”
— Original plain-language translation
Language's first sound and grammar's joining form carry him — even alphabet and syntax are theophany. Time and the all-faced Ordainer close the verse cosmically. The next verse turns from grammar to destiny.
“I am death the all-snatcher, and the origin of what shall be. Among feminine powers I am fame, fortune, speech, memory, insight, resolve, and patience.”
— Original plain-language translation
Ending and beginning share one speaker: the taker is also the giver. Seven feminine excellences are then claimed as his own powers. The auspicious and the terrible are equally divine.
“Among saman chants I am the Brihat-saman; among metres, the Gayatri. Among months I am Margashirsha, and among seasons the flower-maker, spring.”
— Original plain-language translation
Chant, metre, month, and blossom: worship's music and the year's turning both yield favorites. The Gayatri crowns all metres as dawn's own prayer. Time itself has festive peaks that point to him.
“Among the deceitful I am dicing; among the radiant, radiance. I am victory, I am resolve, I am the goodness of the good.”
— Original plain-language translation
Even guile's sharpest game is owned — a startling claim that nothing cunning escapes him. Then the ascending virtues: brilliance, triumph, resolve, goodness itself. The dice recall the epic's own fatal game.
“Among Vrishnis I am Vasudeva; among Pandavas, Dhananjaya. Among sages I am Vyasa, and among seer-poets Ushanas.”
— Original plain-language translation
The list turns suddenly intimate: Krishna names himself among his own clan, and Arjuna among the Pandavas. The hearer discovers he is himself a glory. Sage and poet complete the human summit.
“Among tamers I am the rod; among seekers of victory, prudence. Among secrets I am silence, and among knowers, knowledge.”
— Original plain-language translation
Rule and hiddenness close the catalogue: punishment that orders, counsel that wins, silence that keeps, knowing that crowns. The deepest secret is wordlessness. The deepest knower-hood is knowing itself.
“Whatever is the seed of all beings, that am I, O Arjuna. No being, moving or unmoving, can exist without me.”
— Original plain-language translation
The catalogue's sum: every seed is him, and nothing grows apart from him. Particular glories resolve into universal ground. Exclusion is impossible — existence itself is participation.
“There is no end to my divine glories, O scorcher of foes. This expanse has been declared to you only by way of instance.”
— Original plain-language translation
The closing bracket matches the opening promise of 10.19: instances, not inventory. Finitude samples infinitude. The next verse gives the rule for recognizing unlisted glories.
“Whatever being is glorious, splendid, or mighty — know each such thing as born of a mere fragment of my splendor.”
— Original plain-language translation
IN SHORT Whenever you see beauty or greatness, know it reflects a greater source.
A portable rule for all beholding: splendor anywhere signals a fragment of splendor everywhere's source. The meditator needs no further list. Every excellence becomes a window. It is like every bright shop sign in a market borrowing light from the same power station.
“But what use is all this knowing to you in detail, O Arjuna? Upholding this entire world with a single fragment of myself, I abide.”
— Original plain-language translation
The chapter's thunderclap: the whole glittering list is a speck beside the whole. One fragment upholds all worlds — and he exceeds even that. Arjuna's awe here opens the door to the cosmic vision of Chapter 11.
— Reader's notes (original)
CH 101/42
This chapter in 3 sentences
Of lights he is the sun, of waters the ocean, of words Om, of warriors Arjuna himself — the best of every order, one glittering list. But the list is only a trailer: a single spark of him upholds the entire universe. Whatever moves you with awe is his signature.