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All forms are Īśvara's

maharsayah sapta pūrve catvāra manavastathā |

madbhāvā mānasā jātā yesām loka imāh prajāh ||10.6||

The seven rsis of yore as well as the four manus who have their minds resolved in Me, are born of My mind, and of whom are all these living beings in the world.


During the creation of a particular cycle, there were seven maharsayah (seers of veda mantras), as well as four manavah. They represent our predecessors - yesām loka imāh prajāh, where householder is from the line of rsih, and renunciate is from the line of manu. If they were our predecessors, then who are theirs? They are directly born of Īśvara's mere sañkalpa - resolution. According to purāna, they are the direct children of Īśvara who is in the form of brahmaji (the creator). They are not ordinary people, they are people whose minds resolved in Īśvara - madbhāvā, knowers of truth. They are from Īśvara alone, and so do us.


Next Lord Krsna talks about the unshaken vision as the result of knowing the glories of Īśvara and his connection with them.


etām vibhūtim yogam ca mama yo vetti tatvatah |

so'vikampena yogena yujyate nātra samśayah ||10.7||

The one who knows, in reality, this glory of Mine and My connection with that, he is endowed with unshaken vision. There is no doubt about this.


yo vetti tatvatah - one who knows the reality, as it is, and the connection between sat-cit-ānanda with all these glories - etām vibhūtim yogam ca mama, which is satyam-mithyā connection. And this connection is there only through māyā. If one knows Īśvara and his glory in reality, he knows what is satyam and mithyā, naturally. This person is endowed with unshakable vision - so'vikampena yogena yujyate which is well rooted and steady. yoga here means vision / knowledge. Any other knowing through experience will be shaky, only knowledge of the truth will stand. nātra samśayah - there is no doubt in this, if that connection between Īśvara and the world is known properly, that is enough. Then this person knows about oneself and his/her connection with this transactional world.


Because the word yoga is used, therefore Lord Krsna gives the meaning of yoga as vision, and clarifies what is the nature of clear vision in the next verse.


aham sarvasya prabhavo mattah sarvam pravartate |

iti matvābhajante mām budhā bhāvasamanvitāh ||10.8||

I am the creator of everything and because of Me every things is sustained. Thus knowing, the wise men endowed with vision gain Me.


aham sarvasya prabhavo - I am the cause for the creation of everything, just like clay is pervading the entire world of earthenware, sat-cit-ānanda brahman is pervading the entire creation. Everything depends entirely upon brahman to exist, and it is the only self-existence. mattah sarvam pravartate - because of me everything is sustained, this world continues to exist and is sustained by Īśvara alone. Unlike in our transactional world, one may create something like having children, but later on their existence are not depended on the parents anymore. iti matvā - having known this, bhāvasamanvitāh - one who endowed with vision, bhajante mām budhā, the wise man recognises me. Their vision is that "I am limitless brahman which is the creator and sustainer of the entire world". They recognise there is no essential difference between jīva and Īśvara.


maccittā madgataprānā bodhayantah parasparam |

kathayantaśca mām nityam tusyanti ca ramanti ca ||10.9.||

Those whose minds are in Me, whose living is resolved in Me, teaching one another and always talking about Me, they are (ever) satisfied and they revel (always).


maccittā - whose minds are in Īśvara, with this knowledge, the mind naturally is not separated from Īśvara. People often complain that they understand about the self-knowledge, but their mind goes away during transaction. Understanding is never away from the mind, therefore if the understanding of satyam-mithya is firm, one's mind is never away from ātmā. madgataprānā - whose senses are in Īśvara, even one perceives things distinctly, the wise man sees only ātmā. Object of perception, the perception itself and the perceiver all are having their being in awareness which is self-existence. Although all sense activities take place, one is never away from Īśvara. The perception of the sense organs is not a hindrance to the knowledge of the self. Thus being in the world does not in any way hinder one's vision of the self. Ignorance is the hindrance, not perception. Prāna also means breathing or living, so madgataprānā also means those whose life is not separated from Īśvara, is resolved in Īśvara. And this Īśvara is myself, because the only thing one can never be away is oneself. For one who knows, life is non-separate from this vision.


How do such a people live? nityam tusyanti ca ramanti ca - they always satisfied and revel, by teaching others - bodhayantah parasparam and talking about the glories of Īśvara - kathayantaśca mām. Two words are being use here, tusyanti - satisfied and ramanti - revel. People who know the nature of the self, they have found satisfaction so they don't need to go after things in order to be happy. If one is happy with oneself, one doesn't need to go after things for happiness, but one can do the same thing happily.


tesām satatayuktānām bhajantām prītipūrvakam |

dadāmi buddhiyogam tam yena mām upayānti te ||10.10||

For them who are always committed to Me, seeking Me with love, I give that vision whereby they reach Me.


tesām satatayuktānām - for those who are always committed, their priorities are clear and their lives are for seeking self-knowledge itself. bhajantām prītipūrvakam - who are seeking me with love as oneself, because one loves oneself the most. Lord Krsna says, those who seek Īśvara, I give the vision of myself - dadāmi buddhiyogam. But knowledge of Īśvara is not different from knowledge of the self, where is the question of his giving anything and to whom? This knowledge which is the object is nothing but ātmā, and the subject of knowing is ātmā alone. Therefore giving here means grace which we need to remove obstructions - pratibandha for the knowledge to take place. This grace is being explained in next verse.

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