KRISHNA

#1.

Arjuna, in order to achieve self-discipline, you should practise yoga while keeping your attention fixed on me. Depend wholly and entirely on me. Listen, and I will put all of your questions to rest; you will get to know me inside and out, and you will become one with me.

#2

I will bestow upon you jnana in addition to vijnana. When these two things become clear to you, there is nothing else that you need to learn.

#3

One person out of many thousands may strive for perfection, but of those who do, only a select few will arrive at their destination and become aware of me.

#4

There are eight components that make up my prakriti; these are the earth, water, fire, air, akasha, mind, ego and intellect, respectively.

#5

But in addition to this, Arjuna, I also have a higher nature that underpins the entirety of the cosmos and serves as the origin of life in all existing things.

#6

The womb of all creation can be found within these two facets of my own nature. Both the beginning and the end of the universe are enacted in my body at the same time.

#7

Arjuna, there is nothing that can be said to exist apart from me. The entirety of the cosmos is strung around my neck like a necklace of precious stones.

#8

Arjuna, I am the flavour of fresh water and the light of the sun and moon all rolled into one. I am the holy word ‘Om’, the sound that is heard in the air, and the bravery that is found in human beings.

#9

I am the sweet fragrance that permeates the earth, and I am the radiance of fire. I am the life that permeates every living thing, and I am in the pursuit of the spiritual seeker.

#10

My eternal seed, Arjuna, can be discovered in each and every living thing. I am the authority of discrimination in the minds of the intelligent, and I am the crowning achievement of the virtuous.

#11

In those who are strong, I am strength, liberated from passion and attachment to one’s own self-interest. I am the very essence of desire, provided that it is congruent with the overarching goal of one’s life.

#12

Although I am the source of the three states of sattva, rajas, and tamas, I do not exist within them.

#13

These three gunas mislead the world, as a result of which individuals fail to see beyond them to me, who am supreme and unchanging.

#14

My divine maya is composed of the three gunas, and it is challenging to overcome. But those individuals who seek refuge in me will overcome this maya.

#15

Other people are misled by maya, and although they engage in evil deeds, they do not have devotion to me. They no longer have any capacity for discrimination, so they act in accordance with their baser nature.

#16

There are many motivations that bring godly people to worship me. Some people are drawn to the spiritual life as a result of hardship; others seek it out in an effort to gain a better understanding of life; still others are motivated by a desire to fulfil their life’s purpose, and still others are wise men and women.

#17

The man or woman of wisdom is superior to everyone else because they are unwavering in their devotion and are always united with me. They consider me to be their most beloved, and I hold them in the highest regard.

#18

Whoever walks the spiritual road can count themselves among the blessed. The wise, on the other hand, who are always established in union and for whom there is no higher goal than me, can be regarded as my very Self because there is no higher goal for them than me.

#19

After experiencing a great number of rebirths, those who have gained wisdom look for safety in me, seeing me everywhere and in everything. Great souls like that are extremely uncommon.

#20

There are some people whose judgement is clouded because they have too many desires. They worship lower gods and perform a variety of rituals in accordance with their own inherent nature.

#21

When someone is completely devoted to something and has faith in that thing, I unify that person’s faith in that thing.

#22

Then, when there is not a single shred of doubt left, one attains the object of their devotion. In this manner, I am able to satisfy any and all desires.

#23

Those who have a limited understanding can only ever achieve momentary contentment; those who worship the gods will one day join them. However, my followers make their way to me.

#24

People are under the mistaken impression that I, the Unmanifest, have assumed a form because they do not understand. They are oblivious to the fact that my true nature is independent of both birth and death.

#25

Only a select few are able to see beyond the maya. The world, which is fooled, does not realise that I have never been born and that I am unchanging.

#26

Arjuna, I am aware of everything that has occurred in the past, that is occurring in the present, and that will occur in the future; however, there is no one who knows me in my entirety.

#27

Arjuna, confusion results from the dual nature of attraction and aversion; every living thing is misled by these from the moment of their birth.

#28

Those who, on the other hand, have cleansed themselves of every form of wrongdoing are firmly established in their worship of me. Their actions are untainted, and they are unaffected by the confusion brought on by the polarities that exist in the world.

#29

Those who seek refuge in me, intent on achieving freedom from old age and death, eventually gain an understanding of Brahman, the Self, and the fundamental nature of all activities.

#30

Those who see me as the ruler of the cosmos, as well as those who see me in the adhibhuta, the adhidaiva, and the adhiyajna, continue to be conscious of me even after they have died.