Lord Krishna said, Arjuna, listen once again to my advice that I speak for your welfare.
The gods and the great sages do not know my source, because I am their origin. Only those who are wise and undeluded can know me as the Supreme Lord of all beings, unborn and without beginning.
Intelligence, knowledge, freedom from illusion, forgiveness, honesty, peacefulness, sense control, pleasure and pain, birth, death, fear, bravery, non-violence, equanimity, satisfaction, austerity, charity, fame and infamy — all these qualities of the living beings arise from me.
The god creators of humanity are born from my mind and all living beings in the universe descend from them. I am the origin of everything.
Knowing this, the wise embrace the path of divine love and worship me with all their heart. They are always thinking of me and their lives are devoted to me. Always content and joyful, they enlighten one another with their realisations of me.
To those who are constantly devoted and lovingly engaged in serving me, I bestow the divine knowledge by which they can approach me. I reside within their hearts, and due to compassion for them, I illuminate the darkness of ignorance with knowledge.
Arjuna said, You are the Supreme Self; the ultimate shelter, purifier and saviour. All the great sages have described you as the original, eternal, Supreme Lord, the source of all opulence and the foundation of all existence. Now you are personally saying this is true.
O Krishna, I accept as true everything you have told me. Neither the celestial being nor the demons know your personality. Only you can know yourself by your own power. You are the source of everything, the Lord of all beings, controller of the gods, the Supreme Person and Lord of the universe.
Please describe in full the divine opulence by which you pervade the entire universe. O Lord of divine power, how can I be constantly absorbed in thought of you? How can I know you?
In which forms should I meditate upon you? Please describe again your mighty powers and glories, for I am never tired of listening to your heavenly words.
Lord Krishna said, My glories are infinite Arjuna, so I will only tell you of those that are most prominent. I am the Supreme Self residing in the hearts of all beings. I am the beginning, the middle and the end of all creatures.
Of luminaries, I am the sun and the moon. Of gods, I am Indra, of the senses I am the mind and I am the consciousness of all living beings.
Among bodies of water, I am the ocean and of sound vibrations, I am the syllable Om. Of sacrifices, I am the chanting of the divine names and of that which is immovable, I am the Himalayas.
Among trees, I am the banyan tree. Of the heavenly sages, I am Narada and among men, I am the monarch. Of weapons, I am the thunderbolt. Among cows, I am the surabhi, the givers of abundant milk and of procreators, I am the god of love.
Of serpents I am Vasuki, the king of snakes and among law enforcers, I am Yamaraja the lord of death. Of subjugators, I am time.
Among the animals, I am the lion, and of birds, I am Garuda, the feathered carrier of Vishnu. Of purifiers, I am the wind. Among fish, I am the shark and of rivers, I am the Ganges.
Of all that is manifest, I am the beginning, the middle and the end. Of wisdom, I am knowledge of the soul and among philosophers, I am the unbiased truth.
Of letters, I am the letter A and I am also the endless flow of time. I am death, the destroyer of all and I am the source of all things yet to be.
Among the feminine qualities, I am grace, beauty, perfect speech, memory, intelligence, tolerance and forgiveness. Of months I am November and December and among seasons I am blossoming spring.
I am the gambling of cheats, the glory of the glorious and the strength of the strong. I am victory, adventure and perseverance. I am the punishment of law enforcers, the silence of secrets and the wisdom of the wise.
Arjuna, I am the origin of all existences. There is nothing animate or inanimate that can exist without me. There is no end to my divine glories.
I have given you only a hint of them. Whatever is beautiful, glorious and magnificent comes from only a fraction of my power.
But what is the need of any more detail than this Arjuna? With a single portion of myself I sustain this entire universe.
