19. hanta kathciyiydmi
divya hy atmavibhutayah
prradhanyatah kurusrestha
na 'sty auto vistarasya me
The Blessed Lord said:
(19) Yes, I will declare to thee of My divine forms but only of those which are prominent, 0 best of the Kurus (Arjuna), for there is no end to my extent (the details).
20. aham atma gudakesa
sarvabhutasayasthitah
aham adis ca madhyauii ca
bhutanam anta eva ca
(20) I, 0 Gudakesa a (Arjuna), am the self seated in the hearts of all creatures. I am the beginning, the middle and the very end of beings. The world is a living whole, a vast interconnections, a cosmic harmony inspired and sustained by the One Supreme.
21. adityanam aham visnur
jyotisam ravir amsuman
maricir marutam asmi
naksatranam ham sasi
(21) Of the Adityas I am Visnu; of the lights (I am) the radiant Sun; I am Marici of the Maruts; of the stars I am the moon.
Adityas are Vedic gods. While the Supreme is in all things, He is more prominent in some than in others. There is an ascending order in the world. God is more revealed in life than in matter, in consciousness than in life and in saints and sages most of all: Within the same order, He is most revealed in the pre-eminent individuals. Some of these mythological beings were perhaps living realities to the Hindus of the period of the Gita.
22. vedanam samavedo 'smi
devanam asmi vasavah
indriyanam manas` ca 'smi
bhutanam asmi cetana
(22) Of the Vedas I am the Samaveda ; of the gods I am Indra ; of the senses I am mind and of beings I am consciousness.
Samaveda is mentioned as the chief of the Vedas on account of its musical beauty.[1]
23. rudranam samkaras
ca 'smi vittelo yaksaraksastim
vasunam pavakag ca
'smi meruh sikharinarn aham
(23) Of the Rudras I am Samkara (Siva); of the Yaksas and the Raksasas (I am) Kubera ; of the Vases I am Agni (Fire) and of mountain-peaks I am Meru.
24. purodhasarn ca mukhyam mam
viddhi partha brhaspatim
senaninam aham skandah
sarasam asmi sagarah
(24) For I am the enjoyer and lord of all sacrifices. But these men do not know Me in My true nature and so they fall.
25. yanti devavrata devan
pitrn yanti pitrvratah
bhutani yanti bhutejya
yanti madyajino 'pi mam
(25) Worshippers of the gods go to the gods, worshippers of the manes go to the manes, sacrificers of the spirits go to the spirits and those who sacrifice to Me come to Me The shining gods, the spirits of the dead and the spirits in the psychic world all happen to be worshipped by men in different stages of development but they are all limited forms of the Supreme and cannot give the aspiring soul the peace that is beyond all understanding. The result of worship is assimilation to the form worshipped and these limited forms give limited results. No devotion fails of its highest reward. The lesser ones bring lesser rewards while devotion to the Supreme brings the supreme reward. All sincere religious devotion is a seeking after the Supreme Godhead.
Devotion and Its Effects
26. agvatthah sarvavrksanam
devarsinam ca naradah
gandharvanam citrarathah
siddhanarm kapilo Munich
(26) Of all trees (I am) the Asvattha and of divine seers (I am) Narada ; among the gandharvas (I am) Chitraratha and of the perfected ones (I am) Kapila the sage Kapila is the teacher of the Samkhya philosophy.
