Bhagavad Gita - Chapter 10 - Shloka (Verse) 15

व्याख्या--'भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते पुरुषोत्तम'--सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंको संकल्पमात्रसे उत्पन्न करनेवाले होनेसे आप 'भूतभावन' हैं; सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंके और देवताओंके मालिक होनेसे आप 'भूतेश' और 'देवदेव' हैं; जड-चेतन, स्थावर-जङ्गममात्र जगत्का पालन-पोषण करनेवाले होनेसे आप 'जगत्पति' हैं; और सम्पूर्ण पुरुषोंमें उत्तम होनेसे आप लोकमें और वेदमें 'पुरुषोत्तम' नामसे कहे गये हैं (गीता 15। 18) (टिप्पणी प0 550)।
इस श्लोकमें पाँच सम्बोधन आये हैं। इतने सम्बोधन गीताभरमें दूसरे किसी भी श्लोकमें नहीं आये। कारण है कि भगवान्की विभूतियोंकी और भक्तोंपर कृपा करनेकी बात सुनकर अर्जुनमें भगवान्के प्रति विशेष भाव पैदा होते हैं और उन भावोंमें विभोर होकर वे भगवान्के लिये एक साथ पाँच सम्बोधनोंका प्रयोग करते हैं (टिप्पणी प0 551)। 'स्वयमेवात्मनात्मानं वेत्थ त्वम्'--भगवान् अपने-आपको अपनेआपसे ही जानते हैं। अपने-आपको जाननेमें उन्हें किसी प्राकृत साधनकी आवश्यकता नहीं होती। अपने-आपको जाननेमें उनकी अपनी कोई वृत्ति पैदा नहीं होती, कोई जिज्ञासा भी नहीं होती, किसी करण-(अन्तःकरण और बहिःकरण-) की आवश्यकता भी नहीं,होती। उनमें शरीर-शरीरीका भाव भी नहीं है। वे तो स्वतः-स्वाभाविक अपने-आपसे ही अपने-आपको जानते हैं। उनका यह ज्ञान करण-निरपेक्ष है, करण-सापेक्ष नहीं।इस श्लोकका भाव यह है कि जैसे भगवान् अपने-आपको अपने-आपसे ही जानते हैं, ऐसे ही भगवान्के अंश जीवको भी अपने-आपसे ही अपने-आपको अर्थात् अपने स्वरूपको जानना चाहिये। अपने-आपको अपने स्वरूपका जो ज्ञान होता है, वह सर्वथा करण-निरपेक्ष होता है। इसलिये इन्द्रियाँ, मन, बुद्धि आदिसे अपने स्वरूपको नहीं जान सकते। भगवान्का अंश होनेसे भगवान्की तरह जीवका अपना ज्ञान भी करण-निरपेक्ष है।
सम्बन्ध--विभूतियोंका ज्ञान भगवान्में दृढ़ करानेवाला है (गीता 10। 7)। अतः अब आगेके श्लोकोंमें अर्जुन भगवान्से विभूतियोंको विस्तारसे कहनेके लिये प्रार्थना करते हैं।

क्योंकि आप देवादिके आदि कारण हैं? इसलिये --, हे पुरुषोत्तम हे भूतप्राणियोंको उत्पन्न करनेवाले भूतभावन हे भूतेशभूतोंके ईश्वर हे देवोंके देव हे जगत्पते आप स्वयं ही अपनेद्वारा अपने आपको अर्थात् निरतिशय ज्ञान? ऐश्वर्य? सामर्थ्य आदि शक्तियोंसे युक्त ईश्वरको जानते हैं।

Only a rare one, perfected over many births, with great difficulty, and graced by You, knows Your form; with this intention he says 'Yatah' etc. 'Svayam eva' means without any instruction. 'Atmana' means as the Innermost Self, not as an object (of senses). 'Atmanam' refers to the unconditioned form.

And that even Your conditioned form does not fall within the scope of another, he says with 'Niratishaya' etc. 'Purushottama'—He is both Purusha and Uttama; by this address, His nature as Full Consciousness transcending both the Perishable (Kshara) and Imperishable (Akshara) is conveyed.

He states His being the source of all and the agent of all with 'Bhutabhavana'. He states His being the Lord of all with 'Bhutesha'. That His said conditioned form attains the status of being worshipped by gods etc., he states with 'Devadeva'. He states His being the protector as the Master of the entire world with 'Jagatpate'.

Therefore, being the source of all, You 'Svayam eva'—without instruction from another; 'Atmana'—by Yourself, not through instruments like the inner organ; know 'Atmanam'—Your unconditioned and conditioned form, possessed of unsurpassable knowledge, lordship, strength, etc.; no one else who is not graced by You (knows).

He expresses the Lord's capacity for unconditioned Self-knowledge through the address—'O Purushottama'. Being the unconditioned Supreme Self, You know Your own unconditioned nature; this is the idea.

Even as the conditioned (Saguna)—having agency of the world etc.—it is You; therefore, You alone know that too; implying this, he addresses Him in four ways—'Bhutabhavana' etc. O Producer of beings! O Bhutesha—Controller of beings! O Devadeva—Illuminator even of gods like the Sun! O Jagatpate—Protector of the world!

Thus, You alone are the creator, sustainer, and regulator of the world. Objection: Brahma etc., Sun etc., Rudra etc. are seen as agents of these? Anticipating this—O God even of gods like Brahma! Controlled/supported by You alone they are agents of creation etc., not independently; this is the purport.

(This commentary explains 'Brahma' and 'Vibhu'

in the context of previous verses

within the sequence of this chapter).

O Bhutabhavana!

Meaning the producer/sustainer of beings.

O Purushottama! 'Atmana'—by Yourself; 'Atmanam'—Yourself; 'Tvam svayam eva'—You alone know by Your own knowledge.

'Bhutabhavana'—O Creator of all beings! 'Bhutesha'—O Controller of all beings!

'Devadeva'—O Supreme Deity even of deities! Just as deities exist surpassing humans, animals, birds, reptiles etc. by hosts of auspicious qualities like beauty, amiability etc., so also You exist surpassing all those deities by those respective qualities!

'Jagatpate'—O Master of the Universe!

Then what? 'Svayam' etc. You 'Svayam eva'—You alone—know Yourself, no one else. That too 'Atmana'—by Yourself, not by any other means.

With great reverence, he addresses Him in many ways—'O Purushottama'.

The addresses contain the reasons for His being Purushottama. 'O Bhutabhavana'—Creator of beings! 'Bhutesha'—Controller of beings! 'Devadeva'—Illuminator of gods like the Adityas! 'Jagatpate'—Protector of the Universe!

The competence of gods etc. to speak of the Lord's glory was refuted; now the competence of the Lord alone to speak of His own glory is stated with the verse 'Svayam eva'. Here 'Purushottama' is the name, and the rest are attributes useful for the connection with that name; to divide this, 'O Purushottama' was said first.

With the intention of recalling the Sruti 'You alone know Yourself, You are what You are' (Taittiriya Br./Kathaka 1.3.1), 'Atmanam' is explained as 'Tvam' (You). 'Svayam eva' implies the result—'by Your own knowledge'. 'Atmana'—meaning without being graced by others. Unlike others for whom 'Memory and knowledge come from Me' (15.15), it is not so for Him; this is the idea. Or, 'Atmana' is explained as 'by knowledge' (Janena), based on the lexicon reading 'Atma is used for soul... effort, sun, fire, intellect (mati), wind'.

To rule out the meaning of 'Bhavana' as 'thinking/worrying', he says 'Utpadayita' (Creator). To remove the doubt of redundancy between 'Bhutesha' and 'Jagatpati', 'Controllership' and 'Ownership/Mastery' are stated respectively. Although 'Pati' is derived in the sense of protection, it is conventional in the sense of 'Sheshitba' (Mastery/Principal).

The four meanings established by Srutis like 'He is the cause, the Lord of the lord of senses' (Svet. 6.9) and 'Him the Supreme Lord of lords, Him the Supreme Deity of deities, the Master of masters...' (Svet. 6.7) are propounded by the four adjectives 'Bhutabhavana' etc.; to indicate this, it is explained with the Sruti words 'Daivatanam api param daivatam'.

Since the word 'Deva' denotes a specific species and is not a relative term, the second 'Deva' word (in Deva-deva) is metaphorical, referring to specific excellence; thus he shows the basis of the metaphor common to the primary and secondary meanings with 'Yatha' etc. Mentioning animals, birds, reptiles is to show the insignificance of mutual differences and to indicate extreme difference (between them and gods, and gods and God). As insects are to gods, so are gods to the Supreme Self. 'All gods are insects where He is seen'—so it is said.

'Beauty and Amiability' imply the qualities of the Form and the qualities of the Self respectively.

यह श्लोक दर्शाता है कि किस प्रकार श्रीकृष्ण उस परम सत्य का वर्णन करने में सक्षम हैं? जिसे न स्वर्ग के देवता जान सकते हैं और न दानवगण। आत्मा को कभी प्रमाणों (इन्द्रियों) के द्वारा दृश्य पदार्थ के रूप में नहीं जाना जा सकता है? और न वह हमारी शुभ अशुभ प्रवृत्तियों के द्वारा ही अनुभव किया जा सकता है। परन्तु? आत्मा चैतन्य स्वरूप होने से स्वयं ज्ञानमय है और ज्ञान को जानने के लिए किसी अन्य प्रमाण (ज्ञान का साधन) की आवश्यकता नहीं होती। इसलिए अर्जुन यहाँ कहता है? आप स्वयं अपने से अपने आप को जानते हैं।सांख्यदर्शन के अनुसार प्रतिदेह में स्थित चैतन्य? पुरुष कहलाता है। यहाँ श्रीकृष्ण को पुरुषोत्तम नाम से सम्बोधित किया गया है? जिसका अर्थ है? वह एकमेव अद्वितीय तत्त्व जो भूतमात्र की आत्मा है। पुरुषोत्तम शब्द का लौकिक अर्थ है पुरुषों में उत्तम तथा अध्यात्मशास्त्र के अनुसार अर्थ है परमात्मा। अब अर्जुन? भगवान् श्रीकृष्ण के शुद्ध ब्रह्म के रूप में स्वीकार करके उनका गौरव गान करते हुए उन्हें इन नामों से सम्बोधित करता है? हे भूतभावन (भूतों की उत्पत्ति करने वाले) हे भूतेश हे देवों के देव हे जगत् के शासक स्वामी किसी भी वस्तु का सारतत्त्व उस वस्तु के गुणों का शासक और धारक होता है। स्वर्ण आभूषणों के आकार? आभा आदि गुणों का शासक होता है। परन्तु चैतन्य की नियमन एवं शासन की शक्ति अन्य की अपेक्षा अधिक है? क्योंकि उसके बिना हम न कुछ जान सकते हैं और न कुछ कर्म ही कर सकते हैं। वस्तुओं और घटनाओं का भान या ज्ञान तभी संभव होता है जब इनके द्वारा अन्तकरण में उत्पन्न वृत्तियाँ इस शुद्ध चैतन्यरूप आत्म्ाा से प्रकाशित होती हैं।अपने आश्चर्य? आदर और भक्ति को व्यक्त करने वाले इस कथन के बाद? अब अर्जुन सीधे ही भगवान् के समक्ष अपनी बौद्धिक जिज्ञासा को प्रकट करता है --

(This commentary explains 'Brahma'

and 'Vibhu' in the context of the previous verse,

which falls under this group of verses).

Since You are the source of all of them and unknowable (by them), therefore—'Svayam eva'—without instruction etc. from others; 'Tvam eva atmana'—by Your own nature; 'Atmanam'—Your unconditioned and conditioned form; the unconditioned as the Innermost Self not being an object, and the conditioned as possessing unsurpassable knowledge, opulence, power etc.; You 'Vettha'—know; no one else.

Removing the doubt 'How can I know what is unknowable by others?', he addresses Him in many ways out of longing love. 'O Purushottama'—compared to You, all other persons are indeed inferior. Therefore, what is impossible for them is indeed possible for You, the Supreme Person; this is the intention.

He elaborates on the state of being Purushottama with four more addresses. Because He produces (bhavayati) all beings, 'O Bhutabhavana'—O Father of all beings! A father may not be a ruler/controller, so he says 'O Bhutesha'—O Controller of all beings! A controller may not be worshipped, so he says 'O Devadeva'—O Worshippable even by the gods who are worshipped by all! One worshipped may not be a protector/master, so he says 'O Jagatpate'—O Protector of the entire world by being the author of the Vedas which instruct on what is beneficial and harmful.

Qualified by all such adjectives, You are the Father of all, Guru of all, King of all; therefore worshipped by all in all ways; so what need be said about Your being Purushottama—this is the purport.

Since others do not know, therefore You alone know Your own nature; he says 'Svayam eva' etc. 'Svayam'—by Your own will alone, not impelled by anyone. 'Atmana'—by Your own nature/self; 'Atmanam'—Yourself as You are; 'Tvam eva vettha'—You alone know. Addressing Him as being otherwise unknowable (by others)—'O Purushottama'—by whom or how can You be known? This is the meaning. Therefore, it is said in Brahmanda Purana: 'This Purushottama is not capable of being conceived/fully known by anyone.'

Objection: Then how was it said 'He who knows Me as Unborn and Beginningless' (10.3)? Anticipating this—by His grace, giving His own power of knowing Himself, He makes Himself known; this was stated in 'I give that Buddhi-yoga' (10.10).

Addressing Him in that capacity, he says 'Bhutabhavana' etc. 'O Bhutabhavana'—You produce beings, endow them with their nature. How does He do so? 'Bhutesha'—He is their Master and Controller; He does so because they are His own. Even being the Lord, why does He do so? 'Devadeva'—Worshippable even by the worshipped; being pleased by their worship etc., He does so. Then is it appropriate only for gods, not for all? 'Jagatpate'—He is the Pati, protector/guardian of the entire world; He does so for protection; this is the purport.

You 'Svayam eva'—by Yourself—'Vettha'—know 'Atmanam'—Yourself—the Lord possessed of unsurpassable knowledge, opulence, strength, etc., O Purushottama!

'Bhutabhavana'—He who produces/fosters beings. O Bhutabhavana! 'Bhutesha'—Ruler of beings. O Devadeva! O Jagatpate!

Then what? 'Svayam eva vettha'—You Yourself know; that too 'Atmana' (by Yourself), not by any other means.

स्वयम् Thyself? एव only? आत्मना by Thyself? आत्मानम् Thyself? वेत्थ (Thou) knowest? त्वम् Thou? पुरुषोत्तम O Purusha Supreme? भूतभावन O source of beings? भूतेश O Lord of beings? देवदेव O God of,gods? जगत्पते O ruler of the world.Commentary Purushottama means the best among all Purushas. He assumes the four forms? viz.? the source of beings? the Lord of beings? God of gods and ruler of the world. Hence He is called Purushottama.Devadeva is He who is worshipped even by Indra and other gods.Jagatpati The Lord protects the world and guides the people through the instructions given in the Vedas. Hence the name ruler of the world.

Purusottama, O supreme Person; bhuta-bhavana, O Creator of beings, one who brings the creatures into being; bhutesa, the Lord of beings; deva-deva, O God of gods; jagat-pate, the Lord of the worlds; tvam, You; svayam, Yourself; eva, alone; vettha, know; atmanam, Yourself, as God possessed of unsurpassable powers of knowledge, sovereignty, strength, etc.; atmana, by Yourself.

O Supreme Person, You Yourself know Yourself by Yourself; namely, by virtue of Your knowledge! O Creator of beings, namely, O Originator of all beings! O Lord of all beings, namely, O Controller of all beings! O God of gods, namely, O the Supreme Deity even of all divinities! Just as the gods surpass men, animals, birds, reptiles etc., in beauty, condescension and the host of auspicious alities, You, O Lord, in the same manner, transcend all these gods in all these attributes! O Ruler of the universe, O Master of the universe!