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Chapter 10 · The Opulence of the Absolute · 42 verses

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Remember who is speaking. Kṛṣṇa is speaking. Take the verse as He directs.
  2. 2Say the verse and its words. Read the Sanskrit, then each word with its meaning.
  3. 3Read the translation as it is. Let the translation say what it says, without adding your own meaning.
  4. 4Read the purport. Hear the verse through the disciplic succession.
  5. 5Bring your own question. Ask: where does this verse meet my life, my trouble, my doubt?
  6. 6Act on it, remembering Kṛṣṇa. Carry one instruction into your work today.
Read the full guide: how to read the Bhagavad-gītā ›
Krishna’s natureChapter 10 · The Opulence of the Absolute
9.3410.2

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 10.1

Krishna is the origin of all qualities and beings

Īśvara · God

श्रीभगवानुवाच

भूय एव महाबाहो श‍ृणु मे परमं वच: ।

यत्तेऽहं प्रीयमाणाय वक्ष्यामि हितकाम्यया ॥ १ ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca

bhūya eva mahā-bāho

śṛṇu me paramaṁ vacaḥ

yat te ’haṁ prīyamāṇāya

vakṣyāmi hita-kāmyayā

Translation

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Listen again, O mighty-armed Arjuna. Because you are My dear friend, for your benefit I shall speak to you further, giving knowledge that is better than what I have already explained.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

3 study points

Hear More About Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa asks His dear friend Arjuna to listen again as He gives him further, better knowledge for his benefit.

  2. 2

    Prabhupāda explains that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, full in strength, fame, wealth, knowledge, beauty and renunciation.

  3. 3

    Regularly hear about Kṛṣṇa with devotees to become more steady in devotional service.

Key points from the purport

Krishna tells us to listen carefully as He will reveal more wonderful knowledge about His opulences

Listen again

Qualification – “You are my dear friend”

“I shall speak for your benefit, knowledge that is better than what is already explained”

a

‘Bhagavan’ — Meaning of this word is explained by Parashara Muni as “One full of all six opulences”

b

What does ‘Sri Bhagavan’ (Krishna) offers in Chapter 10 compared to Chapter 9

Gives more confidential knowledge of His specific opulences and His work

In Chapter 7 the Lord explained His different energies and how they are acting

In Chapter 9 the Lord established His different energies to establish devotion in firm conviction

c

Benefits of hearing more (Hearing from/about Sri Bhagavan)

Fixed in devotional service – The more one hears, the more one becomes fixed in devotional service

Enhances devotional service – Hearing in the association of devotees enhances one’s devotional service

d

‘Eagerness to hear’ as the qualification — Discourses in the society of devotees can take place only among those who are really anxious to be in Krishna consciousness (Just like Arjuna’s qualification:

“You are dear to Me”)

Connected verses · 1

Texts 10.1 & 10.2

Texts 10.2 — 10.7 presents Krishna as the mysterious origin of everything

Further reading

Understanding Krishna’s Unknowablity, One Serves Him

His origin is impossible to understand for He is the source of all

That which has been created cannot independently understand its own source

One who understands this fact, serves Krishna with devotion

Chapter 10, section I: Understanding Krishna’s Unknowablity, One Serves Him
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. śrī-bhagavān uvācathe Supreme Personality of Godhead said
  2. bhūyaḥagain
  3. evacertainly
  4. mahā-bāhoO mighty-armed
  5. śṛṇujust hear
  6. meMy
  7. paramamsupreme
  8. vacaḥinstruction
3

Key ideas in this verse

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: bhagavān, vibhūti.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does BG 10.1 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to krishna’s nature?

Practice

Notice something excellent and see it as His opulence.

5

Related verses

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

BG 10.2Krishna is the origin of all qualities and beingsBG 10.3Krishna is the origin of all qualities and beingsBG 11.32Krishna reveals Himself as timeBG 11.51Composure returns in Krishna’s personal presence
Live this todayKṛṣṇa Is the SourceA practice from BG 10.8, close to this verse

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

  1. Learn
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  3. Lead
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