Verses 10.12–10.18
अर्जुन उवाच | परं ब्रह्म परं धाम पवित्रं परमं भवान् | पुरुषं शाश्वतं दिव्यमादिदेवमजं विभुम्
arjuna uvāca paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān / puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ divyam ādidevamajaṁ vibhum / / 10.12
Arjuna says: You are the supreme truth, supreme suste- nance, supremely purifier, the primal, eternal and glorious Lord.
आहुस्त्वामृषय: सर्वे देवर्षिर्नारदस्तथा | असितो देवलो व्यास: स्वयं चैव ब्रवीषि मे
āhustvāmṛṣayaḥ sarve devarṣiṛnāradastathā / asito devalo vyāsaḥ svayaṁ caiva bravīṣi me / / 10.13
All the sages like Nārada, Asita, Devala, and Vyāsa have explained this. Now you are personally explaining to me.
सर्वमेतदृतं मन्ये यन्मां वदसि केशव | न हि ते भगवन्व्यक्तिं विदुर्देवा न दानवा:
sarvametadṛtaṁ manye yanmāṁ vadasi keśava / na hi te bhagavanvyaktiṁ vidurdevā na dānavāḥ / / 10.14
Oh Keśava, I accept all these truths that You have told me. Oh Lord, neither he gods nor the demons know You.
स्वयमेवात्मनात्मानं वेत्थ त्वं पुरुषोत्तम | भूतभावन भूतेश देवदेव जगत्पते
svayamevātmanātmānaṁ vettha tvaṁ puruṣottama / bhūtabhāvana bhūteśa devadeva jagatpate / / 10.15
Surely, You alone know Yourself by Yourself, Oh Perfect One, the origin of beings, Oh Lord of beings, Oh God of gods, Oh Lord of the world.
वक्तुमर्हस्यशेषेण दिव्या ह्यात्मविभूतय: | याभिर्विभूतिभिर्लोकानिमांस्त्वं व्याप्य तिष्ठसि
vaktumarhasyaśeṣeṇa divyā hyātmavibhūtayaḥ / yābhirvibhūtibhirlokān imāṁstvaṁ vyāpya tiṣṭhasi / / 10.16
Only You can describe in detail Your divine glories by which You pervade this universe.
कथं विद्यामहं योगिंस्त्वां सदा परिचिन्तयन् | केषु केषु च भावेषु चिन्त्योऽसि भगवन्मया
kathaṁ vidyāmahaṁ yogiṁs tvāṁ sadā paricintayan / keṣu keṣu ca bhāveṣu cintyo’si bhagavanmayā / / 10.17
How may I know You by contemplation? In which forms should I contemplate on You, Oh Lord?
विस्तरेणात्मनो योगं विभूतिं च जनार्दन | भूय: कथय तृप्तिर्हि शृण्वतो नास्ति मेऽमृतम्
vistareṇātmano yogaṁ vibhūtiṁ ca janārdana / bhūyaḥ kathaya tṛptirhi śṛṇvato nāsti me’mṛtam / / 10.18
Tell me in detail of your powers and glories, Oh Janār- dana. Again, please tell for my satisfaction as I do not tire of hearing your sweet words.
Arjuna becomes the perfect disciple. He has no doubts about whatever Kṛṣṇa has said to him so far. It only corroborates what the great sages have said. All that Arjuna seeks is that his Lord and Master tells him more about Himself, His glories, ‘I just need to know how I should approach You, how I should see You. Tell me more, I can never tire of listening to Your words.’ Arjuna is in love with His Master. When you are in such deep love as Arjuna is now, and as the gopīs were with Kṛṣṇa in Briṇdāvan, there is nothing to be said. There is nothing even to be heard.
Whatever Arjuna says is merely to keep his end of the dialogue going. Arjuna knows that there is no need for Kṛṣṇa to say anything now. Yes, he would be delighted if Kṛṣṇa were to speak of His glories, His līlā. However, Arjuna is in such a state of meditation, ready for his ultimate experience, that whatever his Master says or does would not matter to him. Therefore, when Arjuna asks the Lord to talk about His glories that no one else understands, Arjuna is requesting on behalf of humanity. He would have been perfectly happy to sit in silence, in deep meditation upon Kṛṣṇa. And in His compassion, Kṛṣṇa would have eventually revealed Himself to his chosen disciple.
However, the rest of humanity would not have been enriched from a revelation that came to Arjuna alone. Arjuna wants to know about Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa, the Ultimate Superconscious being. He does not want to know about his friend and charioteer, Vāsudeva Kṛṣṇa, the son of Vāsudeva. Arjuna is in the mood of the perfect devotee and disciple. Anything that he can listen about his Master is nectar to his ears. He is in a state of complete immersion. Rāmakṛṣṇa asked Vivekananda, ‘If you were a fly and you were on the rim of the cup of nectar, what would you do?’ Vivekananda said, ‘Sip from the cup, of course, what else?’
‘You fool!’ said the Master, ‘You should fall into the nectar and submerge yourself! When would you ever get this opportunity again? Arjuna is on that verge of immersion. His intellect has almost disappeared. He needs the last nudge, so to speak. You too, as the reader, make your plea to Parabrahma Kṛṣṇa, the Jagatguru, so that He may tell you about His glory, and so that you may meditate upon His glory with single pointed focus of the mind. As He promised, He will provide the light of wisdom for you to be enlightened. I am The Beginning, Middle And End