The Bhagavad Gita Interpreted - Part Seven

Krishna said,

—Focus your mind on Me. In the practice of My discipline you will find refuge in Me. Knowing with My knowledge, there is nothing more to know. Of a thousand men, only one performs My discipline. Of a thousand of these, only one reaches Me.

—Like you, I am formed of earth and water, fire and air and ether. Like you I am mind and sense and self. But My higher nature is the One at whose command the worlds were made. I am the wellspring of all things. I am all beginnings, all endings. Nothing transcends Me, for I transcend all things. The worlds are a necklace of pearls; I am the unseen thread that binds them.

—I am the taste of pure waters and the brightness of sun and moon. I am the sacred name in scripture. I am the sound of the heavens. I am the strength of men.

—I am fragrance of the earth and the fire of the sun. I am the life that informs all lives. I am the austerity of ascetics. I am the source of all lives and the wisdom of the wise. I am the glory of the most glorious.

—I am action free of encumbrance. I am desire that is lawful. All existence hangs on Me.

—I am the source of the three states: creation, preservation, destruction. I am not in their service; they are in Mine. Deceived by these three states, their eyes beguiled by them, men fail to perceive Me. To escape the deception of these three states is difficult. But coming to Me, their illusion dissolves, while those who reject Me are bewitched by delusion and are lost to Me.

—Those who seek deliverance from suffering, those who pursue knowledge of Me, those who solicit Me for riches and blessings, and those who desire Me for My sake, these four are my devotees. But the best of these four is the one who desires Me alone and above all that is. Ever devoted to Me, he is in balance. I am his best beloved, and I love him.

—While each of these four is good, the one who loves Me for My sake exceeds the rest. I am his single wish; I am his straight path; I am his goal.

—In this life and the next, he comes to Me declaring, “There is only the Most High, the Best Beloved.” Such a man is incomparably rare.

—But others are waylaid by desire and turn to other gods. Adoring these gods, worshipping faithfully, I give their faith an invincible strength. If the gods seem to bless them or answer their prayers, it is only I who provide for them; it is I who answers their prayers. But the rewards they receive are fleeting. Those who worship the gods, they belong to the gods. But those who worship Me come to Me.

—Men lacking perception see only My lower nature and account it for little. They are blind to My transcendent Self, ineffable and unending. Concealed behind the veil of My creation, the world does not see that I am unborn, never dying. I know all that was, all that is, all that will ever be, but no one knows Me.

—All creatures are driven by passions, by desire and aversion and live in delusion. But when men are unbound from the fruits of action, they are unbound from delusion and devote themselves to Me for My sake.

—Those who seek shelter in Me, to free themselves from age and death, they know the Most High is transcendent; they know the Most High is immanent, and they recognize the fruits of action. They know Me in this world and the next. They know me in the sacrifice of action. They are purified and in balance. When they die, think not that they are dead; they are with Me.