Bhagavad-gītā 10.36
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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dyūtam
—
gambling
Among chalayatām — 'cheats, those who deceive' — the supreme expression is gambling. The verse's most shocking item: Kṛṣṇa identifies even with this. Reading: the focused risk-taking of the gambler, not the moral failure of cheating, is His vibhūti.
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tejaḥ
—
the splendor
From tij — 'to be sharp, brilliant.' The radiance of the splendid. Whatever shines in any being shines because of borrowed tejas. Kṛṣṇa identifies with the brightness itself, in whomever it appears.
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jayaḥ
—
victory
From ji — 'to win.' Kṛṣṇa is victory itself — not a victor among others. The verse hands Arjuna the most relevant single word he could hear before battle. Wherever you see jaya, you are seeing Me.
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vyavasāyaḥ
—
enterprise or adventure
From vy-ava-so — 'to determine, resolve.' Decisive undertaking. The same word used in 2.41 (vyavasāyātmikā buddhi) for the resolute, single-pointed intelligence. Kṛṣṇa identifies with the steady determination behind any great enterprise.
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sattvam
—
the strength, the essential nature
Here used not as the mode of goodness but as 'essential being, vigor.' The strength of the strong. Kṛṣṇa is what makes the strong actually strong — the vibhūti at the core of all observed power.
Plain meaning (तात्पर्य · Tātparya)
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
| Sanskrit | IAST | Grammar | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| द्यूतम् | dyūtam | द्यूत (n.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) | gambling, dicing |
| छलयताम् | chalayatām | √छल् caus. (causative) pres. (present) act. part. gen.pl. (genitive plural)m. | among those who deceive |
| अस्मि | asmi | √अस् 1sg. | I am |
| तेजः | tejaḥ | तेजस् (n.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) | splendor, radiance |
| तेजस्विनाम् | tejasvinām | तेजस्विन् (adj.) gen.pl. (genitive plural)m. | of the splendid |
| अहम् | aham | अस्मद् nom.sg. (nominative singular) | I |
| जयः | jayaḥ | जय (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) | victory |
| व्यवसायः | vyavasāyaḥ | व्यवसाय (m.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) | resolute effort |
| सत्त्वम् | sattvam | सत्त्व (n.) nom.sg. (nominative singular) | essence, strength, goodness |
| सत्त्ववताम् | sattvavatām | सत्त्ववत् (adj.) gen.pl. (genitive plural)m. | of the strong/sattvic |
There are many kinds of cheaters all over the universe. Of all cheating processes, gambling stands supreme and therefore represents Kṛṣṇa. As the Supreme, Kṛṣṇa can be more deceitful than any mere man. If Kṛṣṇa chooses to deceive a person, no one can surpass Him in His deceit. His greatness is not simply one-sided – it is all-sided. Among the victorious, He is victory. He is the splendor of the splendid. Among the enterprising and industrious, He is the most enterprising, the most industrious. Among adventurers He is the most adventurous, and among the strong He is the strongest. When Kṛṣṇa was present on earth, no one could surpass Him in strength. Even in His childhood He lifted Govardhana Hill. No one can surpass Him in cheating, no one can surpass Him in splendor, no one can surpass Him in victory, no one can surpass Him in enterprise, and no one can surpass Him in strength.
Related to those who mutually cheat each other, I am gambling. Here genitive case is used to show relationship with the cheaters. Among the conquerors, I am victory. Among those who endeavor, I am effort. Among the strong, I am strength (sattvam).
In relation to those who cheat each other, I am gambling with dice, by which they lose everything. In those who have power, I am that power. In relation to conquerors, I am victory, subduing others. In relation to those endeavoring, I am that endeavor which yields results. In relation to the strong, I am their physical strength. (These are all cases of relationship rather than expressing an outstanding member of a group.)
10.36 द्यूतम् the gambling? छलयताम् of the fraudulent? अस्मि (I) am? तेजः splendour? तेजस्विनाम् of the splendid? अहम् I? जयः victory? अस्मि (I) am? व्यवसायः determination? अस्मि (I) am? सत्त्वम् the goodness? सत्त्ववताम् of the good? अहम् I.Commentary Of the methods of defrauding others I am gambling such as diceplay. Gambling is My manifestation. I am the power of the powerful. I am the victoyr of the victorious. I am the effort of those who make that effort.I am Sattva which assumes the forms of Dharma (virtue)? Jnana (knowledge)? Vairagya (dispassion)? and Aisvarya (wealth or lordship) in Sattvic persons.
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- Recognize that even ambivalent qualities (gambling) are within Him.
- Don't simplify Kṛṣṇa to only positive traits.
- Honor the full range of His opulences.
- Where have I sanitized Kṛṣṇa?
- What ambivalent quality is His specific manifestation?
A startling line of the chapter: even the gambling of cheats is Me. Kṛṣṇa does not say He is the cheating — He says He is the gambling, the strange focus and risk-acceptance even of those who break rules. He claims also the splendor of the splendid, the victory, the enterprise, the strength of the strong. Wherever raw life-force concentrates — even crookedly — that intensity is on loan from Him.
Yudhiṣṭhira, the most dharma-bound king, lost the entire kingdom — and almost lost Draupadī — in a dice game he could not win. The game was crooked; Śakuni's dice were loaded.
The Mahābhārata records the loss as Kṛṣṇa's tolerated tragedy. The verse here — 'dyūtam chalayatām' — claims even the very category of crooked gambling as Kṛṣṇa's vibhūti, perhaps so that Yudhiṣṭhira's later realization could be sharper: even in that crooked night, Kṛṣṇa was present, and the long arc of justice was already bending in His hand. The cheating was not outside His range.
My note
Source: vedabase.io