Bhagavad-gītā 10.7
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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vibhūtim
—
opulence
The chapter's title-word. Not mere wealth but the manifest excellences by which the Lord pervades the cosmos. The verse promises that knowing these correctly does not produce mere awe — it produces yoga.
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yogam
—
mystic power
Here paired with vibhūti to mean Kṛṣṇa's inconceivable potency that holds all opulences together. To know yoga in this sense is to grasp the Person whose power is on display.
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tattvataḥ
—
factually
Ablative of tattva, 'thatness, reality.' The verse's hinge. Casual admiration of God's greatness produces nothing; factual conviction produces undivided service. The word excludes sentiment-without-substance.
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avikalpena
—
without division
Negates vikalpa — alternative, doubt, mental wavering. Once factually convinced, the devotee does not keep one foot in another option. The yoga is single-minded.
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yogena
—
in devotional service
Instrumental — 'by means of yoga.' The result of factual knowledge is not knowledge alone but engagement. The verse links cognition and action: right understanding necessarily moves the body into service.
The highest summit of spiritual perfection is knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Unless one is firmly convinced of the different opulences of the Supreme Lord, he cannot engage in devotional service. Generally people know that God is great, but they do not know in detail how God is great. Here are the details. If one knows factually how God is great, then naturally he becomes a surrendered soul and engages himself in the devotional service of the Lord. When one factually knows the opulences of the Supreme, there is no alternative but to surrender to Him. This factual knowledge can be known from the descriptions in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and Bhagavad-gītā and similar literatures. In the administration of this universe there are many demigods distributed throughout the planetary system, and the chief of them are Brahmā, Lord Śiva and the four great Kumāras and the other patriarchs. There are many forefathers of the population of the universe, and all of them are born of the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is the original forefather of all forefathers. These are some of the opulences of the Supreme Lord. When one is firmly convinced of them, he accepts Kṛṣṇa with great faith and without any doubt, and he engages in devotional service. All this particular knowledge is required in order to increase one’s interest in the loving devotional service of the Lord. One should not neglect to understand fully how great Kṛṣṇa is, for by knowing the greatness of Kṛṣṇa one will be able to be fixed in sincere devotional service.
But according to My own statement, I can be attained only by pure bhakti: bhakty āham ekayā grahyaḥ: (SB 11.14.21) Only My ananya-bhakta, receiving firm faith in My words by My mercy, knows the truth about Me. That is stated in this verse. He who knows the vibhūtis of which I will speak in summary and who knows bhakti-yoga (etāṁ vibhūtiṁ yogaṁ ca); who then becomes endowed with even stronger faith, thinking “This alone is the highest truth (tattvataḥ), because My master Kṛṣṇa has said so,” becomes endowed with unwavering (avikalpena) bhakti-yoga—which is characterized by knowledge of My true nature (yogena). There is no doubt about this.
This verse states the results of that knowledge of the subject of vibhūti. This vibhūti (etām vibhūṭim) is characterized by the greatest power: this whole manifested universe, headed by Brahmā, Śiva and other devatās, the great sages headed by Sanaka and the Manus headed by Svāyambhūva is endowed with śakti of knowledge and power, dependent on Me, which maintains their existence and movement. Yoga refers to My connection with the jewels of auspicious qualities such as having no beginning and no birth. He who knows this vibhūti (power and knowledge which maintain and activate the world) and this yoga (qualities of the Lord), who receives them with strong faith, thinking they are true (tattvataḥ) because they are spoken by the son of Vāsudeva, the omniscient Supreme Lord, becomes endowed (yujyate) with steady bhakti yoga for Me (avikampena yogena). Knowledge of Me related to such things gives rise to, and increases devotion to Me. That is the meaning.
To explain this further, Krsna in the next four verses is going to summarize the all Bhagavad‑gita. In the first verse of this Catur‑sloki, Krsna is going to summarize His opulences. In the second verse He is going to describe how the devotees who know His opulences, who are convinced about His opulences, how they relate with Him. And in the following two verses, Krsna will describe how He relates with those devotees.
[B. THE CATUR‑SLOKI (10. 8‑11) The Lord explains the catur‑sloki: "I am the source of all the spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who perfectly know this, engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts. The thoughts of my pure devotees dwell in Me, their lives are surrendered to Me, and they derive great satisfaction and bliss enlivening one another and conversing about Me. To those constantly devoted to serving Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me. To show them special mercy, I, dwelling in their hearts, destroy with the shining lamp of knowledge, the darkness born of ignorance." ]
Appreciating Krishna’s position leads to surrender
(a) Highest summit of spiritual perfection – Knowledge of Supreme Personality of Godhead
(b) Knowing ‘God as Great’ – Generally people know God is great, but they do not know in detail –
how God is great
(a) ‘Hiryanyagarbha’ – refers to Brahmaji who is the original creator born out of the energy of the
Supreme Lord
(b) Patriarchs of the living entities – 25 great sages = 4 Great sages born from Brahma (4 Kumaras) + 7
Great sages born from Brahma + 14 Manus
(c) Tapasya of Brahma – lasted 1000 demigod years – He realised by Krishna’s grace how to create
(d) Krishna is Prapitamaha (father of grandfather) and Brahma is known as Pitamaha (grandfather)
10.7 एताम् this? विभूतिम् (manifold) manifestation of My Being? Commentary Knowledge of the glory of the Lord is really conducive to Yoga. He who knows in essence the immanent pervading power of the Lord by which He causes the manifestations? and His diverse manifestations (Vibhutis)? unites with Him in firm unalterable Yoga and attains eternal bliss and perfect harmony. From the ant to the Creator there is nothing except the Lord. He who knows in reality this extensive manifestation of the Lord and His Yoga (Yoga here stands for what is born of Yoga? viz.? infinite Yogic powers as well as omniscience)? is endowed with firm unwavering Yoga. He lives in the Eternal and is endowed with the highest knowledge of the Self. He who has realised this Truth is free from the superiority and inferiority complexes. There i real awakening of wisdom in him. He will behold the Lord in all beings and all beings in the Lord. He will never hate any creature on this earth. This is a rare living cosmic experience. The Yogi realises that the Lord and His manifestations are one. He attains the supreme goal and is absorbed in Him through his wholehearted devotion. He is perfectly aware of his oneness with the Supreme by My divine Yoga.He can keep his balance of mind now in whatever environments and circumstances he is placed and can do any action without losing his consciousness of oneness or identity with the Supreme Self. (Cf.VII.25IX.5XI.8)What is that unshaken Yoga with which they are endowedThe answer follows.
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- Cultivate knowledge of Kṛṣṇa's opulence (vibhūti).
- Trust that the right knowledge produces unfaltering devotion.
- Don't try to manufacture devotion without knowledge.
- What opulence of Kṛṣṇa am I underexposed to?
- How would deeper exposure change my devotion?
A traveler who has finally seen the king himself does not waste another afternoon admiring the king's wealth from outside the palace gate. So one who factually understands Kṛṣṇa's opulence and mystic power does not stop at the opulence — he is drawn straight into undivided service of the Person behind it.
Uddhava had seen Kṛṣṇa lift Govardhana, kill demons, marry queens, govern Dvārakā, and counsel Arjuna in battle. He had every reason to be dazzled by vibhūti — and he was. But the dazzle did not stop at admiration; it crystallized into unwavering devotion.
In the eleventh canto of the Bhāgavatam, Kṛṣṇa entrusts to Uddhava the final instructions before His departure. Why Uddhava? Because his knowledge of the opulences had transformed, exactly as this verse predicts, into avikalpena yogena — undivided yoga. The witness had become the servant.
My note
Source: vedabase.io