Yoga through Beholding the Cosmic Form of God
Verse 11.37
कस्माच्च ते न नमेरन्महात्मन् गरीयसे ब्रह्मणोऽप्यादिकर्त्रे। अनन्त देवेश जगन्निवास त्वमक्षरं सदसत्तत्परं यत्।।11.37।।
kasmāch cha te na nameran mahātman garīyase brahmaṇo ’py ādi-kartre ananta deveśha jagan-nivāsa tvam akṣharaṁ sad-asat tat paraṁ yat
Word Meanings
kasmāt—why; cha—and; te—you; na nameran—should they not bow down; mahā-ātman—The Great one; garīyase—who are greater; brahmaṇaḥ—than Brahma; api—even; ādi-kartre—to the original creator; ananta—The limitless One; deva-īśha—Lord of the devatās; jagat-nivāsa—Refuge of the universe; tvam—you; akṣharam—the imperishable; sat-asat—manifest and non-manifest; tat—that; param—beyond; yat—which
Translation · English
And why should they not, O great Soul, bow to Thee Who art greater than all else, the primal cause even of the Creator (Brahma), O Infinite Being, O Lord of the gods, O Abode of the universe; Thou art the imperishable, the Being, the non-being, and That which is supreme—that which is beyond the Being and the non-being.
Deep Meaning · English
In this moment of profound surrender, Arjuna moves beyond the familiar dynamic of friendship with Krishna to recognize Him as the ultimate ontological ground of all reality. By addressing Krishna as 'Mahatman' (the Great Soul) and the creator of Brahma, Arjuna acknowledges that Krishna is not merely a manifestation within time, but the timeless source from which the architect of the universe himself emerges. This shift represents the transition from viewing the Divine as a reachable goal to realizing the Divine as the immutable substrate that permeates all existence—both the manifest (sat) and the unmanifest (asat).
True surrender arises when the seeker recognizes that the Divine is not an entity to be worshipped, but the infinite, transcendental reality that encompasses the entirety of existence and exists even beyond its dualities.
Connected Verses
Discusses the concept of the 'Anadi' (beginningless) Brahman that is neither sat nor asat, mirroring the philosophical depth of this verse.
Arjuna declares Krishna as the imperishable and the guardian of eternal dharma, directly aligning with the recognition of Him as Aksharam.
Explains that all beings exist within the Divine, echoing the title 'Jagat-nivasa' used in this verse.
Establishes Krishna as the string upon which the entire universe is woven, reinforcing the idea of Him as the ultimate support.
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