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← Chapter 11: The Yoga of the Vision of the Universal Form

Verse 11.39

Speaker: Arjuna

Sanskrit

वायुर्यमोऽग्निर्वरुणः शशाङ्कः प्रजापतिस्त्वं प्रपितामहश्च | नमो नमस्तेऽस्तु सहस्रकृत्वः पुनश्च भूयोऽपि नमो नमस्ते ||३९||

Transliteration (IAST)

vāyur yamo 'gnir varuṇaḥ śaśāṅkaḥ prajāpatis tvaṁ prapitāmahaś ca | namo namas te 'stu sahasra-kṛtvaḥ punaś ca bhūyo 'pi namo namas te ||39||

Word-by-Word Meanings

vāyuḥ-the wind god
yamaḥ-the god of death
agniḥ-the fire god
varuṇaḥ-the water god
śaśāṅkaḥ-the moon
prajāpatiḥ-the lord of creatures
prapitāmahaḥ-the great-grandfather
namaḥ sahasra-kṛtvaḥ-salutations a thousand times

Translation

You are Vayu, Yama, Agni, Varuna, the moon, Prajapati, and the great-grandfather of all. Salutations to You a thousand times, and again and again salutations to You.

Commentary

Arjuna identifies Krishna with all the principal Vedic deities and cosmic functions. The repeated 'namo namaḥ' expresses the inadequacy of finite praise before the Infinite. Shankaracharya notes that 'prapitāmaha' (great-grandfather) indicates Krishna is the source even of Brahma, who is called the grandfather of creation.

Themes

bhaktisurrender