Shloka 8
Rāja-Vidyā Rāja-Guhya Yoga (राजविद्या राजगुह्य योग) — The Yoga of Royal Knowledge and Royal Secret
रसो5हमप्सु कौन्तेय प्रभास्मि शशिसूर्ययो: । प्रणव: सर्ववेदेषु शब्द: खे पौरुषं नूषु,हे अर्जुन! मैं जलमें रस हूँ, चन्द्रमा और सूर्यमें प्रकाश हूँ, सम्पूर्ण वेदोंमें ओंकार हूँ, आकाशमें शब्द और पुरुषोंमें पुरुषत्व हूँ
raso 'ham apsu kaunteya prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ | praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu śabdaḥ khe pauruṣaṁ nṛṣu ||
The Blessed Lord declares to Arjuna that His presence is to be recognized in the most essential qualities of things: He is the taste in water, the radiance in the moon and the sun, the sacred syllable Oṁ throughout all the Vedas, sound in the sky, and manliness in men. The ethical thrust is to train perception toward the Divine as the inner reality behind ordinary experience, fostering reverence, steadiness, and right orientation of action amid the impending war.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The Lord teaches vibhūti-yoga: recognize the Divine as the essential, sustaining excellence within common phenomena (taste in water, light in luminaries, Oṁ in the Vedas, sound in space, vigor in humans). This shifts attention from mere externals to the inner reality, supporting devotion, humility, and steadiness in righteous action.
In the midst of preparing for the Kurukṣetra war, Kṛṣṇa instructs Arjuna by describing how He can be perceived everywhere through characteristic powers and excellences. This verse is part of a sequence where Kṛṣṇa points to accessible signs of His presence to stabilize Arjuna’s understanding and devotion.