वक्तुमर्हस्यशेषेण दिव्या ह्यात्मविभूतयः। याभिर्विभूतिभिर्लोकानिमांस्त्वं व्याप्य तिष्ठसि।।10.16।।
vaktum arhasiśeṣeṇa divyāḥ hi ātma‑vibhūtayaḥ | yābhiḥ vibhūtibhiḥ lokān imān tvam vyāpya tiṣṭhasi ||10.16||
Translation
You alone are worthy of fully describing Your divine opulences; by those opulences You pervade and remain in all these worlds.
Word Meanings
vaktum — to say; arhasi — you deserve; aśeṣeṇa — in detail; divyāḥ — divine; hi — certainly; ātma — your own; vibhūtayaḥ — opulences; yābhiḥ — by which; vibhūtibhiḥ — opulences; lokān — all the planets; imān — these; tvam — you; vyāpya — pervading; tiṣṭhasi — remain.
Understanding the Verse
In this verse of the Vibhuti‑Yoga, Krishna responds to Arjuna’s request to hear about His divine manifestations. The opening word “vaktum” (to say) indicates that the Lord is about to disclose the complete list of His wondrous powers. The phrase “arhasi‑śeṣeṇa” emphasizes that only the Supreme, who alone is fully qualified, can declare these splendors in exhaustive detail. It underscores the unique status of the Divine as the source of all opulence and the only one capable of enumerating it without omission.
The term “divyāḥ hi ātma‑vibhūtayaḥ” highlights that the splendours being spoken of are not ordinary worldly powers but divine manifestations inherent in the Lord’s own nature. They are the inherent qualities (vibhūtas) that emanate from His supreme self‑hood (ātman). This distinction sets the stage for a deeper understanding that these opulences are an expression of the ultimate reality, not merely material riches.
Krishna then introduces the principle “yābhiḥ vibhūtibhiḥ” – ‘by those opulences’. Here he indicates that the very powers that are his own also serve as the means by which the Divine pervades creation. Through His opulences, He sustains, supports, and governs the cosmos. The verse thus presents an inseparable link between the Lord’s inherent qualities and the functioning of the universe.
The phrase “lokān imān” (these worlds) refers to all realms of existence, from the material planets to the subtle spiritual worlds. By stating that He “vyāpya tiṣṭhasi” – ‘you pervade and remain’, the Lord affirms that His presence is all‑pervasive, residing within every particle of the created order while simultaneously transcending it. This dual aspect of immanence and transcendence is a central theme of the Gita, revealing that while the Divine is the inner essence of all things, He also remains untouched by the limitations of the manifest world.
Finally, the verse serves a pedagogical purpose: it prepares Arjuna (and the seeker) for a systematic revelation of Krishna’s divine manifestations that follows in the subsequent verses. By affirming that only the Lord can fully articulate His opulences, Krishna establishes both his authority and the importance of reverence when approaching the divine mystery. The verse thus invites the practitioner to recognize the limitless nature of divine power and to cultivate humility in the face of the Supreme’s boundless glory.
