Those who realize true wisdom,
Rapt within this clear awareness,
See me as the universe’s
Origin, imperishable.
All their words and all their actions
Issue from the depths of worship;
Held in my embrace, they know me
As a woman knows her lover.
Creatures rise, creatures vanish;
I alone am real, Arjuna,
Looking out, amused, from deep
Within the eyes of every creature.
I am the object of all knowledge,
Father of the world, its mother,
Source of all things, of impure and
Pure, of holiness and horror.
I am the goal, the root, the witness,
Home and refuge, dearest friend,
Creation and annihilation,
Everlasting seed and treasure.
I am the radiance of the sun, I
Open and withhold the rain clouds,
I am immortality and
Death, am being and non-being.
I am the self, Arjuna, seated
In the heart of every creature.
I am the origin, the middle,
And the end of that all must come to.
Those who worship me sincerely
With their minds and bodies, giving
Up their whole lives in devotion,
Find in me their heart’s fulfillment.
Even those who do not know me,
If their actions are straightforward,
Just, and loving, venerate me
With the truest kind of worship.
All your thoughts, all your actions,
All your fears and disappointments,
Offer them to me, clear-hearted;
Know them all as passing visions.
Thus you free yourself from bondage,
From both good and evil karma;
Through your non-attachment, you
Embody me, in utter freedom.
I am justice: clear, impartial,
Favoring no one, hating no one.
But in those who have cured themselves of
Selfishness, I shine with brilliance.
I am always with all beings;
I abandon no one. And
However great your inner darkness,
You are never separate from me.
Let your thoughts flow past you, calmly;
Keep me near, at every moment;
Trust me with your life, because I
Am you, more than you yourself are.
excerpt from The Bhagadvad Gita, translation by Stephen Mitchell