Amate Asakta Haye Yogera Sadhan

Now hear, O son of Prtha [Arjuna], how by practicing
yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached
to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.

I shall now declare unto
you in full this knowledge both phenomenal and noumenal,
by knowing which there shall remain nothing further to be known.

Out of many thousands
among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved
perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.

Earth, water, fire, air,
ether, mind, intelligence and false ego--all together these eight comprise My separated material energies.

Besides this inferior
nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is a superior
energy of Mine, which are all living entities who are
struggling with material nature and are sustaining the universe.

Of all that is material
and all that is spiritual in this world, know for certain that I am both its
origin and dissolution.

O conqueror of wealth [Arjuna], there is no Truth superior to Me. Everything rests
upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.

O son of Kunti [Arjuna], I am the taste of
water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable om in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and
ability in man.

I am the original
fragrance of the earth, and I am the heat in fire. I am the life of all that
lives, and I am the penances of all ascetics.

O son of Prtha, know that I am the original seed of all existences, the
intelligence of the intelligent, and the prowess of all powerful men.

I am the strength of
the strong, devoid of passion and desire. I am sex life which is not contrary
to religious principles, O Lord of the Bharatas [Arjuna].

All states of being--be
they of goodness, passion or ignorance--are manifested by My
energy. I am, in one sense, everything--but I am independent. I am not under
the modes of this material nature.

Deluded by the three
modes [goodness, passion and ignorance], the whole world does not know Me who
am above the modes and inexhaustible.

This divine energy of
Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to
overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can
easily cross beyond it.

Those miscreants who
are grossly foolish, lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by
illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons, do not surrender
unto Me.

O best among the Bharatas [Arjuna], four kinds of
pious men render devotional service unto Me--the
distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for
knowledge of the Absolute.

Of these, the wise one
who is in full knowledge in union with Me through pure
devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me.

All these devotees are
undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of Me I
consider verily to dwell in Me. Being engaged in My transcendental
service, he attains Me.

After many births and
deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me,
knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is
very rare.

Those whose minds are
distorted by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular
rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.

I am in everyone's
heart as the Supersoul. As soon as one desires to
worship the demigods, I make his faith steady so that he can devote himself to
some particular deity.

Endowed with such a
faith, he seeks favors of a particular demigod and obtains his desires. But in
actuality these benefits are bestowed by Me alone.

Men of small
intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those
who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees ultimately reach My supreme planet.

Unintelligent men, who
know Me not, think that I have assumed this form and
personality. Due to their small knowledge, they do not know My
higher nature, which is changeless and supreme.

I am never manifest to
the foolish and unintelligent. For them I am covered by My
eternal creative potency [yoga-maya]; and so the
deluded world knows Me not, who am unborn and infallible.

O Arjuna,
as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, I know everything that has happened in
the past, all that is happening in the present, and all things that are yet to
come. I also know all living entities; but Me no one
knows.

O scion of Bharata [Arjuna], O conqueror of
the foe, all living entities are born into delusion, overcome by the dualities
of desire and hate.

Persons who have acted
piously in previous lives and in this life, whose sinful actions are completely
eradicated and who are freed from the duality of delusion, engage themselves in
My service with determination.

Intelligent persons who
are endeavoring for liberation from old age and death take refuge in Me in devotional service. They are actually Brahman because
they entirely know everything about transcendental and fruitive
activities.

Those who know Me as
the Supreme Lord, as the governing principle of the material manifestation, who
know Me as the one underlying all the demigods and as the one sustaining all
sacrifices, can, with steadfast mind, understand and know Me even at the time
of death.

Thus Bhaktivedanta sings the song of Sri Gita, with the hope that hearing this, Krsna
conscious pure devotees will be pleased.