Gita 09.17 – Krishna is the sustainer of our sustainers

Link: https://www.thespiritualscientist.com/gita-09-17-krishna-is-the-sustainer-of-our-sustainers/

pitāham asya jagato
mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ
vedyaṁ pavitram oṁ-kāra
ṛk sāma yajur eva ca (Bg 9.17)

Word-to-word:
pitā — father; aham — I; asya — of this; jagataḥ — universe; mātā — mother; dhātā — supporter; pitāmahaḥ — grandfather; vedyam — what is to be known; pavitram — that which purifies; oṁ-kāra — the syllable oṁ; ṛk — the Ṛg Veda; sāma — the Sāma Veda; yajuḥ — the Yajur Veda; eva — certainly; ca — and.

Translation:
I am the father of this universe, the mother, the support and the grandsire. I am the object of knowledge, the purifier and the syllable oṁ. I am also the Ṛg, the Sāma and the Yajur Vedas.

Explanation:
Kṛṣṇa explains here how He underlies the entire universe—how He is both the source and the sustainer of all existence. Verses 9.16 to 9.19 elaborate upon the idea of viśvato-mukham, the all-pervading manifestation of the Absolute Truth.

In verse 9.15, Kṛṣṇa states, jñāna-yajñena cāpy anye yajanto mām upāsate ekatvena pṛthaktvena bahudhā viśvato-mukham. He refers here to a group of people described as anye—others—who are distinct from the mūḍhās mentioned in verses 9.11 and 9.12, and also distinct from the mahātmās described in verses 9.13 and 9.14. These individuals fall somewhere between the two.

They worship Him through jñāna-yajña, the sacrifice of knowledge. Through this intellectual and contemplative approach, they worship Him as manifested in oneness, in diversity, and in manifold forms—as the all-pervading Absolute. How such worship is conceived is explained in this verse.

Kṛṣṇa says:
pitāham asya jagato: I am the father of this universe,
mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ: the mother, the sustainer, and the grandsire,
vedyaṁ pavitram oṁ-kāra: I am the object of knowledge, the purifier, and the sacred syllable Oṁ,
ṛk sāma yajur eva ca: and I am also the Ṛg, Sāma, and Yajur Vedas.

In the first line, Kṛṣṇa says pitāham asya jagato—I am the father of this universe. It is significant that here He does not say that He is the father of all living beings within the universe. Rather, He is identifying Himself as the progenitor of the universe as a whole.

The idea of Kṛṣṇa as the father of all living beings is stated more explicitly later, in verse 14.4, where He says: sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya mūrtayaḥ sambhavanti yāḥ tāsāṁ brahma mahad yonir ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā. There, Kṛṣṇa declares that He is the seed-giving father of all living entities, regardless of the species or form in which they take birth.

Here, in 9.17, Kṛṣṇa says, “I am the father of the universe.” What does it mean to be the father of the universe? Ordinarily, a father is one who begets. This raises the question of how the universe itself can be begotten.

Here, the expression is not meant to be taken in a strictly literal sense. Rather, it conveys that Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate source and origin of everything that exists within the universe, including all living beings. Since the discussion in this section centers on the manifestation of the Lord as the universe itself, viśvato-mukham, such a non-literal usage is not only acceptable but especially appropriate.

Krsna says, I am not just the father, but I am also the mother and the grandsire—mata, dhata, pitamaha—mother, sustainer, and grandsire.

Normally, we say terms like ‘father of the nation.’ For example, Mahatma Gandhi is called the father of the country, India. Likewise, this father is, of course, in a non-literal sense, yet it conveys an important relationship with the country as a primary formulating influence.

Here, we have that close, proximate relationship that Krsna has—at least as it is envisioned by the people performing jnana-yajna through viśvato-mukham. For them, Krsna is revealing how they can do so.

There are some people who consider nature itself to be God. Such people often espouse the doctrine known as naturalism. According to this view, there is no truth beyond nature, or even if there is some truth beyond nature, it is inconsequential for the study of nature because it does not interfere with how nature functions. Nature itself is thus regarded as the highest truth.

This kind of deification of nature, elevating it to an absolute status, is a mistake—indeed, more than a mistake, it is a blunder. When nature is analyzed purely in terms of matter and material components, it does not have the capacity to explain consciousness. Consciousness remains a fundamental mystery of the universe, one that material nature alone cannot adequately account for.

Here, Kṛṣṇa gives us a vision of how the universe cannot function without consciousness. Consciousness is the active principle within the universe, and that consciousness rests upon the Supreme Consciousness. When one is an infant, one is sustained by one’s mother and father. One belongs to a family and a lineage, and that lineage extends to one’s grandfather. When Kṛṣṇa states, ‘I am the father, I am the mother, and I am the grandfather,’ He means that whatever material sources of sustenance we perceive in this world are themselves sustained by Him. Ultimately, they have no independent power either to create life or to maintain life.

Then Kṛṣṇa says, vedyaṁ pavitram oṁ-kāra ṛk sāma yajur eva ca. The purpose of living is not merely living. If we think that life is only about survival, then we will eventually reach our deathbed, depart from this world, and our purpose of living will be permanently, irreversibly, and inescapably frustrated.

The true purpose of living is purification, so that we may live at the eternal spiritual level of reality. To purify ourselves and raise our consciousness from the material level to the spiritual level, from the mortal to the immortal, we require aids.

Therefore, Kṛṣṇa says pavitram oṁ-kāra—He Himself is the oṁ-kāra. Kṛṣṇa has already identified Himself with the praṇava in 7.8—praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu—where He says that He is the praṇava in all the Vedic mantras. Here, again, He says, vedyaṁ pavitram oṁ-kāra—I am the purifying oṁ-kāra. Kṛṣṇa will return to this point later, in the tenth chapter in the Vibhūti-yoga, and again in the seventeenth chapter, when He speaks of oṁ tat sat towards the conclusion of that chapter.

At present, Kṛṣṇa says that both the purification to be effected and the means of that purification are represented by oṁ. Here, oṁ stands for the various mantras used for purification. Whatever the methods of purification may be, they are all represented by the word oṁ, and Kṛṣṇa declares that He Himself is that oṁ.

Then He says, ṛk sāma yajur eva ca. The word ‘ca’ means ‘also’ or ‘certainly.’ The ācāryas have explained that this indicates the fourth Veda, which is not explicitly mentioned here—Ṛg, Sāma, Yajur, and Atharva.

Our present existence is bilateral—it has both a material side and a spiritual side. The material side is provided for by pitā, mātā, pitāmahaḥ, while the spiritual side is taken care of by mantras such as oṁ, and of course the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, which is the yuga-dharma for this age. These prescriptions for all-round, balanced living—taking care of both the material and the spiritual sides—are given in the Vedas. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa says, “I am the Vedas.”

Thus, in this verse, Kṛṣṇa affirms that He is the source and sustainer of the universe, the purifying sacred syllable oṁ, and the ultimate purpose of all the Vedas.

Thank you.