Text 20

अहमात्मा गुडाकेश सर्वभूताशयस्थितः ।
अहमादिश्च मध्यं च भूतानामन्त एव च ॥२०॥

aham ātmā guḍākeśa
sarva-bhūtāśaya-sthitaḥ
aham ādiś ca madhyaḿ ca
bhūtānām anta eva ca

Translation:

I am the Supersoul, O Arjuna, seated in the hearts of all living entities. I am the beginning, the middle and the end of all beings.

Purport:

In this verse Arjuna is addressed as Gudakesa, which means "one who has conquered the darkness of sleep." For those who are sleeping in the darkness of ignorance, it is not possible to understand how the Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests Himself in various ways in the material and spiritual worlds. Thus this address by Krishna to Arjuna is significant. Because Arjuna is above such darkness, the Personality of Godhead agrees to describe His various opulences.

Krishna first informs Arjuna that He is the soul of the entire cosmic manifestation by dint of His primary expansion. Before the material creation, the Supreme Lord, by His plenary expansion, accepts the purusha incarnations, and from Him everything begins. Therefore He is atma, the soul of the mahat-tattva, the universal elements. The total material energy is not the cause of the creation; actually the Maha-Vishnu enters into the mahat-tattva, the total material energy. He is the soul. When Maha-Vishnu enters into the manifested universes, He again manifests Himself as the Supersoul in each and every entity. We have experience that the personal body of the living entity exists due to the presence of the spiritual spark. Without the existence of the spiritual spark, the body cannot develop. Similarly, the material manifestation cannot develop unless the Supreme Soul, Krishna, enters. As stated in the Subala Upanishad, prakrity-adi-sarva-bhutantar-yami sarva-seshi ca narayanah: "The Supreme Personality of Godhead is existing as the Supersoul in all manifested universes."

The three purusha-avataras are described in Srimad-Bhagavatam. They are also described in the Satvata-tantra. Vishnos tu trini rupani purushakhyany atho viduh: the Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests three features -- as Karanodakasayi Vishnu, Garbhodakasayi Vishnu and Kshirodakasayi Vishnu -- in this material manifestation. The Maha-Vishnu, or Karanodakasayi Vishnu, is described in the Brahma-samhita (5.47). Yah karanarnava-jale bhajati sma yoga-nidram: the Supreme Lord, Krishna, the cause of all causes, lies down in the cosmic ocean as Maha-Vishnu. Therefore the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the beginning of this universe, the maintainer of the universal manifestations, and the end of all energy.

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