Text 18
यस्मात्क्षरमतीतोऽहमक्षरादपि चोत्तमः ।
अतोऽस्मि लोके वेदे च प्रथितः पुरुषोत्तमः ॥१८॥
yasmāt kṣaram atīto 'ham
akṣarād api cottamaḥ
ato 'smi loke vede ca
prathitaḥ puruṣottamaḥ
Translation:
Because I am transcendental, beyond both the fallible and the infallible, and because I am the greatest, I am celebrated both in the world and in the Vedas as that Supreme Person.
Purport:
No one can surpass the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna -- neither the conditioned soul nor the liberated soul. He is therefore the greatest of personalities. Now it is clear here that the living entities and the Supreme Personality of Godhead are individuals. The difference is that the living entities, either in the conditioned state or in the liberated state, cannot surpass in quantity the inconceivable potencies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is incorrect to think of the Supreme Lord and the living entities as being on the same level or equal in all respects. There is always the question of superiority and inferiority between their personalities. The word uttama is very significant. No one can surpass the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
The word loke signifies "in the paurusha agama (the smriti scriptures)." As confirmed in the Nirukti dictionary, lokyate vedartho 'nena: "The purpose of the Vedas is explained by the smriti scriptures."
The Supreme Lord, in His localized aspect of Paramatma, is also described in the Vedas themselves. The following verse appears in the Vedas (Chandogya Upanishad 8.12.3): tavad esha samprasado 'smac charirat samutthaya param jyoti-rupam sampadya svena rupenabhinishpadyate sa uttamah purushah. "The Supersoul coming out of the body enters the impersonal brahmajyoti; then in His form He remains in His spiritual identity. That Supreme is called the Supreme Personality." This means that the Supreme Personality is exhibiting and diffusing His spiritual effulgence, which is the ultimate illumination. That Supreme Personality also has a localized aspect as Paramatma. By incarnating Himself as the son of Satyavati and Parasara, He explains the Vedic knowledge as Vyasadeva.