(Image Courtesy Mahanidhiswami)

Amongst The Snakes I Am Anant; Varuna, Aryama; And I Am Yamraj, The Lord Of Death

अनन्तश्चास्मि नागानां वरुणो यादसामहम् |
पितृणामर्यमा चास्मि यम: संयमतामहम् || 10.29||

anantaśh chāsmi nāgānāṁ varuṇo yādasām aham
pitṝīṇām aryamā chāsmi yamaḥ sanyamatām aham|| 10.29||

Shloka Translation
BG – Ch. 10- Ver. 29:

I am Ananta among the water snakes and Varuna among the sea animals. I’m Aryamaa among the Pitrs, and Yama among the controllers.

Explanation

Lord Vishnu sleeps on the heavenly serpent Anant. He owns a tenth of a million hoods. Since the beginning of creation, he is claimed to have been describing the glories of God with each of his hoods, but the description has not yet been completed.

Varun is the ocean’s celestial god. Aryama is Aditi’s third child. He is revered as the departed ancestors’ leader. Yamraj is the god of death in the celestial realm. He arranges for the soul’s release from its mortal body after death.
He administers justice on God’s behalf for the soul’s acts in this life, punishing or rewarding the soul in the next. He does not stray from his responsibilities, no matter how horrific or terrible they are. As the perfect distributor of justice, he mirrors God’s glory.

Verse & what we can learn

Shri Krishna had previously discussed Ishvara’s utterances among land snakes in the previous shloka. He claims that Ananta is one of Ishvara’s most prominent manifestations among the snakes that live in water. Lord Vishnu, who rests on Aadishesha’s coils, is shown with a thousand heads, each chanting the glory of Lord Vishnu, who is also known as Aadishesha.

The realm of aquatic dwelling organisms, called “Yaadas,” is next. Ishvara, according to Shri Krishna, is Lord Varuna, the lord of the ocean. He is mentioned as part of the Sandhyavandanam daily prayer process. Symbolically, “yaadas” refers to the divinity that can be found in even the most lifeless of objects. The Indian tradition supports worship of the Tulsi leaf, trees, the land, and so on, since it recognises the divine in everything.

The realm of the manes, or ancestor gods, is Pitra loka. Kavyavaha, Anala, Soma, Yama, Aryama, Agnisvatta, and Barhisat are the seven major manes. Ishvara is Aryaman, the chief of the manes, according to Shri Krishna. Among all the controllers, Ishvara is Lord Yama. This is because he is also the Lord of Justice, who uses the ultimate punishment of death to keep the universe in order and harmony.

To acquire knowledge and to implement that knowledge in life one needs to be mentally and physically active and healthy and for that daily meditation is a great tool.

There are various types of meditation like Buddhist meditation, heartfulness meditation, mindfulness meditation, meditation for stress, and each meditation benefits are countless. There is also numerous meditation techniques for beginners which help in practicing daily meditation so go ahead and start your journey towards a peaceful and balanced life.

In the next Shloka we continue to learn more about Ishvara’s expressions.

Let’s learn to live with “The Gita” via Meditation Affinity…