(Image Courtesy Mahanidhiswami)

पिताहमस्य जगतो माता धाता पितामह: |
वेद्यं पवित्रमोङ्कार ऋक्साम यजुरेव च || 9.17||

pitāham asya jagato mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ
vedyaṁ pavitram oṁkāra ṛik sāma yajur eva cha|| 9.17||

Shloka Translation
BG – Ch. 9- Ver. 17:

I am the Creator, the Sustainer, and the Grandsire of this universe. I am Om, the sacred syllable, the purifier, the objective of knowledge. The Rig Veda, Sama Veda, and the Yajur Veda are all me.

Explanation

God is the source of creation, so He is Father He is also its oMother since He carries the unmanifested material energy in His womb before creation He is the Dhātā of the cosmos because He maintains and nourishes it (Sustainer). He is also the Grandfather of this cosmos because he is the Father of Brahma, the creator.

The Vedas are divine revelations. God manifested the Vedas by His breath.” They are God’s knowledge power, and thus a facet of His limitless personality. Shree Krishna clearly expresses this truth by claiming to be the Vedas.
Different actions of Krishna’s energy manifest the entire cosmic manifestations, both moving and nonmoving. We form various associations with various living things who are nothing more than Krishna’s marginal energy in our material existence, but under the construction of prakriti, some of them appear as our father, mother, grandfather, creator, and so on, but they are all pieces and parcels of Krishna.

As a result, these living creatures who appear to be our father, mother, and other family members are none other than Krishna. The word dhata means “maker” in this passage. Not only are our father and mother Krishna’s children, but so are their creator, grandmother, grandfather, and so on. In fact, any living being that is a portion of Krishna is Krishna.

Verse & what we can learn

Ishvara is the universe’s father, mother, and grandfather, emphasizing Ishvara’s limitless all-pervading nature. The nature of a parent is to protect and push his child to grow. A mother exemplifies the qualities of nurturing and impartiality; she will look after even the most misbehaving child.

A grandfather is very attached to his grandchild and enjoys showing attention to him, whereas the father may not always exhibit affection openly. Ishvara, according to Shri Krishna, treats everyone in the cosmos as though they were members of a loving family.

As a parent, Ishvara represents the wisdom that guided the universe’s formation. As a mother, Ishvara represents the substance that gives birth to the universe. Ishvara refers to the source of wisdom and substance, and it is Ishvara’s infinite nature that keeps the universe together in a state of harmony, where everything has its place.

Ishvara also represents the three Vedas, which are the universe’s ultimate source of knowledge and the only knowledge that has to be known. The syllable “Om,” which is regarded the ultimate cleanser, captures their essence. To put it another way, everything becomes pure once we realize Ishvara in everything.

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 are 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 verse Shri Krishna tells Arjuna a series of pointers to Ishvara which are considered the foundation of bhakti or devotion.

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