एतद्योनीनि भूतानि सर्वाणीत्युपधारय | अहं कृत्स्नस्य जगतः प्रभवः प्रलयस्तथा ||६||
etad yonīni bhūtāni sarvāṇīty upadhāraya | ahaṃ kṛtsnasya jagataḥ prabhavaḥ pralayas tathā || 6 ||
All beings arise from these two natures as their womb — and I am the origin and dissolution of the entire universe.
Word by word (3)
- etad-yonīni bhūtāni sarvāṇi iti upadhāraya
- — know that all beings have these (two natures) as their womb/source · etad = these (referring to the aparā and parā prakṛti of V4-5). yonīni = having as womb/source (yoni = womb, source, origin — the matrix from which something is born; -ini suffix = having this as their yoni). bhūtāni sarvāṇi = all beings (bhūta = being, existing entity; sarvāṇi = all). iti = thus. upadhāraya = know, understand, comprehend firmly (upa + √dhṛ — 'hold up,' to grasp firmly with understanding — a strong imperative). The cosmological completion of V4-5: having disclosed aparā (V4) and parā (V5), Krishna now declares the cosmological consequence — ALL beings (sarvāṇi bhūtāni) have these two natures as their yoni (womb/source). Every being in the universe — human, animal, plant, divine — is born from the aparā-parā matrix.
- ahaṃ kṛtsnasya jagataḥ prabhavaḥ pralayas tathā
- — I am the origin and also the dissolution of the entire universe · aham = I (emphatic — this is Krishna's direct self-declaration). kṛtsnasya = of the entire (kṛtsna = complete, whole, without remainder — stronger than sarva). jagataḥ = of the universe (jagat = the world, literally 'that which moves'). prabhavaḥ = origin, arising, coming forth (pra + √bhū = to arise from, to come forth; prabhava = the source of arising). pralayas = dissolution, return, merging back (pra + √lī = to merge, to dissolve; pralaya = the dissolution at the end of a cosmic cycle). tathā = also, likewise. The most comprehensive claim: I (aham) am BOTH the prabhava (origin, where everything comes FROM) AND the pralaya (dissolution, where everything returns TO) of the ENTIRE (kṛtsna) universe. Krishna is not just the creator or sustainer but the complete cosmic cycle — beginning, middle, end.
- yoni / prabhava / pralaya (the complete cosmological claim)
- — womb-source, origin, dissolution — Krishna as the complete cosmic arc · V6 delivers the cosmological synthesis of V4-5: the two natures (aparā-parā) are the yoni (womb) of all beings, and Krishna is BOTH prabhava (source/origin) and pralaya (dissolution) of the whole. This means Krishna is not merely one element in the cosmic process — he is its complete arc. Everything emerges FROM him, exists IN him (V7's thread), and returns TO him. This is the theological equivalent of: the universe is not separate from the Divine; the Divine is its complete context — origin, ground, and destination. V6 thus closes the V4-6 cosmological unit and prepares for V7's most concentrated statement: 'beyond Me there is nothing at all.'
V6 draws the cosmological consequence of V4-5: all beings (sarvāṇi bhūtāni) have the aparā-parā matrix as their yoni (womb/source). And beyond that: Krishna himself is BOTH the prabhava (origin) and pralaya (dissolution) of the complete universe. The Divine is the complete cosmic arc, not just a participant in it.
A modern analogy
A story has characters, plot, and setting (the aparā-parā matrix of the story world). But the author is both the source of everything in the story AND the one to whom everything in the story ultimately returns when the book is closed. V6's Krishna is the Author of the cosmic story — not a character in it, but the one who gives it origin and in whom it dissolves.
What it does NOT mean
V6 does NOT say the universe is identical to Krishna or that distinctions disappear. Krishna is prabhava AND pralaya — origin AND dissolution — which means he is the context of the universe, not merely a component. The universe has real existence; it just has no independent existence apart from Krishna.
Take with you
- V6 completes the V4-6 cosmological unit: aparā (material-mental field) + parā (conscious life-principle) = the yoni of all beings; and both are within Krishna who is the complete cosmic arc. This is the jñāna framework for understanding all existence.
- The term 'pralaya' (dissolution) is not to be feared — it is return to the source. V6's prabhava-pralaya framing dissolves the fear of endings: everything that arises from Krishna returns to Krishna. Dissolution is homecoming.
- V6 in daily life: every birth (prabhava) and every death or ending (pralaya) in your experience — the beginning and end of a day, a relationship, a project — is a small-scale V6. All arising comes from the source; all dissolution returns to it.
V6 closes the cosmological foundation of Ch.7 (V4-6) with its most encompassing claim: Krishna is BOTH prabhava (source) and pralaya (dissolution) of kṛtsna jagat (the entire universe). This claim has three levels: (1) metaphysical — Krishna is the complete ontological context of the universe, not merely a participant; (2) cosmological — the universe has a beginning (prabhava) and an end (pralaya) that are both the Divine; (3) soteriological — the practitioner who knows this lives differently, because all arising and all dissolving are seen as movements within the Divine rather than random or threatening events. The word 'kṛtsna' (entire, complete, without remainder) reinforces that this is an absolute claim — not 'I am the origin of some things' but 'I am the origin of everything, without remainder.' This sets up V7's 'mattaḥ parataraṃ nānyat' — beyond Me there is nothing whatsoever.
Advaita lens
For Shankaracharya, V6's prabhava-pralaya claim is the statement that Brahman is the kāraṇa (cause) of the universe in the sense of both efficient and material cause — the universe arises FROM Brahman and returns TO Brahman, just as waves arise from and return to ocean. The ocean is both prabhava (waves arise from it) and pralaya (waves dissolve into it) — and the ocean never ceases to be ocean throughout.
Bhakti lens
For bhakti traditions, V6's 'I am the origin and dissolution' is the most personal cosmological declaration: the universe is not a mechanical process but a divine self-expression that begins and ends in the Divine Beloved. Creation is the Divine's self-sharing (prabhava); dissolution is the Divine's self-recollection (pralaya). The bhakta sees all events — births, deaths, beginnings, endings — as movements within the Divine's own life.
Karma-Yoga lens
V6 for the karma yogi: all action and its results are within the prabhava-pralaya arc. No result is permanent (everything dissolves into pralaya); no action is wasted (everything arises from prabhava). Non-attached action is the practical consequence of V6's cosmology: act fully, release completely — because prabhava and pralaya are both Krishna's.
Modern parallels
The Big Bang (prabhava) and eventual heat death or Big Crunch (pralaya) of modern cosmology parallel V6's framework — the universe has an origin and will have a dissolution. The difference is: V6 locates both within a conscious Divine, not within impersonal physics. The philosophical question of what precedes the Big Bang and what follows the Big Crunch is answered by V6: the Divine who is BOTH prabhava and pralaya.
Practice
V6 as the closing dedication of a practice session: 'This practice arose from the Source (prabhava) and now returns to the Source (pralaya). What arose from You returns to You.' Let the session dissolve consciously rather than simply ending.
Public-domain translations (6) compare all →
Know that these two (prakṛtis) are the womb of all beings. I am the origin and dissolution of the entire universe. [1]
Know that these (two Prakritis) are the womb of all beings, I am the origin and dissolution of the whole universe. [4]
Know that these two are the womb of all beings; I am the origin and dissolution of the whole universe. [5]
Understand that these two are the womb of all beings. I am the origin and end of the whole universe. [6]
Whatsoever things be born, O Bharata! of any birth, know thou that I am the Father and the Mother of them, and the Womb. I am the binding-thread through all. [7]
Know that these two are the womb of all beings. Of the whole universe I am the origin and dissolution. [9]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Know My higher nature — the life-element (jīva-bhūtā) distinct from the lower — by which this world is sustained.
Beyond Me there is nothing whatsoever — all this is strung in Me, as gems upon a thread.
At the end of each cosmic age, all beings return to My prakriti — at the next dawn, I send them forth again.
Darkness, inertness, heedlessness, and delusion arise — know that tamas is predominant.
I taught this imperishable yoga to the sun-god at the dawn of time — it has been passed down through kings ever since.
Approach the teacher with prostration, inquiry, and service. The knowers of truth will instruct you in jñāna.