Gita 10.41

Vibhuti Yoga

यद्यद्विभूतिमत्सत्त्वं श्रीमदूर्जितमेव वा । तत्तदेवावगच्छ त्वं मम तेजोंऽशसम्भवम् ॥४१॥

yad yad vibhūtimat sattvaṁ śrīmad ūrjitam eva vā | tat tad evāvagaccha tvaṁ mama tejo-'ṁśa-sambhavam ||41||

In essence: Wherever you see glory, splendor, or power - know that to be a spark of Krishna's infinite radiance.

A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply

Sadhak-Guru Dialogue

Sadhak: "This verse seems to equate worldly success with divine glory. Isn't spiritual teaching supposed to downplay worldly achievements?"

Guru: "Read the verse again. Does it say worldly success IS divine? Or that genuine excellence - vibhūti, śrī, ūrja - originates from the Divine?"

Sadhak: "Genuine excellence. But many successful people got there through manipulation, not genuine excellence."

Guru: "And is manipulation a vibhūti? Is it śrīmat - genuinely beautiful? Is it ūrjitam - truly powerful in the way that endures?"

Sadhak: "No. It's more like a counterfeit. True power doesn't need manipulation."

Guru: "So the verse invites discernment. When you see GENUINE glory - the kind that doesn't need to prop itself up, that shines from authentic source - that is a fragment of His radiance. Counterfeit glory is not what Krishna's claiming."

Sadhak: "But even genuine excellence - isn't attachment to it a spiritual problem?"

Guru: "What's the difference between admiring a window for itself and looking THROUGH the window to what lies beyond?"

Sadhak: "One stops at the glass, the other uses the glass to see further."

Guru: "Exactly. Attachment worships the fragment; recognition uses the fragment to contemplate the Source. The verse says 'avagaccha' - KNOW, RECOGNIZE. It's not saying worship these things; it's saying recognize their origin. Does recognizing that a beautiful sunset is a fragment of infinite beauty make you cling to the sunset or point you toward the infinite?"

Sadhak: "It points me toward the infinite. The sunset becomes a window."

Guru: "And that's the transformation. Before this teaching, you see greatness and either envy it, worship it, or dismiss it. After this teaching, you see greatness and recognize the Divine shining through. Which response binds? Which liberates?"

Sadhak: "The first binds - to the fragment. The second liberates - through the fragment to the source."

Did this resonate with you? Share it with someone who needs to hear this.

🌅 Daily Practice

🌅 Morning

Tejas recognition intention: Begin the day by setting a clear intention: 'Whatever excellence I encounter today - in people, in nature, in ideas, in experiences - I will recognize as a fragment of Krishna's radiance.' Visualize yourself moving through the day with this recognition active, seeing divine fragments everywhere. How does this change your anticipated experience of the day?

☀️ Daytime

Three recognition moments: At least three times during the day, when you encounter something genuinely excellent - beautiful, powerful, glorious - pause and consciously apply the verse: 'This is mama tejo-aṁśa-sambhavam - born of a fragment of His radiance.' Let the recognition transform your response from secular appreciation to divine recognition. Notice any envy that arises and replace it with 'That glory is His, shining through this form.' Notice any worship of the thing itself and redirect to 'This points to its infinite Source.'

🌙 Evening

Fragment contemplation: Reflect on the excellences you encountered today. Make a mental list: 'What vibhūtimat sattvam did I see? What śrīmat (splendor)? What ūrjitam (power)?' For each, recall: 'A fragment of His radiance.' Then contemplate: if THESE are fragments, what must the Whole be? Let this create awe and longing for the Source. Close with gratitude for a world saturated with divine fragments, each inviting you deeper into the infinite Mystery.

Common Questions

If all glory and power come from Krishna, do individuals deserve any credit for their achievements?

Yes - the individual provides the vessel, the effort, the purification that allows the divine tejas to shine through. Consider: the same sunlight falls everywhere, but a clean mirror reflects it brilliantly while a dusty one reflects poorly. The brilliance is from the sun, but the mirror's cleanliness matters. Similarly, divine radiance is the source of all genuine excellence, but the individual's preparation, practice, and purity determine how much can shine through. The genius worked to develop their capacity; the athlete trained their body; the saint purified their heart. This work is real and praiseworthy. But the light shining through that prepared vessel is divine. Credit belongs both ways: to the Source of all excellence, and to the vessel that made itself ready. This understanding eliminates both pride (thinking glory is self-generated) and false humility (dismissing one's genuine contribution).

How do I distinguish genuine vibhūti from mere appearance? Charlatans can appear glorious.

Three tests: sustainability, effect, and source. First, genuine glory sustains itself without constant propping up - true excellence doesn't need constant marketing. False glory collapses when support is withdrawn. Second, genuine vibhūti elevates those who encounter it - you feel uplifted, inspired, called to your own excellence. False glory diminishes others, creates envy, or inspires imitation of surfaces rather than essences. Third, genuine glory points beyond itself to its source; false glory points only to itself. A truly beautiful person makes you appreciate Beauty itself; a merely glamorous person makes you appreciate only them. When encountering apparent excellence, ask: 'Does this stand on its own? Does it lift me? Does it point beyond itself?' These questions distinguish fragment of tejas from mere appearance.

The verse says even power is from Krishna's fragment. But power is often used for evil. How can evil's power be divine?

Power itself is neutral - it's capacity for effect. The power behind both the surgeon's scalpel and the murderer's knife is the same physical force; the good or evil lies in the application. Krishna as source of power means He is the ground of all capacity for action. How that capacity is directed depends on the wielder. Even evil requires real capacities - intelligence, strength, will - that come from the Divine source. The evil consists in the DIRECTION of these capacities against dharma, not in the capacities themselves. This doesn't excuse evil - misusing divine gifts may be the greatest sin. But it explains how evil can have power without that power being evil in itself. The teaching actually increases moral accountability: the very power you use for wrong is borrowed from the Divine, making its misuse a kind of cosmic ingratitude.

← Verse 10.40 Verse 10.42 →