Bhagavad Gita BG 10.34
Chapter 10, Verse 34 — Meaning, Translation & Explanation
मृत्युः सर्वहरश्चाहम् उद्भवश्च भविष्यताम् । कीर्तिः श्रीर्वाक् च नारीणां स्मृतिर्मेधा धृतिः क्षमा ॥
mrtyuh sarva-harash caham udbhavash ca bhavishyatam kirtyh shrir vak ca narinam smrtir medha dhrtih kshama
Meaning
I am all-devouring Death (mrtyuh sarva-harah), and I am the origin (udbhava) of those who are yet to be born; among the feminine qualities: fame (kirti), prosperity (shri), speech (vak), memory (smriti), intelligence (medha), courage/steadfastness (dhrti), and forgiveness (kshama).
Understanding
Two extraordinary vibhutis in one verse: (1) Mrtyuh sarva-harah — Death that takes all, the all-devouring end of every living being. Death as the vibhuti of the Supreme! Not merely as fearful adversary but as the supreme expression of the cosmic function of completion, of gathering all back into the source. And also: udbhavash ca bhavishyatam — the origin of those yet to be born. Krishna is both the end and the new beginning — the complete cycle. (2) The seven feminine qualities that are vibhutis: kirti (fame, the radiance of good reputation), shri (prosperity/beauty/grace — Lakshmi herself), vak (speech — the power of sacred language), smriti (memory — the capacity to retain and transmit wisdom), medha (intelligence/discrimination), dhrti (courage/steadfastness/fortitude), and kshama (forgiveness — the supreme power of tolerance). These are deified as feminine because in Sanskrit grammatical tradition, abstract qualities are feminine.
Word by Word
| Word | IAST | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| मृत्युः सर्वहरः | mrtyuh sarva-harah | death that takes all, all-devouring death |
| उद्भवः | udbhavah | origin, arising, the source of birth |
| कीर्तिः | kirtih | fame, the radiance of good reputation |
| श्रीः | shrih | prosperity, beauty, grace (also the goddess Lakshmi) |
| वाक् | vak | speech (the goddess Vak — sacred language) |
| स्मृतिः | smrtih | memory, the capacity to remember and transmit |
| धृतिः | dhrtih | courage, steadfastness, fortitude |
| क्षमा | kshama | forgiveness, tolerance, patient forbearance |
| मृत्युः | mṛtyuḥ | death |
| सर्व-हरः | sarva-haraḥ | the all-devouring |
| च | ca | and |
| अहम् | aham | I am |
| उद्भवः | udbhavaḥ | the origin, the generation |
| च | ca | and |
| भविष्यताम् | bhaviṣyatām | of those yet to be |
| कीर्तिः | kīrtiḥ | fame |
| श्रीः | śrīḥ | beauty, prosperity |
| वाक् | vāk | speech |
| च | ca | and |
| नारीणाम् | nārīṇām | of women |
| स्मृतिः | smṛtiḥ | memory |
| मेधा | medhā | intelligence |
| धृतिः | dhṛtiḥ | steadiness, fortitude |
| क्षमा | kṣamā | patience, forgiveness |
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