Bg. 10.31 · Bhagavad-gita As It Is

Devanagari

पवन: पवतामस्मि राम: शस्त्रभृतामहम् । झषाणां मकरश्चास्मि स्रोतसामस्मि जाह्नवी ॥ ३१ ॥

Verse text

pavanaḥ pavatām asmi rāmaḥ śastra-bhṛtām aham jhaṣāṇāṁ makaraś cāsmi srotasām asmi jāhnavī

Synonyms

pavanaḥ — the wind ; pavatām — of all that purifies ; asmi — I am ; rāmaḥ — Rāma ; śastra-bhṛtām — of the carriers of weapons ; aham — I am ; jhaṣāṇām — of all fish ; makaraḥ — the shark ; ca — also ; asmi — I am ; srotasām — of flowing rivers ; asmi — I am ; jāhnavī — the river Ganges.

Translation

Of purifiers I am the wind, of the wielders of weapons I am Rāma, of fishes I am the shark, and of flowing rivers I am the Ganges.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

31. Among purifiers and the swift, I am the wind. Among holders of weapons, I am Paraśurāma. Among the fishes, I am the makara. Among rivers, I am the Gaṅgā.

Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

31. Among purifiers and the swift, I am the wind. Among holders of weapons, I am Paraśurāma. Among the fishes, I am the makara. Among rivers, I am the Gaṅgā.

Purport

Of all the aquatics the shark is one of the biggest and is certainly the most dangerous to man. Thus the shark represents Kṛṣṇa.

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Of moving or purifying agents, I am the wind. Among bearers of weapons, I am Paraśurāma. He is suitable as a vibhūti because He is an aveśāvatāra, and because He is an outstanding jīva among those who have been given powers by the Lord. [Note: Rāma is taken as Paraśurāma rather than Rāmacandra, since he is a jīva . A jīva can be a vibhūti, but not the Lord Himself.] Padma Purāṇa, quoted in Bhagavatāmṛta says “O devi, I have recited to you the story of Paraśurāma, a śaktyaveśa avatāra of the Lord.” Also it says, “He took birth as an empowered jīva.” The characteristics of the aveśāvatāra are also mentioned in the Bhagavatāmṛta. “Where a jīva is filled with portions of jṣāna-śakti or other śakti of the Lord, he is called aveśāvatāra.” (Laghu Bhagavatāmṛta 1.4 .39, 1.4.38, 1.1.18) Among fish (jhaṣāṇām), I am the makara, a special type of fish. Among rivers (srotasām), I am the Gaṅgā.

Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)

Among purifiers or among swift things, I am the wind. I am Paraśurāma (rāmaḥ) among wielders of weapons. Among fish I am the makara, a special variety of fish. Among flowing waters, I am the Gaṅgā.