Devanagari
बीजं मां सर्वभूतानां विद्धि पार्थ सनातनम् ।
बुद्धिर्बुद्धिमतामस्मि तेजस्तेजस्विनामहम् ॥ १० ॥
Verse text
bījaṁ māṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
viddhi pārtha sanātanam
buddhir buddhimatām asmi
tejas tejasvinām aham
Synonyms
bījam
—
the seed
;
mām
—
Me
;
sarva-bhūtānām
—
of all living entities
;
viddhi
—
try to understand
;
pārtha
—
O son of Pṛthā
;
sanātanam
—
original, eternal
;
buddhiḥ
—
intelligence
;
buddhi-matām
—
of the intelligent
;
asmi
—
I am
;
tejaḥ
—
prowess
;
tejasvinām
—
of the powerful
;
aham
—
I am.
Translation
O son of Pṛthā, know that I am the original seed of all existences, the intelligence of the intelligent, and the prowess of all powerful men.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
10. I am the eternal, original cause of all entities, O son of Pṛthā. I am the intelligence of the intelligent people and the majesty of the majestic.
Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)
10. I am the eternal, original cause of all entities, O son of Pṛthā. I am the factor of discrimination in the intelligent and the ability to conquer in the powerful.
Purport
Bījam means seed; Kṛṣṇa is the seed of everything. There are various living entities, movable and inert. Birds, beasts, men and many other living creatures are moving living entities; trees and plants, however, are inert – they cannot move, but only stand. Every entity is contained within the scope of 8,400,000 species of life; some of them are moving and some of them are inert. In all cases, however, the seed of their life is Kṛṣṇa. As stated in Vedic literature, Brahman, or the Supreme Absolute Truth, is that from which everything is emanating. Kṛṣṇa is Para-brahman, the Supreme Spirit. Brahman is impersonal and Para-brahman is personal. Impersonal Brahman is situated in the personal aspect – that is stated in Bhagavad-gītā . Therefore, originally, Kṛṣṇa is the source of everything. He is the root. As the root of a tree maintains the whole tree, Kṛṣṇa, being the original root of all things, maintains everything in this material manifestation. This is also confirmed in the Vedic literature ( Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13):
nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān
He is the prime eternal among all eternals. He is the supreme living entity of all living entities, and He alone is maintaining all life. One cannot do anything without intelligence, and Kṛṣṇa also says that He is the root of all intelligence. Unless a person is intelligent he cannot understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Bija or seed means the cause before transformation, the pradhāna. Sanātana means eternal. Intelligence is the essence of the intelligent persons. I am that intelligence.
Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)
Know Me to be the one eternal seed of all moving and nonmoving beings, not a different seed in each entity, and not temporary. [Note: The Lord remains one in spite of pervading all entities.] Another meaning: know that I am the seed of all things as I alone am the form of the pradhāna (the material cause of all bodies for the jīvas). By this vibhūti I maintain all things and they are nourished by that dependence. I am intelligence, the ability to distinguish what is valuable from what is worthless—in those having intelligence. I am confidence—the ability to conquer others and not be conquered by others—in those who have power.
Surrender Unto Me
Krsna is the origin of intelligence ‑ it is His external energy also. And He is the prowesss of all powerful men.