Upanishads · Kṛṣṇa 2.7
॥
Devanāgarī
स एव भगवान् भगवन्तं बहुधा विप्रीयमाणः अखिलेन स्वेन रूपेण युगे युगे तेनैव जयमानः
Transliteration (IAST)
sa eva bhagavān bhagavantaṃ bahudhā viprīyamāṇaḥ akhilena svena rūpeṇa yuge yuge tenaiva jayamānaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सः एव भगवान् भगवन्तंsaḥ eva bhagavān bhagavantaṃhe himself, the lord, the lord
बहुधा विप्रीयमाणःbahudhā viprīyamāṇaḥdelighting in many forms
अखिलेन स्वेन रूपेणakhilena svena rūpeṇawith his whole own form
युगे युगे तेन एव जायमानःyuge yuge tena eva jāyamānaḥage after age, being born together with Him
Translation
"He himself, the lord, delighting the lord in many forms, with his whole own form, age after age being born together with Him …"
Version
24bb4a988018 · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
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It is worth noting the construction of the phrase: sa eva bhagavān bhagavantam, "he, the lord — the lord." That is, both are called by the same word bhagavān, one in the nominative case, the other in the accusative. Grammar here settles more than reasoning. If identity were meant, it would be impossible to put the same word in two cases in one sentence: the identical cannot be subject and object at once.
Let us add the verb: viprīyamāṇaḥ, "delighting," from prī, "to gladden"; the requirement of two for this verb was discussed when reading the Gaṇapati (2.2). That is, Śeṣa, himself called lord, delights the lord. And here lies the whole Vaiṣṇava understanding of what is called tattva. There is the Lord, and there are His arrangements; and the arrangements are not Him in the sense that there is no relation between them.
She expresses this through the distinction between svayam-rūpa and tad-ekātma-rūpa: "His own form" and "a form one in essence with Him." The second is He Himself — and yet can serve Him. The objection to this is well known: how can someone serve himself?
The answer given is worth citing. Service presupposes not two beings but two persons; and the distinction between person and essence is precisely what the non-dual reading does not allow and the Vaiṣṇava reading requires. Let us add the phrase yuge yuge, "age after age": it is taken from the Gītā (4.8), and the innumerability of the descents was discussed when reading the previous line.