Verses 9.16-19

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verses 9.16-19:

अहं क्रतुर् अहं यज्ञः स्वधाहम् अहम् औषधम् ।
मन्त्रोऽहम् अहम् एवाज्यम् अहम् अग्निर् अहं हुतम् ॥ १६ ॥
पिताहम् अस्य जगतो माता धाता पितामहः ।
वेद्यं पवित्रम् ओंकार ऋक् साम यजुर् एव च ॥ १७ ॥
गतिर् भर्ता प्रभुः साक्षी निवासः शरणं सुहृत् ।
प्रभवः प्रलयः स्थानं निधानं बीजम् अव्ययम् ॥ १८ ॥
तपाम्य् अहम् अहं वर्षं निगृह्णाम्य् उत्सृजामि च ।
अमृतं चैव मृत्युश् च सद् असच् चाहम् अर्जुन ॥ १९ ॥

ahaṃ kratur ahaṃ yajñaḥ svadhāham aham auṣadham |
mantro'ham aham evājyam aham agnir ahaṃ hutam || 16 ||
pitāham asya jagato mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ |
vedyaṃ pavitram oṃkāra ṛk sāma yajur eva ca || 17 ||
gatir bhartā prabhuḥ sākṣī nivāsaḥ śaraṇaṃ suhṛt |
prabhavaḥ pralayaḥ sthānaṃ nidhānaṃ bījam avyayam || 18 ||
tapāmy aham ahaṃ varṣaṃ nigṛhṇāmy utsṛjāmi ca |
amṛtaṃ caiva mṛtyuś ca sad asac cāham arjuna || 19 ||

aham kratuḥ–I am the agniṣṭoma ritual; aham yajñaḥ–I am the smārta-yajña (such as vaiśva-deva); svadhā aham–I am the śrāddha (offering to the forefathers);aham auṣadham–I am the medicinal herbs; mantraḥ aham–I am the mantra; aham–I am; eva–certainly; ājyam–the ghee; aham agniḥ–I am the fire; aham hutam–I am the offering in the fire; pitā aham–I am the father; asya–of this; jagataḥ–universe; mātā–the mother; dhātā–supporter; pitā-mahaḥ–and the grandfather; vedyam–I am worthy to be known; pavitram–the purifier; oṃ-kāraḥ–I am the syllable oṃ; ṛk sāma yajuḥ–the Ṛg, Sāma and Yajur Vedas; eva–certainly; ca–and; gatiḥ–the fruit of karma; bhartā–the sustainer; prabhuḥ–the controller and master; sākṣī–the witness of good and bad actions; nivāsaḥ–the abode; śaraṇam–the protector; suhṛt–the well-wisher; prabhavaḥ–the creator; pralayaḥ–the destroyer; sthānam–foundation; nidhānam–the place of rest; bījam–cause; avyayam–the imperishable; tapāmi aham–I cause heat; aham–I; varṣam–rain; nigṛhṇāmi–I withhold; utsṛjāmi–release; ca–and; amṛtam–liberation; ca–as well as; eva–I am certainly; mṛtyuḥ–death; ca–and; sat–subtle spirit; asat–gross matter; ca–and; aham–I; arjuna–O Arjuna.

O Arjuna, I am the Vedic rituals such as agniṣṭoma, I am the smārta-yajñas such as vaiśva-deva, and I am śrāddha, the oblation of grain made to the forefathers. I am the potency of the healing herb, the mantra, the ghee, the fire and I am homa, or yajña. I am the mother, the father, the maintainer and the grandsire of the universe. I am the object of knowledge and the purifier. I am the syllable oṃ and I am also the Ṛg, Yajur and Sāma Vedas. I am destiny in the form of the fruit of karma, the sustainer, the Lord, the witness, the abode, the refuge and the dearest well-wishing friend. I am the creation, the dissolution‚ the basis, the foundation, the resting place and the eternal cause, or the inexhaustible seed. I give heat and I withhold and release the rain. I am immortality and I am death personified. I am the cause of everything and also the effect, and I am both spirit and matter.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

(By Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura; the innermost intention of the commentary named ‘the shower of essential meanings’)

“Why do people worship You in various ways?” Anticipating this question, in this and the next three verses, Śrī Bhagavān is giving the details of His nature in which he explains that everything within the universe is He and He alone. In other words, He is describing His cosmic form. The word kratuḥ means ‘sacrifices such as agniṣṭoma that are prescribed in the Vedas, as well as yajñas such as vaiśva-deva, which are described in the Smṛtis of the smārtas’. The word auṣadham means ‘that which is produced from auṣadhi, herbs that have medicinal benefit’. The word pitā signifies that because He is the ingredient material cause of the universe, either individually or collectively, He is the father. The word mātā means that because He holds the universe in His womb, He is the mother. He maintains the universe and nourishes it; therefore He is dhātā, the sustainer. And since He is the father of Brahmā, who is the creator of this universe, He is the grandfather. The word vedyam means ‘the object of knowledge’ and pavitram means ‘that which purifies’. The word gati means ‘fruit, in the sense of result’. Bhartā means ‘the husband or protector’, prabhuḥ means ‘the controller’, sākṣī means ‘the witness of auspicious and inauspicious activities’ and nivāsaḥ means ‘the abode’. Śaraṇam means ‘one who delivers others from calamities’ and suhṛt means ‘one who does welfare work without any motive’. Prabhavaḥ means, ‘Only I perform the actions of creation, destruction and maintenance.’ Nidhānam means, ‘I am the treasure, being endowed with lotus, conch shell, club and disc.’ The word bīja means ‘the cause, or seed’. Avyayam means, ‘I am not, however, perishable like seeds of rice. I am imperishable, eternal and unchanging. I provide heat in the summer season in the form of the sun. I award the rains in the rainy season. I am amṛta–liberation, mṛtyu–the cycle of birth and death, sat–subtle substance, or spirit, and asat–gross matter. Knowing Me in this way, they worship Me in My universal form.’ This is how this verse relates to the previous one.