Leadership And Sovereignty – In Gita Verse 10.31 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.
In the chant of the Bhagavad Gita, the divine song of Lord Krishna, there is a verse – a sutra – where the vastness of Krishna’s presence in the world is likened to various natural and powerful entities. This verse is not simply a poetic hymn but a profound statement on the nature of power and its rightful bearers.
“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.”
In this, we understand that Krishna embodies the highest elements within every category. He is the purifying wind, the strength of Rama, the dominion of the shark, and the sanctity of the Ganges. But hidden within this verse is a deeper message about the nature of power and who is truly fit to harness it.
Let us contemplate together: What does it mean to be a purifier like the wind or a wielder of weapons like Rama?
It is clear that power, in its purest form, is endowed to those who have transcended ordinary desires and aversions. It is a trust given to those who uphold righteousness – dharma – above the smallness of personal gain. The wind does not discriminate, it purifies all that it touches. Rama, with his bow and arrow, stands both as a symbol of supreme strength and as an epitome of restraint and moral integrity.
Rama carries weapons, not for the love of violence, but as instruments of peace and order. He knows their purpose and upholds the duty (Svadharma) bestowed upon him. This is the paradox: the one who is capable of wielding great power is often the least interested in doing so for selfish reasons.
The wind, Rama, the shark, and the Ganges – each is a king in its own right, dominant yet deeply integrated with the natural order, signifying different aspects of leadership and sovereignty, yet bound by a unifying principle: they exercise power without being corrupted by it.
The true wielder of power must be like the vast ocean, holding the great shark; untroubled and grand, capable of containing multitudes without losing the essence of serenity. It is the taste of meditation that brings one to such a state where action becomes inaction, and inaction is the deepest action.
And thus, it falls upon the meditator, the one who has plunged into the innermost depths of being, to understand this riddle. Only when one has found the joy that bubbles from the spring of inner silence can one be in the marketplace and yet remain untouched by its noise. Only then can one sit idle, not as an escape but as a testament to the ultimate realisation that all the happiness one seeks is within.
The ultimate freedom is not in conquering others or accumulating power; rather, it is in conquering oneself. It is in realising that power is simply a tool, like the mighty Ganges that can nourish millions – but only when it flows within its banks. When one’s inner being is like the sacred river, both delivering and restraining its immense energy with grace, one truly understands the meaning of power.
In knowing that true power is given only to those who have heart and compassion. For without these, the power can only destroy. Through this teaching, Krishna imparts to the world that those who have touched the divine flame of inner bliss are the true custodians of power.
Remember, to be trusted with power, one must first master the art of yielding it tenderly. It is the dance of consciousness where Shiva’s Tandava is not a dance of destruction but a demonstration of the rhythm of life – destructive yet constructive, terrifying yet beautiful.
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