Chapter 15: The Supreme Personपुरुषोत्तमयोग
15:1
“The Blessed Lord said: They speak of an imperishable ashvattha tree with roots above and branches below, whose leaves are the Vedic hymns. One who knows this tree knows the Vedas.”
Sanskrit
श्रीभगवानुवाच | ऊर्ध्वमूलमधःशाखमश्वत्थं प्राहुरव्ययम् | छन्दांसि यस्य पर्णानि यस्तं वेद स वेदवित् ||
Transliteration
śrī-bhagavān uvāca ūrdhva-mūlam adhaḥ-śākham aśvatthaṁ prāhur avyayam chandāṁsi yasya parṇāni yas taṁ veda sa veda-vit
Commentary
Krishna uses the metaphor of an inverted banyan tree to represent material existence. Its roots are in Brahman above, its branches spread downward as the material world, and its leaves are Vedic knowledge.
Chapter 15
The Supreme Person