VERSE 1
परं भूयः प्रवक्ष्यामि ज्ञानानं मानमुत्तमम्‌ ।
यज्ज्ञात्वा मुनयः सर्वे परां सिद्धिमितो गताः ॥

sri-bhagavan uvaca
param bhuyah pravaksyami
jnananam jnanam uttamam
yaj jnatva munayah sarve
param siddhim ito gatah

SYNONYMS
śrī bhagavān uvāca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; param—transcendental; bhūyaḥ—again; pravakṣyāmi—I shall speak; jñānānām—of all knowledge; jñānam—knowledge; uttamam—the supreme; yat—which; jñātvā—knowing; munayaḥ—the sages; sarve—all; parām—transcendental; siddhim—perfection; itaḥ—from this world; gatāḥ—attain.

TRANSLATION
The Blessed Lord said: Again I shall declare to you this supreme wisdom, the best of all knowledge, knowing which all the sages have attained to supreme perfection.

VERSE 2
इदं ज्ञानमुपाश्रित्य मम साधर्म्यमागताः ।
सर्गेऽपि नोपजायन्ते प्रलये न व्यथन्ति च ॥

idam jnanam upasritya
mama sadharmyam agatah
sarge ‘pi nopajayante
pralaye na vyathanti ca

SYNONYMS
idam—this; jñānam—knowledge; upāśritya—taking shelter of; mama—My; sādharmyam—nature; āgatāḥ—attain; sarge api—even in the creation; na—never; upajāyante—comes in; pralaye—in the annihilation; na—nor; vyathanti—disturbed; ca—also.

TRANSLATION
By becoming fixed in this knowledge, one can attain to the transcendental nature, which is like My own nature. Thus established, one is not born at the time of creation nor disturbed at the time of dissolution.

VERSE 3
मम योनिर्महद्ब्रह्म तस्मिन्गर्भं दधाम्यहम्‌ ।
सम्भवः सर्वभूतानां ततो भवति भारत ॥

mama yonir mahad brahma
tasmin garbham dadhamy aham
sambhavah sarva-bhutanam
tato bhavati bharata

SYNONYMS
mama—My; yoniḥ—source of birth; mahat—the total material existence; brahma—supreme; tasmin—in that; garbham—pregnancy; dadhāmi—create; aham—I; sambhavaḥ—possibility; sarva-bhūtānām—of all living entities; tataḥ—thereafter; bhavati—becomes; bhārata—O son of Bharata.

TRANSLATION
The total material substance, called Brahman, is the source of birth, and it is that Brahman that I impregnate, making possible the births of all living beings, O son of Bharata.

VERSE 4
सर्वयोनिषु कौन्तेय मूर्तयः सम्भवन्ति याः ।
तासां ब्रह्म महद्योनिरहं बीजप्रदः पिता ॥

sarva-yonisu kaunteya
murtayah sambhavanti yah
tasam brahma mahad yonir
aham bija-pradah pita

SYNONYMS
sarva-yoniṣu—in all species of life; kaunteya—O son of Kuntī; mūrtayaḥ—forms; sambhavanti—as they appear; yāḥ—which; tāsām—all of them; brahma—supreme; mahat yoniḥ—the source of birth in the material substance; aham—Myself; bīja-pradaḥ—seed-giving; pitā—father.

TRANSLATION
It should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kuntī, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.

VERSE 5
सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति गुणाः प्रकृतिसम्भवाः ।
निबध्नन्ति महाबाहो देहे देहिनमव्ययम्‌ ॥

sattvam rajas tama iti
gunah prakrti-sambhavah
nibadhnanti maha-baho
dehe dehinam avyayam

SYNONYMS
sattvam—mode of goodness; rajaḥ—mode of passion; tamaḥ—mode of ignorance; iti—thus; guṇāḥ—qualities; prakṛti—material nature; sambhavāḥ—produced of; nibadhnanti—does condition; mahā-bāho—O mighty-armed one; dehe—in this body; dehinam—the living entity; avyayam—eternal.

TRANSLATION
Material nature consists of the three modes-goodness, passion and ignorance. When the living entity comes in contact with nature, he becomes conditioned by these modes.