Lord Kṛṣṇa says:
O Arjuna, because I desire your welfare and you are My dear friend, listen once more as I deliver this supreme teaching.

Neither the hosts of demigods nor the great seers know My glory. Indeed, it is Me who is the sole source of the demigods and the great seers.

One who knows Me as unborn and without a beginning, the great Lord of the worlds, is undeluded among mortals and is liberated from all negative acts.

Intelligence, knowledge, non-delusion, forbearance, truth, restraint, self-control, pleasure and pain, exaltation and depression, fear and fearlessness;

Non-violence, equanimity, cheerfulness, austerity, beneficence, fame and infamy — these different qualities arise from Me alone.

The seven great seers, the four sages before them, and the Manus, are all My mental expansions empowered by Me. All the creatures of the world are descended from them.

He who knows the truth of My glory and power becomes undoubtedly fixed in the unshakeable yoga of bhakti.

I am the source of all; everything emerges from Me, realizing this Truth, the enlightened ones worship Me with loving devotion.

With their minds focused on Me and their lives centered upon Me, they inspire one another. By always speaking of My glory, they derive bliss and contentment.

To those who are constantly engaged with Me, and who worship Me with intense Love, I give them the realisation by which they can come to Me.

Out of compassion for them, from within their hearts, I lift the lamp of knowledge and dispel the darkness born of ignorance.

Arjuna says:
You are the Supreme Brahman, the Supreme Abode, and the Supreme Purifier. You are the eternal, divine Person, the original Lord, unborn and all-pervading.

All the divine sages, Nārada, Asita, Devala, Vyāsa, and now You, Yourself, declare this to be the Truth.

O Kṛṣṇa, I am convinced of all that You have said to me. Truly, O Lord, neither the demigods nor the Asuras know Your identity.

O Supreme Being, O Creator of beings, O Lord of beings, O God of gods, O Ruler of the universe, only You Yourself know Yourself by Your own potency.

Now kindly tell Me in detail Your divine glories. Describe the various qualities by which You pervade this world and reside within it.

O Almighty Lord and yogī, tell me how I can know You and fix my mind upon You. What are the forms of existence that can be contemplated on by me?

Tell me again in detail, O Kṛṣṇa, about Your attributes and glories. For I am never fully satisfied when hearing Your nectar-like words.

Lord Kṛṣṇa says:
I shall gladly relate this to you, O Arjuna. But understand that there is no end to My glories, and so I shall only relate to you the most prominent of them.

I am the Self, O Arjuna, dwelling in the hearts of all beings. I am also their beginning, middle, and end.

Among the Ādityas, I am Viṣṇu. Of luminous objects, I am the radiant Sun. Of the Maruts, I am Marīci, and among the stars, I am the Moon.

Of the Vedas, I am the Sāma Veda. I am Indra among the gods. Among the senses, I am the mind, and among living beings, I am consciousness.

Of the Rudras, I am Śaṅkara. Among the Yakṣas and Rākṣasas, I am Kubera. Of the Vasus, I am Agni. Of the peaked mountains, I am Meru.

Among the priests, O Arjuna, know Me to be the chief: Bṛhaspati. Among army generals, I am Skanda. Among reservoirs of water, I am the ocean.

Among the great sages, I am Bhṛgu. Among words, I am the single syllable oṁ. Among sacrifices, I am the sacrifice of japa. Among immovable things, I am the Himalayas.

Of trees, I am the Āśvattha. Among celestial seers, I am Nārada. Of the Gandharvas, I am Citraratha, and among the perfected beings, I am Kapila.

Of horses, know Me to be Uccaiḥśravas born from the Churning of the Ocean of Milk. Among the lords of elephants, I am Airāvata, and among humankind, I am the ruler.

Among weapons, I am the vajra. Among cows, I am Kāmadhenu. Of the causes of procreation, I am Kandarpa. Among serpents, I am Vāsuki.

Amongst the Nāgas, I am Ananta. Of those who live in the water, I am Varuṇa. Of the ancestors, I am Aryamā and among those who enforce the law, I am Yama.

Among Daityas, I am Prahlāda and among that which controls, I am Time. Of beasts, I am the lion, and of birds, I am Garuḍa.

Of moving things, I am the wind. Among warriors, I am Rāma. Among fishes, I am the shark, and amongst rivers, I am Gaṅgā.

O Arjuna, in relation to beings, I am the beginning and the end, and also the middle. Amongst knowledge, I am the knowledge of the Self. In the discipline of debate, I am the ultimate conclusion.

Among the letters of the alphabet, I am ‘A’. Among compound words, I am the dual compound; I am Myself everlasting Time, and I am the Creator, facing every direction.

I am death who destroys everyone. I am the origin of all that shall be born. Among the feminine qualities, I am fame, prosperity, eloquence, memory, intelligence, endurance, and forgiveness.

Of the Sāma Veda hymns, I am the Bṛhat-sāma hymn and among Vedic meters, I am the Gāyatrī. Of months, I am Mārgaśīrṣa. Of the seasons, I am the season of flowers (spring).

Of fraudulent activities, I am gambling. I am the brilliance of the brilliant, I am victory, I am effort, I am the strength of the strong.

Of the Vṛṣṇi clan, I am Vāsudeva. Of the Pāṇḍavas, I am Arjuna. Among sages, I am Vyāsa and among the great thinkers, I am Śukra.

Of the means of enforcing law, I am the principle of punishment. Among conquerors, I am diplomacy. Of secrets, I am silence, and of those who are wise, I am wisdom.

Know that I am the seed of all living beings. There is nothing moving or unmoving that can exist without Me.

Understand that I have only briefly described My manifestations, for there is no limit to My divine glories, O Arjuna.

Know for certain that whenever something displays its splendor or power, it comes from just a part of My potency.

But of what use to you is all this knowledge, O Arjuna? With just a fraction of Myself I exist, sustaining this whole universe.