पुरोधसां च मुख्यं मां विद्धि पार्थ बृहस्पतिम् । सेनानीनामहं स्कन्दः सरसामस्मि सागरः ॥
purodhasāṃ ca mukhyaṃ māṃ viddhi pārtha bṛhaspatim | senānīnāmahaṃ skandaḥ sarasāmasmi sāgaraḥ ||
Translation
O Partha, know Me as Brihaspati, the chief among priests. Among generals, I am Skanda. Among bodies of water, I am the ocean.
Interpretation
Among purohitas (priests, chaplains), the Divine is Brihaspati — the preceptor of the gods, the supreme priest. Among generals and commanders, the Divine is Skanda (Kartikeya — the commander of the divine army, god of war and strategy). Among bodies of water, the Divine is the ocean (sagara — the vast, containing all waters). The ocean is the apt symbol: it is the source from which clouds rise, from which rains fall, into which all rivers return. The Divine as the ocean of all existence.