पुण्यो गन्धः पृथिव्यां च तेजश्चास्मि विभावसौ | जीवनं सर्वभूतेषु तपश्चास्मि तपस्विषु || ९ ||
puṇyo gandhaḥ pṛthivyāṁ ca tejaś cāsmi vibhāvasau jīvanaṁ sarva-bhūteṣu tapaś cāsmi tapasviṣu
puṇyaḥ—the pure/sacred; gandhaḥ—fragrance; pṛthivyām—in the earth; ca—and; tejaḥ—brilliance; ca—and; asmi—I am; vibhāvasau—in fire; jīvanam—the life force; sarva-bhūteṣu—in all living beings; tapaḥ—austerity; ca—and; asmi—I am; tapasviṣu—in those who practice austerity.
“I am the pure fragrance of the earth and the brilliance in fire. I am the life in all beings and the austerity in ascetics.”
The Lord continues His cosmic self-revelation. The 'pure fragrance' (puṇya-gandha) of earth refers to the intrinsic essence of matter, not its gross properties. Every elemental quality—fragrance, fire, life, and the heat of tapasya—is a direct expression of the Supreme Lord's own śakti.
Spend a few minutes in a garden or near the earth after rain. The rich fragrance that rises is identified here as Brahman. This is not metaphor—it is ontology. Bringing this awareness to the senses helps dissolve the barrier between 'spiritual practice' and 'ordinary life.'