In 7.7, Bhagavān gave the example of beads strung on a thread.

The beads are visible, but the thread is usually hidden. In the same way, the universe is visible, but Bhagavān is the hidden inner support. The world is strung in Bhagavān.

Now a practical question arises: if Bhagavān is like the hidden thread, how should the seeker recognize Him in daily life?

From 7.8 onward, Bhagavān begins giving examples. These examples are not random poetic decorations. They are meant to train our vision. We usually see only objects: water, sun, moon, Vedas, space, and human beings. Bhagavān teaches us to notice the essential principle in each of them and recognize that as His manifestation.

He says, raso'ham apsu kaunteya — “O Arjuna, I am the taste in water.”

Water has many uses. It washes, flows, cools, nourishes, and sustains life. But when we drink water, what makes water immediately recognizable to us is its rasa [taste]. Here rasa does not mean an added flavor like sugar, salt, or spice. It refers to the essential taste-principle of water. When thirst is intense and we drink clean water, that satisfying taste is not merely a physical event; it is a place to recognize Bhagavān’s manifestation.

Then Bhagavān says, prabhāsmi śaśisūryayoḥ — “I am the radiance in the moon and the sun.”

The sun and moon are visible because of light. The sun illumines the day with brilliance. The moon cools and beautifies the night with gentle light. Their glory is their radiance. Bhagavān says that this prabhā [light, radiance] is His manifestation.

This continues the same vision: do not stop at the outer object. In water, notice taste. In the sun and moon, notice radiance. In each thing, look for the essential glory by which that thing is what it is.

Next Bhagavān says, praṇavaḥ sarvavedeṣu — “I am Oṃkāra in all the Vedas.”

The Vedas contain mantras, rituals, prayers, teachings, and Upaniṣadic wisdom. But the sacred sound Oṃ is central in the Vedic tradition. Oṃ is the most important sound-symbol of Bhagavān. It represents the whole Veda and the highest reality taught by the Veda. Therefore Bhagavān says, “In all the Vedas, I am praṇavaḥ — Oṃkāra.”

Then He says, śabdaḥ khe — “I am sound in space.”

According to the śāstra, the special property of space is sound. Sound travels through space and is known in space. We may hear speech, music, mantra, birdsong, thunder, or silence after sound. The very possibility of sound belongs to space. Bhagavān says that this sound-principle is His manifestation.

Finally, Bhagavān says, pauruṣaṃ nṛṣu — “I am pauruṣam in human beings.”

Here pauruṣam should not be understood narrowly as male gender. It means the essential humanness, the human dignity, the human excellence, the special capacity that makes a human being truly human. Human beings have the capacity for discrimination, responsibility, courage, dharma, inquiry, self-effort, and pursuit of mokṣa. That essential human capacity is Bhagavān’s manifestation.

This is important because we often claim our abilities as “mine.” We say, “my intelligence,” “my strength,” “my courage,” “my dignity,” “my talent.” But Bhagavān teaches that the essential excellence in any being is not independent. It is His glory manifesting through that being.

This shloka therefore trains the seeker in Īśvara-darśanam [seeing Bhagavān]. The point is not to create a new object called Bhagavān somewhere far away. The point is to recognize Bhagavān in the essence of what is already experienced.

When we drink water, we can remember Bhagavān as taste. When we see sunlight or moonlight, we can remember Bhagavān as radiance. When we chant Oṃ, we can remember Bhagavān as the sacred essence of the Veda. When we hear sound, we can remember Bhagavān as the sound-principle in space. When we see noble human qualities, we can remember Bhagavān as the very humanness in human beings.

This shloka begins a powerful change in attitude. The world is no longer spiritually blank. Ordinary experiences become reminders of Bhagavān. The seeker slowly learns to see the hidden thread through the visible beads.