53 verses
Arjuna said: By Your mercy, my illusion concerning Your powers is gone, through hearing the words you spoke concerning the highest secret of your vibhūtis along with knowledge of the soul.
O lotus-eyed one, in detail I have heard about the creation and dissolution of all beings arising through You, as well as how You remain unaffected as well.
I have heard plenty about the creation and destruction of the living entities coming from You (tvattaḥ) in the middle six chapters, in such statements as ahaṁ kṛtsnasya jagataḥ prabhavaḥ pralayas tathā: I am the creation and destruction of the universe. And I have also heard how You remain aloof and unaffected in spite of being the creator and destroyer (māhātmyam avyayam), in such verses as mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam: I am pervading all this universe; and na ca māṁ tāni karmāṇi nibadhnanti: these actions do not bind Me.
O Supreme Lord, what You have spoken about Yourself is all true. O Supreme Person, I desire to see that powerful form of Yours.
Whatever You have said about Yourself, such as “I am supporting the whole universe by one of My portions,” is indeed true (evam etad). I do not have any doubt about it. But still, desiring to be fully satisfied, I desire to see that form displaying Your powers. I now want to see, with my eyes, that expansion form of Yours by which You support this world.
If You think that I am qualified to see that form, O master, O Lord of qualification,
then show to me that indestructible form.
The word yogeśvara indicates that though Arjuna is unqualified (ayogya), the Lord with His power of qualification (yoga), can make him qualified to see that form.
The Lord said: O son of Pṛthā, see My hundreds and thousands of wonderful forms, of various types, of various colors, and various shapes.
“First I will show him that form described in the puruṣa-sūkta as sahasra-śīrṣā puruṣaḥ sahasrākṣaḥ sahasrapāt: that form with a thousand heads, a thousand eyes and a thousand feet. It is My own expansion, the first puruṣa avatāra (Mahaviṣṇu), the antaryāmī of prakṛti. Later, by having the necessary qualification, I will show him My form of time.” Considering in this way in His mind, the Lord faced Arjuna, telling him to pay attention. Thus He speaks this verse.
“See these hundreds and thousands of forms (rūpāṇi). In My one form, My svarūpa, see hundreds of My svarūpas, which are My vibhūtis.”
See the Ādityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, the two Aśvins and the Maruts. O descendant of Bharata, see many astonishing forms not seen before.
Now, in this place, see in one part of My body this whole universe with its moving and non-moving entities, O conqueror of sleep, and see whatever else you desire to see.
On this occasion (iha), this universe, which is impossible for you to see completely even if you wander within it for millions of years, is situated in just one part of My body (eka-stham). See that universe and whatever else you desire to see, such as your victory or defeat (yac ca anyat), in My body, which is the shelter of the universe, being its cause.
But you will not be able to see with your material eye alone. I give you the eye of the devas. Behold My majestic power.
Arjuna should not think that this is some form caused by magical trick or material illusion. For the purpose of giving him faith that the form which contains this whole universe is sat-cid-ānanda, He speaks this verse.
By your material eyes (anena) you cannot see Me. You cannot see My purely spiritual form. Śaknose stands for śaknosi. Therefore, I give you divine (divyam) eyes. See with those divine eyes. By letting him see with those eyes, the Lord’s intention was to give a little astonishment to Arjuna, who was thinking himself to be a material person.
Actually, because he is a principal associate of the Lord, and therefore previously had appeared as Nara along with the Nārāyaṇa avatāra, Arjuna does not have material eyes like ordinary material persons. What is the logic in giving spiritual eyes to Arjuna in order to see a mere expansion of the Lord, when that same Arjuna with his very eyes directly realizes the sweetness of his Lord?
But, on the other hand, it can be said that the superior eye which sees only the great sweetness of Kṛṣṇa’s human pastimes, as in the case of the ananya-bhakta, does not at all accept the glories of the Lord’s pastimes performed with the devatās (deva līlā). One who has tasted the juice of the white lotus cannot relish sugar candy with his tongue. Thus the Lord, wanting to show the majestic nature of His pastimes with the devatās (deva-līlā), in order to cause astonishment in Arjuna who had requested just that, gave to Arjuna non-human eyes suitable for seeing deva-līlā (divyam), majestic in quality. The intention of giving such eyes will be explained at the end of the chapter.
Sañjaya said: O King, having spoken thus, Kṛṣṇa, the master of great yoga, showed to Arjuna His supreme, majestic form.
It had many mouths and eyes, many astonishing aspects, many wonderful ornaments, uplifting many wonderful weapons.
That form wore astonishing garlands and dress, astonishing perfumes and ointments. It was shining, greatly amazing, infinite, with faces in every direction.
If the splendor of a thousand suns rose simultaneously in the sky, that effulgence would be somewhat similar to the effulgence of this great form.
If at one time the effulgence (bhāḥ) of a thousand suns arose, then it would be somewhat similar to the effulgence (bhāsaḥ) of the universal form (mahātmanaḥ).
On the battlefield, Arjuna saw parts of the universe in various parts of that body in various ways.
In that place (tatra), on the battle field, in the body of the Lord (deva-devasya), it was impossible to take into account the whole universe. Therefore Arjuna saw a part situated in one part of the body at different moments (pravibhaktam, eka-stham)--a part situated in the Lord’s pore or a part situated in His belly, and in various ways (anekadhā). That is, he saw that form made of earth, made of gold, made of jewels, or measuring fifty koṭi yojanas, or a hundred koṭi yojanas or a hundred thousand koṭi yojanas.
Then, overcome with wonder, hair standing on end, Arjuna, bowing his head before the Lord and folding his hands in prayer, spoke.
Arjuna said: In Your body I see all the devatās, as well as the mass of all the beings. I see Lord Brahmā, seated on a lotus, all the ṛṣis, and shining snakes.
I see a multitude of viviparous animals (bhūtā-viśeṣa) and Brahmā situated on Mount Meru at the center of the lotus of the earth planet.
I see You everywhere with infinite form, with many arms, stomachs, mouths and eyes. O lord of the universe, origin of all this! O form of the universe! I do not see a beginning, middle or end of this form of Yours.
Viśveśvara means the original person, the origin of this form.
I see You with crown, club, cakra, a mass of light shining everywhere, difficult to behold, with immeasurable radiance on all sides like the blazing of fire and sun.
You are known as the supreme Brahman. You are the place of destruction of this universe. You are indestructible, the protector of eternal dharma. I know that You are the eternal person.
You are known by the strivers for liberation as Brahman (akṣaram). You are the place of destruction of all things (nidhānam).
I see You are without beginning, middle or end, possessed of infinite strength, infinite arms, with the sun and moon for Your eyes, with a mouth of blazing fire, burning this universe with its heat.
With words like anādi, Arjuna seems to repeat himself. Do not find fault however with the repetition in the words of Arjuna, who was submerged in the ocean of the rasa of great astonishment (mahā-viṣmaya-rasa). It is said: prasāde viṣmaye harṣe dvi-trir-uktaṁ na duṣyati: repetition of statements two or three times due to joy, astonishment or kindness is not a fault.
The space between heaven and earth and all directions are filled with You alone. Seeing this astonishing and ferocious form of Yours, the three worlds have become terrified, O great soul.
Now that Arjuna had the proper qualification, the Lord shows him His form as time. This is described in ten verses.
This host of devatās enters into You. Some in fear praise You with folded hands. Shouting “Svasti!” the host of great sages and Siddhas praise You with excellent verses.
Tvā stands for tvām.
The Rudras, Ādityas, Vasus, Sadhyas, Viśvas, Aśvins, Maruts, Pitṛs, Gandharvas, Yakṣas, Asuras, and Siddhas all look at You in astonishment.
Uṣma-pā refers to those who drink hot vapor of food. That refers to the Pitṛs.
The śruti says ūṣmabhāgā hi pitaraḥ: the Pitṛs eat the steam. (Taittirīya Brāhmaṇa, Yajur Veda, 1.3.10.6)
O mighty-armed one, seeing this great form with many mouths and eyes, many arms, many thighs and feet, many stomachs, fearful with many teeth, the world and I as well are filled with terror.
O Viṣṇu, seeing You touch the heavens, shining in many colors, with gaping mouth, and wide, blazing eyes, I have become distressed in mind, and do not find any satisfaction or relief.
Śama means relief or tranquility.
Seeing Your mouth with sharp teeth, like the fire of cosmic destruction, I cannot recognize the directions and I feel no comfort. O master of the devas, abode of the universe, be merciful to me.
All the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra along with the host of rulers of the earth, Bhīṣma, Droṇa and Karṇa, together with our prominent warriors, enter swiftly into Your fearful mouth with sharp teeth. Some, with their heads ground up, are sticking between Your teeth.
As many swift currents of rivers flow towards the sea, so these heroes of the world enter Your flaming mouths.
As moths with increasing speed enter a blazing fire to meet their destruction, so men enter Your mouths with increasing speed to meet their destruction.
Swallowing all these men all around with Your fiery mouths, You are licking Your lips repeatedly. O Viṣṇu, Your fierce rays, filling the whole universe with their splendor, are burning it up.
Tell me who You are, with this terrifying form. I offer respects to You. O best of the devas, be merciful to me. I desire to know You, the first being. I do not understand Your purpose.
The Lord said: I am time, the destroyer of the worlds. Increasing in power, I am here engaged in destroying these men. Even without You, all these warriors arrayed in confronting armies will cease to be.
Therefore rise and gain fame. Conquering the enemies, enjoy a prosperous kingdom. These have all been killed by Me already. Just be an instrument, O Arjuna!
Slay Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Jayadratha, Karṇa and other brave warriors, who have already been killed by Me. Do not grieve. Fight and you will be victorious over the enemies in the war.
Sañjaya said: Hearing the words of Keśava, Arjuna, with folded hands, trembling, offered his respects; and again overcome by great fear, offering respects, spoke to Kṛṣṇa in faltering voice.
Namaskṛtvā is poetic license. The normal form is namaskṛtya.
Arjuna said: O controller of the senses, rightly the world rejoices and becomes attracted to You by Your glorification. Rightly also, the frightened Rākṣasas flee in all directions, and the host of devotees bow down to You.
Suddenly realizing that the pleasing form and ferocious form of the Lord were objects of attraction and repulsion, he explains this fact and praises the Lord. Sthāne, an indeclinable, here means “suitable.”
O Hṛṣīkeśa, You inspire the senses of Your devotees to turn towards You, and You inspire the senses of the non-devotees to turn away from You! The universe becomes joyful (prahṛṣyati) by the saḍkīrtana glorifying You (prakīrtya), and becomes attracted to You (anurajyate). This is reasonable (sthane) since the universe is favorable to You. The Rākṣasas , asuras, Dānavas, Piśācas and others (rakṣāṁsi) however, becoming fearful, flee to the directions (diśaḥ dravanti). This is also reasonable since they are unfavorably inclined to You. And the whole group of those who are perfected by devotion to You (siddha-saḍghāḥ) offer their respects to You. This also is reasonable, since they are Your devotees. This verse is famous in mantra-śāstra for its ability to give protection from Rākṣasas .
O great soul, why should they not offer respects to You, the first creator, greater than Brahmā? O infinite one, lord of the devas, abode of the universe, You are the Brahman, above cause and effect.
Why should they not offer respects to You? Certainly, they should offer respects to You, for You are Brahman (akṣaram), above both cause and effect (sad-asat param)?
You are the original deva , the oldest person, the final place for the universe after destruction. You are the knower, the object of knowledge, the transcendental form. O infinite form! You pervade this whole universe.
Nidhānam means the place of merging at the time of destruction. Paraṁ dhāma means the transcendental form of the Lord beyond the guṇas.
You are Vāyu, Yama, Agni, Varuṇa, the moon, Prajāpati, and the great grandfather. I offer respects to You a thousand times, and again I offer respects to You.
namaḥ purastād atha pṛṣṭhatas te
namo’stu te sarvata eva sarva
I offer respects from the back, from the front, from all sides, O person who is everything! You have infinite power, with immeasurable skill. You pervade everywhere, and therefore You are everything.
You pervade all of this universe (sarvaṁ samāpnoṣi), since it is Your product, like gold in earrings and bracelets. Thus You are everything.
I beg pardon from You, not knowing this greatness of Yours, and through want of consideration or through affection, looking upon You, the immeasurable, as a friend, for whatever I have said rudely, such as addressing You “O Kṛṣṇa, O Yādava, O friend”, and for whatever disrespect I have shown to You in fun, while playing, lying, sitting together or dining, whether alone or in the company of others.
“O, I have committed the greatest offense to You, who are filled with such great, great powers.” In this way, Arjuna manifests great regret.
“O Kṛṣṇa (he kṛṣṇa), You are well known as the son of Vasudeva who is not famous, who was a human, a mediocre fighter situated on the same chariot as another fighter (ardha ratha). I, Arjuna, am well known as the son of a king, Pāṇòu, a great warrior fighting on his own chariot (atiratha). O Yādava (he yādava), You do not have the king’s position in the Yadu dynasty. But I have kingship over the Puru dynasty. (The sandhi of sakha with iti is poetic license) O friend (he sakha), my friendship with You is not because of the greatness of Your forefathers nor because of the reputation of Your family, but it is simply based on familiarity. I beg pardon for such rough words (prasabham) I have spoken, for intending the above meanings.” The sense of verse 41 is continued in verse 42 with the verb kṣamaye. The proper form of the verb would be kṣamayām (I should beg for forgiveness).
Either through negligence or out of affection, not knowing You as the universal form (mahimānam), I have treated You badly during leisure and other times, in order to joke. I have scolded You with sarcastic words saying that You are truthful, innocent, and very gullible. I beg forgiveness for the thousands of offenses produced when You were alone, not in the presence of friends, or when You were surrounded by friends who were joking (tat samakṣam). O master, I beg You to forgive me (kṣamaye).
You are the father of the world, of all moving and non-moving beings. You are most deserving of worship and as the teacher, even more deserving of worship. No one is equal to You, or greater than You in the three worlds, O person with unsurpassed glory.
Therefore, bowing down, prostrating my body, I beg pardon from You, the Lord, most worthy of worship. O Lord, You, so dear to me, should tolerate me, so dear to You, just as a father tolerates his son, or a friend tolerates his friend.
Praṇidhāya means placing the body on the earth like a rod, out of respect. The sandhi in priyāyārhasi is poetic license.
I am delighted, having seen what was unseen before, but at the same time my mind is greatly troubled with fear. O Lord, show me that pleasing form of Yours. Be kind to me, O lord of the devas, the resting place of the universe at destruction.
Though I am delighted, having seen Your body composed of the form of the universe which has not been previously seen, my mind is distressed with fear because of its ferocity. Therefore, show me that form (tad eva rūpa), the form of the son of Vasudeva, the form of sweetness, which is millions of times dearer to my life. Show favor to me—do not display to me that form of great power any longer. I have now seen You as the Lord of the devatās (deveśa), the resting place of the universe (jagan-nivāsaḥ). It should be understood that Arjuna did not see the body of Kṛṣṇa in human form which was the origin of all the forms seen by Arjuna when Kṛṣṇa displayed the universal form, because his vision was covered by yoga māyā.
I wish to see You wearing a crown, holding a club and cakra. O thousand-armed one, form of the universe, appear with that four-armed form.
Moreover, when you show Your form with power, show that powerful form filled with the highest rasa, which gives joy to the mind and eyes of people like us, which we saw before, in the form of the son of Vasudeva for performing human like pastimes-- and not the majestic form which is distasteful to our mind and eye, revealed as the universal form, related to pastimes with the devatās, which was never seen before. With this intention Arjuna speaks.
I desire to see that same form with a crown of valuable jewels (tathā eva) which we saw previously sometimes, and which Your parents saw when You were born. O form of the universe, now having thousands of hands, withdraw that form and appear (bhava) in that form with four hands.
The Lord said: Being pleased with You, I have shown this supreme, brilliant, infinite, original form of the universe, which has not ever been seen by any except you, by My own yoga-māyā.
“O Arjuna, you have said that you desired to see My majestic form (verse 3) and by your request, I have shown the form of the universe which is one of My parts. Why has your mind become disturbed on seeing it? Is it not astonishing that you plead with Me, wanting now to see My human form?” Thus the Lord speaks this verse.
Being pleased with you, I have shown this form to you (tava) alone, and not to anyone else, since it has not been seen previously by anyone. In spite of that, do you not want to see that form?
Not by study of the Vedas, by sacrifice, by recital of the scriptures, by charities, by rituals, or by severe austerities can this form been seen in this world by anyone except you, O hero of the Kurus.
This form which I have shown to you is rarely seen even by those who study the Vedas and follow other processes. I cannot be seen in this form (evam rūpaḥ) by anyone except you. The absence of visarga and consequent sandhi to form śakyo’ ham instead of śakya aham in this verse is poetic license.
Therefore considering this, that you have attained something which is not attainable by others, fix your mind on this form, difficult to see for everyone—a form which is certainly the Lord. Having seen that form, you should forget about the human form you are again desiring to see.
Do not be fearful, do not be bewildered, having seen that terrifying form of Mine. Devoid of fear, pleased in mind, see again this form of Mine.
“O Supreme Lord, why do You not understand me? You are forcibly giving me something which I do not want. Seeing this form of Yours, my limbs are distressed, my mind is pained. Constantly, I am fainting. Let me offer my respects again and again to that majestic form from far away. I will never again pray to see that form. Forgive me, forgive me. Show to me that human form with moon-like face, covered in showers of nectar through the sweetest smiles. Please show that to me.”
The Lord then speaks this verse in a comforting mood to Arjuna who is distressed in the above manner.
Having spoken to Arjuna thus, Vāsudeva showed him His personal four-handed form again. Then again, appearing in His pleasant two-handed form, the great soul gave comfort to the fearful Arjuna.
Just as the Lord has showed the very ferocious form, which arose from just one of his parts, He again showed His own, very sweet personal form (svakaṁ rūpam) with four hands, crown, club, cakra and other ornaments, which was requested by Arjuna, and which was a mixture of sweetness and grandeur. Then again that great soul became the two handed, pleasant form (saumya-vapuḥ), wearing bracelets, earrings turban and yellow cloth, and comforted the fearful Arjuna.
Arjuna said: O Janārdana, seeing this pleasant human form of Yours, I have regained my consciousness and have gained composure.
Then Arjuna, seeing the very sweet form of Kṛṣṇa, bathing in an ocean of bliss, spoke. “O Janārdana, now I have regained my consciousness (sa-cetāḥ saṁvṛttaḥ), and have gained composure (prakṛtiṁ gataḥ).”
The Lord said: This form of Mine which you have seen is very difficult to see. Even the devas are always eager to see this form.
Here the Lord glorifies in three verses His viśvarupa which He showed. The devatās desire to see the viśvarūpa, but cannot see it. But you do not desire that form at all. How can your two eyes, which continually taste the great sweetness of My human form, which is the original form, enjoy that universal form? Therefore, I gave you divya eyes to see it: divyaṁ dadāmi te cakṣuḥ. But though I gave divya (heavenly) eyes, I did not give you a divya mind. Thus, by those divya eyes alone you cannot enjoy completely that form, because your mind relishes only the great sweetness of My human form. If I had given you a divya mind, then you would have relished that svarūpa of the puruṣa as the universal form just as devatās do.
Not through the Vedas, not through austerities, not through charities, nor through performance of sacrifice, is it possible to see Me as you have seen Me.
Moreover, please understand that others--who desire as the goal of their lives that svarūpa which is not desired by you-- cannot see that form or know that form even by such practices as study of the Vedas.
Only by ananyā bhakti it is possible to know Me, see Me, or even merge with Me, O Arjuna.
Then, by what practice can this viśvarūpa be attained? By bhakti I can be known and seen. The dropping of visarga (ḥ) without sandhi to form śakyo’ ham, the normal form, instead of śakya aham in the present text, is poetic license.
Even if one desires nirvāṇa-mokṣa, then one can merge (praveṣṭum) with the Brahman (tattvena) only by ananyā bhakti and not by other processes. The guṇī bhūtā bhakti of the jñānīs remains as a small amount of ananyā bhakti after the renunciation of jñāna at the time of death. By that, they attain sāyujya-mukti. I will substantiate that point later with the verse tato mām tattvato jñātvā viśate tad anantaram: Knowing Me as Brahman, they then enter Me. (BG 18.55)
He who works for Me, who holds Me as supreme, who is devoted to Me, without material attachment, devoid of hatred of any living being, attains Me, O Arjuna.
In order to summarize the subject of bhakti, in this verse the Lord speaks about the general characteristics of various types of devotees who were described starting in the seventh chapter. Saḍga-varjitaḥ means devoid of material attachment.
Arjuna understood that his victory on the battle field was dependent on the great power of Kṛṣṇa alone. This is the meaning of this chapter.
Here ends the commentaries on the eleventh chapter of the Gītā for the pleasure of the devotees’ minds, by the mercy of the ācāryas.
In the eleventh chapter, Arjuna, seeing the universal form, praises it in reverence. When Kṛṣṇa shows Himself again, Arjuna becomes pleased.
At the end of the last chapter, hearing about one aṁśa of his dear friend, the adipuruṣa who is the shelter of all the vibhūtis, with the words viṣṭabhyāham idaṁ kṛtsnam ekāṁśena sthito jagat, Arjuna became submerged in the highest bliss and desired to see that form. He praises what the Lord has just spoken in three verses.
“The words spoken by You revealing vibhūtis present in Yourself (adhyātma) have removed my ignorance concerning Your powers (mohaḥ).” The word adhyātma is here taken as an avyayībhāva compound of adhi (in) and ātmā (self), meaning “in the self.”