Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 16

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of The  Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

The Cosmic Vision Defined 15-31

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 16

Aneka bahu udara vaktra netram pashyami tvam sarvatah ananta rupam I

Na antam na madhyam na punah tava adim pashyami visweswara viswarupa II sloka 16

अनेक बहु उदर वक्त्र नेत्रं पश्यामि त्वं सर्वतः अनन्तः रूपं I

न अन्तं  न मध्यं न पुनः तव आदिं पश्यामि विश्वेश्वर विश्वरुप II श्लोक 16

I behold you, infinite in forms on all sides, with countless arms, stomachs, mouths and eyes; neither your end nor the middle nor the beginning do I see,  O Lord of the universe, O you of the Universal Form.

All the varieties of manifestations are his forms and he also transcends them all.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 15

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Adidevavananda's translation of The Ramanuja Gita Bhashya, published by Ramakrishna Mission

The Cosmic Vision Defined 15-31

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 15

Arjuna Uvacha

Pashyami devan tavadeva dehe sarvan tatha bhuta vishesha sanghan I

Brahmanam isham kamala asana stham rushin cha sarvan uragan cha divyan II sloka 15

अर्जुन उवाच 

पश्यामि देवान तव देव देहे सर्वान तथा भूत विशेष संघान I

ब्रह्माणं इषं कमल आसन स्थम् ऋषीन च सर्वान उरगान् च दिव्यान II श्लोक 15

Arjuna said

I behold O lord, in your body all the gods and all the deiverse hosts of beings, Brahma, Siva (Isa) who is in Brahma, the seers and the lustrous snakes

O Lord! I behold in your body all gods and all classes of living beings as also Brahma, the four faced ruler of the cosmic egg. So too Siva (Isa) who is seated in the lotus -seated Brahma, meaning that Siva abides by the directions of Brahma. So also all the seers of whom the divine seers are the foremost; the lustrous snakes like Vasuki and Takshaka etc. 

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 14

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of The Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

Iswara's Cosmic Form  9-14

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 14

Tatah sa vismaya avishtah hrishta roma dhananjaya I
Pranamya shirasa devam krutanjalih abhashata II sloka 14
ततः स विस्मय अविश्तः हृश्त रोमा धनन्जयःI 
प्रणम्य शिरसा देवं कृताञ्जली अभाषतः II श्लोक 14

Then Dhananjaya, struck with amazement, his hair standing on end, bending down his head to the Lord in adoration, spoke with joined hands.

When a yogi is blessed with a vision of the Lord, its exuberance reveals itself through the spiritual charge it induces in his body and mind. Being struck with blissful amazement is the effect it brings on his mind. The hair standting on end, the head bowing down in reverence and the palms joining in spontaneous adoration are the marks of ecstasy visible on his body. Out of the fullness of his heart the mouth speaks. What follows is a rapturous utterance.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 13

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Adidevavananda's translation of Ramanuja Gita Bhashya, published by Ramakrishna Mission

Iswara's Cosmic Form  9-14

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 13

Krishna at Goverdhan

Tatra ekastham jagat krutsnam  pravi bhaktam anekadha I

Apashyat deva devasya sharire pandavas tada II sloka 13

तत्र एकस्थं जगत् कृत्स्नं प्रवि भक्तं अनेकधा I

अपश्यत् देव देवस्य शरीरे पाण्डवः II श्लोक 13

There in that form, Arjuna beheld the whole universe, with its manifold divisions gathered together in one single spot within the body of the God of gods.

'There' in that unique and divine body of the God of gods - infinite in length and breadth, with innumerable hands, stomachs, faces and eyes, of immeasurable splendour, equipped with innumerable divine weapons, adorned with innumerable ornaments, appropriate to itself and with divine garlands and raiments, fragrant with celestial perfumes and full of wonders -, there Arjuna beheld with the appropriate divine eyes granted by the grace of the Lord, the entire universe consisting of Prakriti (material nature) and the selves, all remaining in 'one single spot', at a single point. He beheld 'the whole universe' with all its above divisions, differentiated into varied and wonderful classes of experiencing beings like Brahma, gods, animals, men, immovables, etc., and the places, objects and means of experiences such as earth, ether, Rasatala, Atala, Vitala, Sutala, etc. He beheld thus the entire universe as depicted in such texts as those starting with "I am the origin of all: from Me proceed everything" (10.8); "Indeed I shall tell you, O Arjuna, my glorious self-manifestations (10.19); :I am the self, O Arjuna, dwelling in the hearts of all beings." (10.20) and "Of Adithyas, I am Vishnu" (10.21). He ends with "Nothing that moves or does not move exists without Me" (10.39). He finally adds, "I remain, with a single fraction of myself sustaining this whole universe" (10.42)

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 12

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Adidevavananda's translation of Ramanuja Gita Bhashya, published by Ramakrishna Mission

Iswara's Cosmic Form  9-14

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 12

Divi surya sahasrasya bhaved yugapat uttisthta I

Yadi bah sadrshi sa asyat bhasah tasya mahatmanah II sloka 12

दिवि सूर्य सहस्रस्य भवेद्  युगपत् उतिस्थ्ता I 
यदि बः सद्र्शी सा अस्यात् भासः तस्य महात्मनः II श्लोक 12 

If the splendour of a thousand suns were to blaze forth all at once in the sky, that would be like the splendour of that mahatman.

This is for illuminating that his splendour is infinite. The meaning is that it is of the nature of inexhaustible radiance. 

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 11

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

Iswara's Cosmic Form  9-14

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 11

Divya malya ambara dharam divya gandha anu lepanam I
Sarva ascharya mayam devam anantam vishvatah mukham II sloka 11

Wearing heavenly garlands  and raiments, anointed with celestial perfumes, all wonderful, resplendent, boundless, with faces on all sides.

Panorama corresponding to this definition is available even to the physical eye; what to speak then of the spectacle cognized with the divine eye?Godly features alone are in evidence everywhere and at all levels. 

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 9 & 10

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

Iswara's Cosmic Form  9-14

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 9

Malayappa Swamy

Sanjaya uvacha

Evam uktva tato rajan maha yogeswarah harih I

Darsha ayamasa parthaya paramam  rupam aishwaram II sloka 9

Sanjaya said

Having thus spoken, O King, the great lord of yoga, Hari showed to Partha, his supreme iswara form.

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 10

Aneka vaktra nayanam aneka adbhuta darshanam I

Aneka divya abharanam divya aneka udyata ayudham II sloka 10

With many mouths and eyes, with many marvelous sights, with many ornaments, with many uplifted divine weapons.

The entire universe is his manifested body.; His mouth and eyes are therefore countless. many a divine happening is beyond the scope of the human knowledge. Such happenings have to be admired as marvelous to look at. Beauty emanates from Iswara. The attractive and lovely forms all over nature. adorned with magnificient decorations appear as if decked with divine ornaments. The divine designs and happenings are inevitable. Nothing can resist God's plans and executions. The uplifted divine weapons reveal Him as the Almighty.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 8

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

The Divine Eye 5-8

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 8

Lost Gopis searching for Krishna

Na tu mam shakyase drashtum anena evasva chakshusha I 

Divyam dadami te chakshuh pashya me yogam aishwaryam II sloka 8

न तु मां शक्यसे द्रष्टुं अनेन एवस्व चक्षुषा I 

दिव्यं ददामि ते चक्षुः  पश्य मे योगं योगं ऐश्वर्यम् II श्लोक 8

But you cannot see me with those eyes of yours; I give you divine sight; behold my supreme yoga.

In the  scheme of evolution of life, one species evolves into another until perfection in body and mind is reached in the human. Nothing in nature can be found parallel to the human tabernacle, the human brain and the human mind. Man is a repository of knowledge. He has added marvelously and continues to add to his knowledge of things in nature. HE is correspondingly gaining mastery over everything in it to an enormous extent. Human contrived aids to sense knowledge like the telescope, the microscope, the x-ray, and the stethoscope are equally marvellous. But the seeming mastery over nature has not  minimised his proneness to misery; it has in a way aggravated it. His enormously increased intellectual knowledge has not solved problems of life and death; it has only complicated them further.

Yoga steps in here to make the human life a fulfillment. Through the practise of yoga a super sense called the divine eye can be developed. It is neither freak nor an accident. With precision and certainty the spiritual eye can be evolved. It is the outcome of a perfectly disciplined pure life. man completes his evolution with the acquisition of this divine insight. After getting established in spiritual excellence the sadhaka is required to subordinate his personal and cosmic will in theological parlance. When these conditions are fulfilled the realisation of god becomes possible.

Arjuna is blessed with the vision of the Lord with the whole universe in one part of his body. This realisation relieves him of all his problems, personal and public. He gets enlightened so as to discharge his duty as a willing instrument at the hands of the Lord. The sage vyasa is all perfection and he intuits the lord in all his aspects. By the grace of this sage, Sanjaya is favoured withe the same cosmic vision of the lordwhich Arjuna gets, and he faithfully reports it to his blind monarch Dhritharashtra. 

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 7

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

The Divine Eye 5-8

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 7

Iha eka stham jagat krtsnam pashya adhya sacharacharam I

Mama dehe gudakesha yat cha anyata drushtam ichchasi II sloka 7

इह एक स्थम् जगत् क्र्त्सनं पश्य अध्य सचराचरं I 

मम देहे गुडाकेश यत् च अन्यत दृष्टं इच्छसि II श्लोक 7

Behold here today, O Gudakesa, the whole universe of the moving and unmoving, and whatever else you desire to see, all integral of my body.

In Chapter 2 stanza 6, Arjuna raised a doubt whether Pandavas should vanquish Kauravas or vice versa. The answer to this question can now be found self-revealed in the working of the cosmos. The plan and purpose of the universe ever stand self revealed. It is open to the enquirer to get at them whenever he wants.

Are the physical eyes and the ordinary intellect sufficient to cognise the whole of the truth pertaining to the Lord? The answer is given in the next sloka.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 6

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

The Divine Eye 5-8

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 6

Thiruvanparisaram Sri Kuralappa Perumal 

Pashya adityan vasun rudran ashvinau marutah tatha I

Bahuni adrishta purvani pashya ashcharyani bharatha II sloka 6

पश्य आदित्यान वसून रुद्रान अश्विनौ मरुतः तथा I
बहूनि अदृष्ट पूर्वाणि पश्य अस्चर्याणि भारत II श्लोक 6

Behold the adityas, the vasus, the rudras, the two ashwinis, and also the maruts.  Behold, O Bharata, many marvels never seen before.

The manifested aspect of Iswara though seemingly finite, expands into infinitude to the enquirer who seeks to probe into it. The stupendousness of the solar systems or of the stellar systems, the subtlety in the structure of the atom receding into infinitude - these are sufficient data to make man stand aghast at the structure of the universe which is ever available for observation

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darasana Yoga - Sloka 5

The entire content of this mail is from Swami Chidbhavananda's translation of Srimad Bhagavad Gita, published by Ramakrishna Mission

The Divine Eye 5-8
1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 5

Shri Bhagavan Uvacha 

Pashya me partha rupani shata shato sahasra shah I

Nana vidhani divyani nana varna akriti ni cha II sloka 5

श्री भगवान उवाच 

पश्य मे पार्थ रूपाणि शत शतो सहस्र शः I 

नाना विधानि दिव्यानि नाना वर्ण आकृति नि  च II श्लोक 5

The Blessed Lord said

Behold my forms, O Partha, by hundreds and thousands, manifold and divine and of multi-colours and shapes.

Things and beings seemingly extraneous to Iswara are not so in fact. Naught exists outside the pale of the lord. Offshoots as they are of his immensity, the divine element is in one and all of them. It is going to be revealed shortly that the diversities in form, colour, nature and existence are all really the manifestations of the cosmic entity who is one without a second.

By asking Arjuna to behold his macro-cosmic form, the lord recognises his worthiness for that holy communion.

It is Narayana who has become the all. Man, all creatures, rishis, the wicked people, whatever is Narayana. Narayana sports in multiple forms, displaying his glory in all these forms. 

Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa