1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 46

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

Arjuna Pleads for the Vision of Gentle Form - 45-46

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 46

MahaVishnu lifting the Mandara Parvatam

Kiritinam gadinam chakra hastam icchami tvam drushtum aham tatha eva I

Tene eva rupena chatur bhujena sahasra baho vishwa murthe II sloka 46

किरीटिनं गदिनं चक्र हस्तं इच्छामि त्वाम दृष्टुम अहम् तथा ईवा I 

तेने एव रूपेण चतुर भुजेन सहस्र बाहों विश्व मूर्ते II स्लोक ४६ 

I desire to see you as before, crowned, bearing a mace and a discus in one hand, in your former form only, having four arms, O thousand armed, O universal Form.

It is mentioned in the Bhagavatha Purana that Sri Krishna had on a few occasions revealed himself as the four armed Vishnu to some of his devotees. Even with two arms, He was ever manifesting superhuman and divine powers.Arjuna now says that this human form would be quite sufficient and highly desirable for their normal relationship. 

The Lord accordingly resumes His benign form and consoles his disturbed companion.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 45

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

Arjuna Pleads for the Vision of Gentle Form - 45-46

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 45 

Adrushta purvam harshitam asmi drushtva bhayena cha pravyathitam manah me I

Tad eva me darshaya deva rupam prasida devesha jagan nivasa II sloka 45

अदृष्ट पूर्वं हर्शितम अस्मि दृष्ट्वा भयेन च प्रव्यथितं मनः में I 

तद एव दर्षया देव रूपं प्रसीद देवेश जगन निवास II स्लोक ४५ 

I rejoice that I have seen what was never seen before, but my mind is confused with fear. Show me that form only, O God; have mercy. O God of gods,  O Abode of the universe.

The watery expanses on the globe are endless, presenting various aspects of theirs. The boisterous part is one among them. Parallel to this, in the cosmic form of Iswara, the terrific aspect is an aspect only. This aspect in particular shown to Arjuna in order to relieve him of his war problems. Having been enlightened in regard to his function in this inevitable catastrophe, he does not desire any further to behold that terrible vision. He pleads that he might be put in communion with the placid and pleasant aspect of the cosmic form. While the boisterous aspect is by the way, the peaceful and the blissful aspect is the norm with beings as well as with Iswara.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 44

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 44

Tasmat pranamya pranidhaya kayam  prasadaye tvam aham isham eedyam I

Pita putrasya sakheva sakhyuh priyah priyaya arhasi deva sodum II sloka 44

तस्मात् प्रणम्य प्रनिध्य कायम प्रसादये तवं अहम् ईशाम ईद्यम I 

पिता पुत्रस्य सखेव प्रियः प्रियाय अर्हसि देवा सोदुम II स्लोक ४४  

Therefore bowing down, prostrating my body, I implore you, adorable Lord to forgive me. Bear with me, O Lord, as a father with a son, as a friend with a friend, as a lover with his beloved.

When the glory of god is realised man cannot help adoring him. That adoration spontaneously expresses itself as bowing down and prostrating. Vast differences in power and wealth among the worldly people creates a gulf between man and man. But the greatness of God is no hindrance to the insignificant man gaining free access to him. Arjuna feels instinctively the filial love of the son for the father. But there is a certain amount of reverent aloofness of the son from the father. That handicap is removed by raising the relationship to that between two intimate friends moving on terms of equality. This love is further made charming and sweet by converting it into the dotage of the lovers upon each other. None is dearer to man than god. 

When man develops ecstatic love, he feels god as his own. It is like the gopis of Brindavan identifying themselves with Sri Krishna. They always claimed him as Gopinatha and not as Jagannatha. 

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 43

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 43

Pitasi lokasya chara acharasya tvam asya pujyah cha guruh gariyan I

Na tvat samah asti ami adhikah krutah anyah loka traye api apratima prabhava II sloka 43

पितासि लोकस्य चरा अचरस्य तवं अस्य पूज्यः च गुरु गरियान I

 न त्वत समः  अस्ति अमी अधिकः कृतः लोक त्रये अपि अप्रतिम प्रभाव II स्लोक ४३ 

You are the father of this world moving and unmoving. Youare to be adored by this world, you are the greatest guru; none there exists, who is equal to you in the three worlds; who then can excel you, O being of unequalled power?

Iswara being unparalleledand his suzeranity supreme, the entire creation adores him as the greatest of the great and the all-powerful. 

The Lord being all in all, what should the sadhaka do?

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 41 & 42

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 41 & 42

Arjuna & Krishna

Sakha iti mantva prasabham yat uttam he krsna he yadava he sakha iti I

Ajanata mahimanam tava idam maya pramadat pranayena va api II sloka 41

Yat cha avahasa artham asatkrutah assi vihara shayya asana bhojaneshu I

Ekah atha va api achyuta tat samaksham  tat kshamaye tvam aham aprameyam II sloka 42

Whatever I have said from carelessness or love, addressing you as "O Krishna, O Yadava, O friend" looking at you as merely a friend, ignorant of this your greatness.

In whatever way I may have insulted you for jest while at play, reposing, sitting or at meals, when alone, O Achyuta, or in company - that I implore you, O Immeasureable One, to forgive.

It is but natural that the vision of the cosmic form of Iswara brings a dramatic change in the attitude of Arjuna. His assuming a spontaneous reverent relationship with Sri Krishna is the immediate transformation that has come over him. Not only in him, but in all sadhakas, this solemn attitude requires to be invoked and extended to the entire creation. The truth is that the Lord is manifesting himself in all of these forms. All are therefore unknowingly cognizing fragments of his comic form. Cultivation of reverent attitude towards the entire creation is the most potent among spiritual practices.

What makes Arjuna plead for forgiveness? Let it be heard from him in the next sloka.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 40

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 40

Namah purastat ath prushthatah te namah astu te sarvatah eva sarva I

Ananta virya amita vikramah tvam sarvam samapnoshi tatah asti sarvah II sloka 40

नमः  पुरुस्तात अथ पृष्ठतः ते नमः अस्तु ते सर्वतः एव सर्व I

अनन्त वीर्य अमित विक्रमः त्वं सर्वं समाप्नोषि ततः अस्ति सर्वः II श्लोक 40

Salutation to you before, Salutation to you behind, Salutation  to you on every side, O All! Infinite in might and immeasurable in strength, you pervade all and therefore you are all.

The question of seeking God is a matter of seeing and recognising him in everything and everywhere. Arjuna has now risen to this exalted position.

The Lord is revealing his omnipotence exuberantly through the working of the universe. A reverent recognition of it is a form of adoration offered to almighty. Nay man has nothing more to do. The power and resources he is gifted with have all come from god. 

Just as a fruit is inclusive of the pulp, seed and skin, Iswara is inclusive of the universe and the beings in it. In the act of adoration of the lord, the act of upholding and propitiating the beings is included. 

Now that Arjuna has known Krishna in his true perspective, does he revise his relationship? The answer come sin his own words in the next slokas

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 39

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 39

Vayuh yamah agnih varunah shashankah prajapatih tvam prapitamah cha I

Namah namah te astu sahasra krtvah punah cha bhuyah api namah namah II sloka 39

वायुः यमाः अग्निः वरुणः शशाङ्कः प्रजापतिः त्वं प्रपितामः च I 

नमः नमः ते अस्तु सहस्र कर्त्वः पुनः च भूयः अपि नमः नमः II श्लोक 39

You are Vayu, Yama, Agni, Varuna, the moon, Prajapati, and the great grandfather. Salutation, salutation to you, a thousand times, and again and again salutation to you.

Prajapati is the progenitor of beings. Brahma the creator is the grandfather, he being the progenitor of all beings. The Lord itself is the great grandfather since Brahma has come out of him. The innumerable salutations indicate the upsurge of devotion.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 38

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 38

Tvam adi devah purushah puranah tvam asya vishvasya param nidhanam I

Vettasi  vedyam cha param cha dham tvaya tatam vishwam anantarupa II sloka 38

त्वं  आदि देवाः पुरुषः पुराणाः त्वं अस्य विश्वस्य परम् निधानं I

वेत्तासि वेद्यं च परम् च धाम त्वया ततम् विश्वम् अनन्त रूप II श्लोक 38 

You are the primal god, the ancient purusha; you are the supreme abode of all this, you are the knower and the knowable and the supreme abode; this universe is pervaded by you, O being of Infinite form.

The Lord is adideva or primal god because of his being the source of everything sentient and insentient. The puri of prakriti is his construction; and he being its oldest occupant, He is purana purusha. When prakriti is withdrawn during pralaya, it goes to rest in him. For this reason he is called Param Nidhanam or the supreme abode.

The sun throws light and reveals the earth that has come out from itself. Akin to this, the lord is the cogniser and the object cognised. The sea is his abode, it being the originator, the sustainer and witholder of the waves. Even so, the lord is the supreme abode, Param Dhama of the universe.The effect known as the universe is pervaded by the cause known as Iswara in his infinite forms

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 37

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

Arjuna Praises the Lord 35-44
1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 37

Kasmat che te na nameran mahaatman gariyase brahmanah api adi kartre I
Anant devesha jagat nivasa tvam aksharam sat asat tat param yat II sloka 37
कस्मात् चे ते न  नमेरन् महात्मन् ब्रह्मणः अपि आदि कर्त्रे  I
अनन्त देवेश जगत् निवास त्वं अक्षरं सत् असत् तत् परम् यत् II श्लोक 37 

And why should they not, O great souled one, bow to you, greater than all, the prrimal cause even of Brahma, O infinite being, O Lord of Gods,  O Abode of the Universe; You are Imperishable, the being and the non-being, that which is supreme.

The urge to praise Iswara rises spontaneously in the minds of enligtened ones. For knowing and admiring are inter related. Iswara is Mahatman as there is none greater than Him. He is Ananta as he transcends time, space and causation. He is the Lord of the gods, their destiny being shaped by him. As the ocean is his abode of the waves, the Lord is the abode of the universe. Brahma the creator is the Immanent aspect of the Iswara. He is also known as Hiranya grabha. For the convenience of our conception of him, he may be put as a sum total of all the jivatmas, Iswara is the primal cause of Brahma even, just as the ocean is the primal cause of all the waves put together. The mainfest aspect of the universe is sat, the unmanifest is asat.  Iswara is glorified as Akshara since no modification of any kind takes place in him, even when the universe  comes into being from him. The Lord is not the Immanent Reality, but he is also the transcendental reality. For this reason he is praised as Param.  The glories of god are infinite. What else can the realised souls do than going into raptures and extolling Iswara? The sadhaka rises in spiritual stature as he indulges in the praise of the Lord.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 36

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

Arjuna Praises te Lord 35-44

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 36

Arjuna uvacha

Sthane hrishikesha tava prakirtya jagat prahrshyati anu ranjate cha I

Rakshamsi bhitani dishah dravanti sarve namasyanti cha siddha sanghah II sloka 36

अर्जुन उवाच 

स्थाने हृषीकेश तव प्रकीर्त्या जगत् प्रह्र्श्यति अनु रञ्जते च I

रक्षाम्सि भीतानि दिशः द्रवन्ति सर्वे नमस्यन्ति च सिद्ध संघाः II श्लोक 36

Arjuna said

It is meet, O Hrishikesha, that the world is delighted and rejoices in your praise; Rakshasas fly in fear in all directions, and all the hosts of siddhas bow to you.

If a rustic from a remote rural area be brought into a huge factory with gigantic machinery, he would get terrified and run away. People with some knowledge about the modern machines would stand by and look on the huge machines at work, while the mechanics and technicians would be busily working at the factory.

Arjuna's vision of the cosmic form of Iswara is parallel to this. The rakshasas who are ignorant about the working of the universe run pell-mell bringing ruin to themselves. The knowing devotees of the Lord admire is macrocosmic creation and speak highly of it. The perfected ones such as yogis and siddhas pay their reverence by participating in his cosmic functions.  

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 35

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

Arjuna Praises te Lord 35-44
1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 35

Sanjaya describing the war to Dhritarashtra

Sanjaya Uvacha

Etat shrutva vachanam keshavasya krutanjalih vepa manah kiriti I

Namas krutva bhuyah eva aha krushnam sagad gadam bhita bita pranamya II sloka 35

संजय उवाच 

एतत् श्रुत्वा वचनम् केशवस्य कृताञ्जलिः वेप मानः किरीटी I

नमस् कृत्वा भूयः एव आह कृष्णं सगद् गदम् भीत भीतः प्रणम्य II श्लोक 35 

Sanjaya said

Having heard that speech of Keshava, the crowned one (Arjuna) wit joined palms, trembling, prostrating himself, again addressed Krishna, in a choked voice, bowing down, overwhelmed with fear.

The crown is a symbol of monarchy. A king with a crown on, should not bow his head to anybody. To be fearless is his dharma. Instead of paying homage to others he is to receive homage from others. To be firm and resolute in his utterances is the way of a crowned one. But such kingly conventions have all taken to their heels. Even kings have to humble themselves before God. The more the jivatman himbles himself before the paramatman the better it is for him.

What did the trembling Arjuna do? It comes from his own lips next.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 34

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

The Lord Embodied as Time  -  32-34

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 34

Dronam cha bhishmam cha jayadratham cha karnam tatha anyan api yodha viran I

Maya hantan tvam jahi ma vyatishthah yudh yasva jetasi rane sapatnan II sloka 34

द्रोणां च भीष्मं च जयद्रथं च कर्णं तथा अन्यान् अपि योधा विरान्  I 

मया हन्तान् त्वं जहि मा व्यतिष्ठाः युध् यस्व जेतासि रणे सपत्नान्  I I  श्लोक 34

Slay Drona, Bhishma, Jayadratha, Karna and other brave warriors who are already doomed by Me. Be not distressed with fear. fight and you will conquer your enemies in battle.

It has already been made clear that the killing of Drona and Bhishma is not contrary to dharma. The next question is whether is whether they can be killed at all. For, Drona is endowed with weapons divine. And Bhishma is one whom death cannot approach without his own permission. Nobody has so far successfully combated with him. yet another problem is with regard to Jayadratha. By hard penance his father has acquired the power to make the head of that man burst who succeeds in slaughtering his son. Fourthly vanquishing karna is equally problematic. He is armed with "sakti" a deadly weapon bestowed upon him by Indra. There is no escape for the man against whom this weapon is used. Karna keeps it to take vengeance against Arjuna. To be hesitant with fear is but natural to one in Arjuna's plight.

"When God is with us who is against us? When God is not with us, who is for us?" - This maxim is worth pondering over and to be pursued in life. God is here with Arjuna. What can his powerful enemies do to him? The Lord has willed to have them destroyed. Their prowess is already withdrawn from them. They are now like pictures that can be easily be brushed aside. Arjuna has only to function just as an arrow in the hands of the archer. The Lord will have his work done through his agency.The glory of a great conquest will be his, as a reward for this agency. This point is driven home into the mind of Partha.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 33

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

The Lord Embodied as Time  -  32-34

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 33

Tasmat tvam uttishttha yashah labhasva jitva shatrun bhunkshva rajyam samudram I

Maya eva ete nihantah purvam eva nimitta matram bhava savya sachin II sloka 33

तस्मात्  त्वं उत्तिष्ठ यशः लभस्व जित्वा शत्रून भुङ्क्ष्व राज्यं सम् ऋद्धं I
मया एव एते निहन्ताः पूर्वं एव निमित्त मात्रं भव सव्य साचिन् II श्लोक 33  

You therefore arise and attain fame. conquer the enemies and enjoy the unrivalled kingdom. By Me they have been verily slain already. You are merely an outward cause, O Sabyasachin.

The Lord's work does not depend on the agency of man for its fulfillment.precisely and effectively it takes place on its own accord. Man but earns merit by participating in it. By rising equal to an occasion and by discharging his duty, man emerges the better for it. By availing himself of the opportunities and facilities providentially provided in the  training ground of this world, man builds his personality. And that is his gain in being a willing instrument in the hand of the Lord.

Fame is not an end in itself. It comes as a byproduct  of an exemplary and dutiful life. The man of sterling character and noble deeds is praised by all even as a fully blossomed flower is admired by all. 

Opposing evil and vanquishing it is the duty of a kshatriya. The Lord's design here it is conducive to this auspicious end.

Prosperous earthly life is no detriment to spiritual progress. Rather it is a stepping stone to sreyas. earthly kingdom conquered by conforming to dharma is a rare achievement. Efficient and prosperous protection of the kingdom enriches man's life temporarily and spiritually.

The Lord has willed to wipe out wickedness from the world. Arjuna is no more confronted with any uphill task. It is more than sufficient if he merely makes a show of waging the war. The total destruction of the enemies will be the result. But Arjuna is not a man of mediocre stuff. He is a Savyasachin (ambidextrous) - one who can make a deadly delivery of the arrow with the left hand even. He is invincible in war. The opportune moment has come to him to show his valour. By being an instrument in the hands of the Lord, he can gain glory of having defeated Drona and Bhishma. Right action at the right time leads to victory, prosperity and blessedness.

A doubt may arise in the mind of Arjuna whether the vision that he has just now was a self created illusion. The Lord relieves him of thsi apprehension in the following sloka.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 32

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

The Lord Embodied as Time

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 32

Kishora from Chicago

Shri Bhagavan Uvacha

Kala asmi lokakshaya kruta pravrddhah lokan sam ahartum iha pravruttah I

Rte api tvam na bhavi syanti sarve ye avasthitah pratyani keshu yodhah II sloka 32

कालः अस्मि लोकक्षय कृत् प्रव्र्द्धः लोकान् सम् आहर्तुं इह प्रवृत्तः I 

ऋते अपि त्वं न भवि स्यन्ति सर्वे ये अवस्थितः प्रत्यानि केषु योधाः II श्लोक 32

The Blessed Lord said

I am the world destroying Time now engaged in wiping out the world. Even without you the warriors arrayed in hostile armies shall not live. 

In spite of his life long companionship with Shri lrishna, what Arjuna has come to know of him is very little and what remains to be known is much. Hence, rises the question, "Tell me who you are." The answer "I am the mighty world destroying Time" is one among the numerous definitions of Iswara. He is known as Mahakala. This answer solves the 

immediate puzzle in the mind of Arjuna.

All events in nature get buried in Time. Relentlessly and constantly it is consuming everything. Again it is time that measures all events. As Akasa contains all manifested things in itself, time contains all events or causation in itself. As one ascends a hill, one sees the ups and downs below merging into a vast expanse. Similarly in the infinitude of time all the happenings in the universe get swallowed. This Time is verily Iswara. 

"I know not your purpose", is the frightened inquiry of Arjuna. The Lord deals with that mystery. He says he is intent on wiping out the world. Death is in fact taking place ceaselessly. When it is scattered and spread out, it is called the ;aw of nature; but when it is concentrated, it is called a catastrophe. The Lord has this work of extermination done in both the ways - severally and collectively; extensively and intensively. The Mahabharata war is an instance of his intensive destruction of mankind. Whenever a need  for it arises he does it very effectively. He truly adores God who sees his hand at work in all destructions small and great. Nothing in the world is terrible to the knower of the ways of the Lord.

Arjuna is given to understand now that the destruction of Bhishma, Drona and Karna is inevitable. He who did not want to be the cause of death of the venerable ones, realises now that it is not possible for man to avert the design of the Lord. Arjuna's eagerness to take revenge on Karna is now shorn of its personal poignancy and spite. 

It is certain that these men of might are going to perish independent of Arjuna's instrumentality. Why then should he at all engage himself in this carnage? The necessity for it is explained further.

1 Gita Sloka every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 31

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

The Cosmic Vision Defined 15-31

1 Gita Sloka  every day - Chapter 11 - Viswarupa Darsana Yoga - Sloka 31

Akhyahi me ko bhavan ugra rupah namah astu te deva vara prasida I

Vigyatum icchami bhavantam adhyam na hi pragyanami tava pravrittim  II sloka 31

आख्यायि मे को भवान् उग्र रूपः नमः अस्तु ते देव वर प्रसिद I

विज्ञातुं इचचामि भवन्तं आध्यम् न हि प्रजानामि तव प्रवृत्तिं II श्लोक 31 

Tell me who you are, so fierce in form. I bow down to you O God Supreme! Have mercy! I desire to know you, the Primal One. I know not your purpose. 

The calm, charming and beautiful form of the God attracts devotees. Being drawn to him in this way is deemed as devotional worship. His terrific form arrests the attention of the devotee in another way. And getting absorbed in it is also a form of worship.  The fully qualified devotee is he who accepts the sublime and terrific aspects of God with equal devotion and absorption. Fear is conquered by the worship of the fearful. But Arjuna like many an ordinary devotee is not prepared for the worship of this terrifying form.

That Iswara is everything is being realized by Arjuna. But what all is comprised in everything is not known to him and it is impossible for him to know. A man and his activities are inter related. Knowing his activities is one of the ways of knowing the man, to some extent atleast. Similarly God can be known in a way through his doings. And that is teh supplication of Arjuna. The Lord deigns to reveal his purpose in the next sloka.