BHAGAVAD-GITA 11:8

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 11:8

 

na tu mam sakyase drastum

anenaiva sva-caksusa

divyam dadami te caksuh

pasya me yogam aisvaram

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

na--never; tu--but; mam--Me; sakyase--are able; drastum--to see;

anena--with these; eva--certainly; sva-caksusa--your own eyes;

divyam--divine; dadami--I give; te--to you; caksuh--eyes; pasya--see;

me--My; yogam aisvaram--inconceivable mystic power.

 

TRANSLATION

 

But you cannot see Me with your present eyes. Therefore I give you

divine eyes. Behold My mystic opulence!

 

PURPORT

 

A pure devotee does not like to see Krsna in any form except His form

with two hands; a devotee must see His universal form by His grace,

not with the mind but with spiritual eyes. To see the universal form

of Krsna, Arjuna is told not to change his mind but his vision. The

universal form of Krsna is not very important; that will be clear in

subsequent verses. Yet because Arjuna wanted to see it, the Lord gives

him the particular vision required to see that universal form.

 

Devotees who are correctly situated in a transcendental relationship

with Krsna are attracted by loving features, not by a godless display

of opulences. The playmates of Krsna, the friends of Krsna and the

parents of Krsna never want Krsna to show His opulences. They are so

immersed in pure love that they do not even know that Krsna is the

Supreme Personality of Godhead. In their loving exchange they forget

that Krsna is the Supreme Lord. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is stated

that the boys who play with Krsna are all highly pious souls and after

many, many births they are able to play with Krsna. Such boys do not

know that Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They take Him

as a personal friend. Therefore Sukadeva Gosvami recites this verse:

 

ittham satam brahma-sukhanubhutya

dasyam gatanam para-daivatena

mayasritanam nara-darakena

sakam vijahruh krta-punya-punjah

 

"Here is the Supreme Person, who is considered the impersonal Brahman by

great sages, the Supreme Personality of Godhead by devotees, and a

product of material nature by ordinary men. Now these boys, who have

performed many, many pious activities in their past lives, are playing

with that Supreme Personality of Godhead." (Srimad-Bhagavatam

10.12.11)

 

The fact is that the devotee is not concerned with seeing the

visva-rupa, the universal form, but Arjuna wanted to see it to

substantiate Krsna's statements so that in the future people could

understand that Krsna not only theoretically or philosophically

presented Himself as the Supreme but actually presented Himself as

such to Arjuna. Arjuna must confirm this because Arjuna is the

beginning of the parampara system. Those who are actually interested

in understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, and who

follow in the footsteps of Arjuna should understand that Krsna not

only theoretically presented Himself as the Supreme, but actually

revealed Himself as the Supreme.

 

The Lord gave Arjuna the necessary power to see His universal form

because He knew that Arjuna did not particularly want to see it, as we

have already explained.

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.