THE HOLY GITA, CHAPTER NUMBER 11, VERSE NUMBER 53, VISVARUPA DARSANA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF THE VISION OF THE COSMIC FORM

THE HOLY GITA

CHAPTER NUMBER 11

VERSE NUMBER 53

VISVARUPA DARSANA YOGA OR THE YOGA OF THE VISION OF THE COSMIC FORM:

TEXT IN TRANSLITERATION:

naa ‘ham vedair na tapasaa na daanena n ache ‘jyayaa

sakya evamvidho drashttum drrshttavaan asi maam yathaa

SANSKRIT WORDS AND PHRASES AND THEIR MEANING IN ENGLISH:

na = not: aham = I: vedaih = by the Vedas: na = not: tapasaa = by austerity: na = not: daanena = by gift: na = not: cha = and: ijyaa = by sacrifice: sakyah (am) possible: evam vidhah = like this: drashttum = to be seen: drrshttavaanasi (thou) hast seen: maam = me: yathaa = as.

TEXT IN ENGLISH:

Neither by the Vedas, nor by austerity, nor by gift, nor by sacrifice can I be seen in this form as you have seen Me.

COMMENTARY BY SRIMAT SWAMI CHIDBHAVANANDA:

The Lord has repeatedly made it plain that these meritorious acts are at best conducive to the purification of the mind. These are no more useful for the attainment of the Lord than a diligent search is for a gold coin, on which the concerned man happens to be standing!

COMMENTARY BY DR.S.RADHAKRISHNAN:

This verse is a repetition of XI. 48.

COMMENTARY BY SRIMAT SWAMI SIVANANDA:

This Cosmic Form which thou hast seen so easily cannot be obtained either by the study of the Vedas and the six modes of philosophy, nor by the practice of mani-fold austerities (penances), nor by charity, nor by sacrifices of various kinds.

Arjuna was indeed very fortunate in seeing the Cosmic Form.

How can the Lord be seen? Listen! The heart must be overflowing with true devotion to Him. (Cf. XI.48)

Comments by the blogger:

Though this sloka or verse is repeated as the same sentiments have been lucidly expounded in XI.48 we should not consider this sloka or verse as superfluous. In certain matters like learning the Vedas themselves, repetition was the key. The heavens would not fall if an important teaching is repeated. And these two verses contain a eulogy and encomium for Arjuna. Arjuna is a great devotee and he has surrendered his will unflinchingly to the Will of the Lord of Gita. Moreover, the war at Kurukshetra has to be waged. The Lord is not taking any chances. Though Arjuna has crossed the psychological block and barrier long since these two verses the Lord wants to enshrine the greatness of His Cosmic Form time and time again even at the risk of repetition on the mind of Arjuna. In his San Francisco address, Srimat Swami Vivekananda said that Arjuna was under the control of emotionalism...He had become like an animal, like a baby, just letting his heart carry away his brain...Sri Krishna says that the sage or Panditha is not sorry for those that are living nor for those that die. You cannot die nor can I. There was never a time when we did not exist. There will never be a time when we shall not exist. ...There is nothing in the universe that can change the Changeless. Though this body has its beginning and end, the dweller in the body is infinite and without end. Knowing this, stand up and fight!  Well, Sri Krishna pronounced these exhortations even at the outset. And then He followed up with an exemplary teaching of many Yogas and before chapter 11 Arjuna was restored to his former self which did not know any faint-heartedness. The 11^th chapter is the result of Arjuna’s own begging to see the Cosmic Form of the Great Lord. The Form which was denied even to the Devas is seen by Arjuna!

The Lord is not tire of bringing home the point that the study of and the mastery in memorizing the Four Vedas will not come to one’s help when the goal is complete emancipation and mingling with the Maker of the Universe. Though the Vedas form the basis of all the six darsanas of the ancient Hinduism, in Bhavad Gita the Bhagavan, Sri Krishna, minces no words when it comes to informing a practitioner that he should not lose himself in the sayings and hymns of the Four Vedas. That there is much in the Vedas that are purely worldly and obtaining a place in the Heaven when one dies. The Vedic period saw the Arians leading a blessed life. Having come to India from far off they settled along the banks of the Ganges and owned a vast number of cattle and cultivation of the chaste lands yielded rich harvests. The life had become a heaven on earth. They, the Arians lead a blissful life in India and they started to enquire even at that age which is four or five thousand years ago, according to the Foreign scholars, about the gods and various aspects of the Universe and the human  Self and how to lead a blissful life.

But several thousands of years later the Arians’ understanding of the Universe and the Ultimate Maker of the Universe and all the beings and non-beings went through a sea change. The Vedic Sacrifices which were external were internalized and Brahman was found out by the Seers and Saints to be without any gross body, beginning and end. But apart from Brahman, the nirguna Spirit, the Saguna Brahman was found to be Sri Vishnu by Vaishnavites and Lord Siva by Saivaits. But the irony and greatness is that these two deities had been identified in the Vedas themselves!

Only in the Hindu Scriptures, one can find this kind of intellectual and spiritual mightiness that freely looks upon themselves and continually voyage forth toward the Ultimate Almighty, One God. The Lord of Bhagavad Gita is not afraid of calling a spade a spade. The Lord freely gives vent to his critical analyses in the evolutionary journey from a number of Vedic gods to a Sole Entity as Brahman.

In this Sloka the Lord of Gita says that neither by the Vedas, nor by austerity, nor by gift, nor by sacrifice can He be seen in this Universal Form as Arjuna had seen God. The Study of the Vedas, penances, gifts or sacrifices will be of little avail when it comes to be able to see the Universal Form of the Lord.

But the Lord wanted Arjuna to see for himself that all the warriors on the opposite side had already been slain by the Lord Himself and all Arjuna had to do was to become a willing instrument in the Lord’s Hands and wage this great war having set aside any personal ambition. Arjuna is a Kshatriya or belonging to the warrior caste and his duty is to fight against those who start the war. It is indeed very important that Arjuna realized that his role is secondary only and the Lord who does not take up the bow and arrow has already finished off all the warriors including Bhishma and Drona. So it became important that Arjuna realized his secondary role. For this purpose, Arjuna had to have the vision of the Universal Form of the Lord.

The Lord calls Arjuna as Parantaba or the Scorcher of the foes. Arjuna’s emotionalism also was inimical to the accomplished and formidable warrior, Arjuna. He must get the better of his emotionalism.