Chapter XI- Arjuna. This, for my soul's peace, have I heard from Thee,
- The unfolding of the Mystery Supreme
- Named Adhyatman; comprehending which,
- My darkness is dispelled; for now I know-
- O Lotus-eyed!- whence is the birth of men,
- And whence their death, and what the majesties
- Of Thine immortal rule. Fain would I see,
- As thou Thyself declar'st it, Sovereign Lord!
- The likeness of that glory of Thy Form
- Wholly revealed. O Thou Divinest One!
- If this can be, if I may bear the sight,
- Make Thyself visible, Lord of all prayers!
- Show me Thy very self, the Eternal God!
- Krishna. Gaze, then, thou Son of Pritha! I manifest for thee
- Those hundred thousand thousand shapes that clothe my Mystery:
- I show thee all my semblances, infinite, rich, divine,
- My changeful hues, my countless forms. See! in this face of mine,
- Adityas, Vasus, Rudras, Aswins, and Maruts; see
- Wonders unnumbered, Indian Prince! revealed to none save thee.
- Behold! this is the Universe!- Look! what is live and dead
- I gather all in one- in Me! Gaze, as thy lips have said
- On GOD, ETERNAL, VERY GOD! See ME! what thou prayest!
- Thou canst not!- nor, with human eyes, Arjuna! ever mayest!
- Therefore I give thee sense divine. Have other eyes, new light!
- And, look! This is My glory, unveiled to mortal sight!
- Sanjaya. Then, O King! to God, so saying,
- Stood, to Pritha's Son displaying
- All the splendour, wonder, dread
- Of His vast Almighty-head.
- Out of countless eyes beholding,
- Out of countless mouths commanding,
- Countless mystic forms enfolding
- In one Form: supremely standing
- Countless radiant glories wearing,
- Countless heavenly weapons bearing,
- Crowned with garlands of star-clusters,
- Robed in garb of woven lustres,
- Breathing from His perfect Presence
- Breaths of every subtle essence
- Of all heavenly odours; shedding
- Blinding brilliance; overspreading-
- Boundless, beautiful- all spaces
- With His all-regarding faces;
- So He showed! If there should rise
- Suddenly within the skies
- Sunburst of a thousand suns
- Flooding earth with beams undeemed-of,
- Then might be that Holy One's
- Majesty and radiance dreamed of!
- So did Pandu's Son behold
- All this universe enfold
- All its huge diversity
- Into one vast shape, and be
- Visible, and viewed, and blended
- In one Body- subtle, splendid,
- Nameless- th' All-comprehending
- God of Gods, the Never-Ending
- Deity!
- But, sore amazed,
- Thrilled, o'erfilled, dazzled, and dazed,
- Arjuna knelt; and bowed his head,
- And clasped his palms; and cried, and said:
- Arjuna. Yea! I have seen! I see!
- Lord! all is wrapped in Thee!
- The gods are in Thy glorious frame! the creatures
- Of earth, and heaven, and hell
- In Thy Divine form dwell,
- And in Thy countenance shine all the features
- Of Brahma, sitting lone
- Upon His lotus-throne;
- Of saints and sages, and the serpent races
- Ananta, Vasuki;
- Yea! mightiest Lord! I see
- Thy thousand thousand arms and breasts, and faces,
- And eyes,- on every side
- Perfect, diversified;
- And nowhere end of Thee, nowhere beginning,
- Nowhere a centre! Shifts-
- Wherever soul's gaze lifts-
- Thy central Self, all-wielding, and all-winning!
- Infinite King! I see
- The diadem on Thee,
- The club, the shell, the discus; see Thee burning
- In beams insufferable,
- Lighting earth, heaven, and hell
- With brilliance blazing, glowing, flashing; turning
- Darkness to dazzling day,
- Look I whichever way;
- Ah, Lord! I worship Thee, the Undivided,
- The Uttermost of thought,
- The Treasure-Palace wrought
- To hold the wealth of the worlds; the Shield provided
- To shelter Virtue's laws;
- The Fount whence Life's stream draws
- All waters of all rivers of all being:
- The One Unborn, Unending:
- Unchanging and Unblending!
- With might and majesty, past thought, past seeing!
- Silver of moon and gold
- Of sun are glories rolled
- From Thy great eyes; Thy visage, beaming tender
- Throughout the stars and skies,
- Doth to warm life surprise
- Thy Universe. The worlds are filled with wonder
- Of Thy perfections! Space
- Star-sprinkled, and void place
- From pole to pole of the Blue, from bound to bound,
- Hath Thee in every spot,
- Thee, Thee!- Where Thou art not,
- O Holy, Marvellous Form! is nowhere found!
- O Mystic, Awful One!
- At sight of Thee, made known,
- The Three Worlds quake; the lower gods draw nigh Thee;
- They fold their palms, and bow
- Body, and breast, and brow,
- And, whispering worship, laud and magnify Thee!
- Rishis and Siddhas cry
- "Hail! Highest Majesty!
- From sage and singer breaks the hymn of glory
- In dulcet harmony,
- Sounding the praise of Thee;
- While countless companies take up the story,
- Rudras, who ride the storms,
- Th' Adityas' shining forms,
- Vasus and Sadhyas, Viswas, Ushmapas;
- Maruts, and those great Twins
- The heavenly, fair, Aswins,
- Gandharvas, Rakshasas, Siddhas, and Asuras,-
- These see Thee, and revere
- In sudden-stricken fear;
- Yea! the Worlds,- seeing Thee with form stupendous,
- With faces manifold,
- With eyes which all behold,
- Unnumbered eyes, vast arms, members tremendous,
- Flanks, lit with sun and star,
- Feet planted near and far,
- Tushes of terror, mouths wrathful and tender;-
- The Three wide Worlds before Thee
- Adore, as I adore Thee,
- Quake, as I quake, to witness so much splendour!
- I mark Thee strike the skies
- With front, in wondrous wise
- Huge, rainbow-painted, glittering; and thy mouth
- Opened, and orbs which see
- All things, whatever be
- In all Thy worlds, east, west, and north and south.
- O Eyes of God! O Head!
- My strength of soul is fled,
- Gone is heart's force, rebuked is mind's desire!
- When I behold Thee so,
- With awful brows a-glow,
- With burning glance, and lips lighted by fire
- Fierce as those flames which shall
- Consume, at close of all,
- Earth, Heaven! Ah me! I see no Earth and Heaven!
- Thee, Lord of Lords! I see,
- Thee only- only Thee!
- Now let Thy mercy unto me be given,
- Thou Refuge of the World!
- Lo! to the cavern hurled
- Of Thy wide-opened throat, and lips white-tushed,
- I see our noblest ones,
- Great Dhritarashtra's sons,
- Bhishma, Drona, and Karna, caught and crushed!
- The Kings and Chiefs drawn in,
- That gaping gorge within;
- The best of both these armies torn and riven!
- Between Thy jaws they lie
- Mangled full bloodily,
- Ground into dust and death! Like streams down-driven
- With helpless haste, which go
- In headlong furious flow
- Straight to the gulfing deeps of th' unfilled ocean,
- So to that flaming cave
- Those heroes great and brave
- Pour, in unending streams, with helpless motion!
- Like moths which in the night
- Flutter towards a light,
- Drawn to their fiery doom, flying and dying,
- So to their death still throng,
- Blind, dazzled, borne along
- Ceaselessly, all those multitudes, wild flying!
- Thou, that hast fashioned men,
- Devourest them again,
- One with another, great and small, alike!
- The creatures whom Thou mak'st,
- With flaming jaws Thou tak'st,
- Lapping them up! Lord God! Thy terrors strike
- From end to end of earth,
- Filling life full, from birth
- To death, with deadly, burning, lurid dread!
- Ah, Vishnu! make me know
- Why is Thy visage so?
- Who art Thou, feasting thus upon Thy dead?
- Who? awful Deity!
- I bow myself to Thee,
- Namostu Te, Devavara! Prasid!
- O Mightiest Lord! rehearse
- Why hast Thou face so fierce?
- Whence doth this aspect horrible proceed?
- Krishna. Thou seest Me as Time who kills,
- Time who brings all to doom,
- The Slayer Time, Ancient of Days, come hither to consume;
- Excepting thee, of all these hosts of hostile chiefs arrayed,
- There stands not one shall leave alive the battlefield! Dismayed
- No longer be! Arise! obtain renown! destroy thy foes!
- Fight for the kingdom waiting thee when thou hast vanquished those.
- By Me they fall- not thee! the stroke of death is dealt them now,
- Even as they show thus gallantly; My instrument art thou!
- Strike, strong-armed Prince, at Drona! at Bhishma strike! deal death
- On Karna, Jyadratha; stay all their warlike breath!
- 'Tis I who bid them perish! Thou wilt but slay the slain;
- Fight! they must fall, and thou must live, victor upon this plain!
- Sanjaya. Hearing mighty Keshav's word,
- Trembling that helmed Lord
- Clasped his lifted palms, and- praying
- Grace of Krishna- stood there, saying,
- With bowed brow and accents broken,
- These words, timorously spoken:
- Arjuna. Worthily, Lord of Might!
- The whole world hath delight
- In Thy surpassing power, obeying Thee;
- The Rakshasas, in dread
- At sight of Thee, are sped
- To all four quarters; and the company
- Of Siddhas sound Thy name.
- How should they not proclaim
- Thy Majesties, Divinest, Mightiest?
- Thou Brahm, than Brahma greater!
- Thou Infinite Creator!
- Thou God of gods, Life's Dwelling-place and Rest.
- Thou, of all souls the Soul!
- The Comprehending Whole!
- Of being formed, and formless being the Framer;
- O Utmost One! O Lord!
- Older than eld, Who stored
- The worlds with wealth of life! O Treasure-Claimer,
- Who wottest all, and art
- Wisdom Thyself! O Part
- In all, and All; for all from Thee have risen
- Numberless now I see
- The aspects are of Thee!
- Vayu Thou art, and He who keeps the prison
- Of Narak, Yama dark;
- And Agni's shining spark;
- Varuna's waves are Thy waves. Moon and starlight
- Are Thine! Prajapati
- Art Thou, and 'tis to Thee
- They knelt in worshipping the old world's far light,
- The first of mortal men.
- Again, Thou God! again
- A thousand thousand times be magnified!
- Honour and worship be-
- Glory and praise,- to Thee
- Namo, Namaste, cried on every side;
- Cried here, above, below,
- Uttered when Thou dost go,
- Uttered where Thou dost come! Namo! we call;
- Namostu! God adored!
- Namostu! Nameless Lord
- Hail to Thee! Praise to Thee Thou One in all;
- For Thou art All! Yea, Thou!
- Ah! if in anger now
- Thou shouldst remember I did think Thee Friend,
- Speaking with easy speech,
- As men use each to each;
- Did call Thee "Krishna," "Prince," nor comprehend
- Thy hidden majesty,
- The might, the awe of Thee;
- Did, in my heedlessness, or in my love,
- On journey, or in jest,
- Or when we lay at rest,
- Sitting at council, straying in the grove,
- Alone, or in the throng,
- Do Thee, most Holy! wrong,
- Be Thy grace granted for that witless sin
- For Thou art, now I know,
- Father of all below,
- Of all above, of all the worlds within
- Guru of Gurus; more
- To reverence and adore
- Than all which is adorable and high!
- How, in the wide worlds three
- Should any equal be?
- Should any other share Thy Majesty?
- Therefore, with body bent
- And reverent intent,
- I praise, and serve, and seek Thee, asking grace.
- As father to a son,
- As friend to friend, as one
- Who loveth to his lover, turn Thy face
- In gentleness on me!
- Good is it I did see
- This unknown marvel of Thy Form! But fear
- Mingles with joy! Retake,
- Dear Lord! for pity's sake
- Thine earthly shape, which earthly eyes may bear!
- Be merciful, and show
- The visage that I know;
- Let me regard Thee, as of yore, arrayed
- With disc and forehead-gem,
- With mace and anadem,
- Thou that sustainest all things! Undismayed
- Let me once more behold
- The form I loved of old,
- Thou of the thousand arms and countless eyes!
- This frightened heart is fain
- To see restored again
- My Charioteer, in Krishna's kind disguise.
- Krishna. Yea! thou hast seen, Arjuna! because I loved thee well,
- The secret countenance of Me, revealed by mystic spell,
- Shining, and wonderful, and majestic, manifold,
- Which none save thou in all the years had favour to behold;
- For not by Vedas cometh this, nor sacrifice, nor alms,
- Nor works well-done, nor penance long, nor prayers, nor chanted psalms,
- That mortal eyes should bear to view the Immortal Soul unclad,
- Prince of the Kurus! This was kept for thee alone! Be glad!
- Let no more trouble shake thy heart, because thine eyes have seen
- My terror with My glory. As I before have been
- So will I be again for thee; with lightened heart behold!
- Once more I am thy Krishna, the form thou knew'st of old!
- Sanjaya. These words to Arjuna spake
- Vasudev, and straight did take
- Back again the semblance dear
- Of the well-loved charioteer;
- Peace and joy it did restore
- When the Prince beheld once more
- Mighty BRAHMA'S form and face
- Clothed in Krishna's gentle grace.
- Arjuna. Now that I see come back, Janardana!
- This friendly human frame, my mind can think
- Calm thoughts once more; my heart beats still again!
- Krishna. Yea! it was wonderful and terrible
- To view me as thou didst, dear Prince! The gods
- Dread and desire continually to view!
- Yet not by Vedas, nor from sacrifice,
- Nor penance, nor gift-giving, nor with prayer
- Shall any so behold, as thou hast seen!
- Only by fullest service, perfect faith,
- And uttermost surrender am I known
- And seen, and entered into, Indian Prince!
- Who doeth all for Me; who findeth Me
- In all; adoreth always; loveth all
- Which I have made, and Me, for Love's sole end,
- That man, Arjuna! unto Me doth wend.
- HERE ENDETH Chapter XI OF THE BHAGAVAD-GITA, Entitled "Viswarupadarsanam," Or "The Book of the Manifesting of the One and Manifold."
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