Chapter Overview
Arjuna requests to see Krishna's "imperishable Self" - not just hear about it but witness it directly. Krishna grants him "divine eyes" (divya-chakshu) because mortal eyes cannot perceive this form. What follows is the most vivid and intense passage in the Gita: a description of the infinite universal form containing all beings, all time, all possibility.
The vision includes everything: the past, present, and future; creation and destruction; gods and demons; even the warriors of Kurukshetra rushing into Krishna's mouths like rivers into the ocean. Arjuna is overwhelmed - he sees friend Krishna as cosmic Time, the destroyer of worlds. In the end, he begs Krishna to return to His gentle form, acknowledging that human capacity cannot endure such a vision.
Key Themes
- Divine Vision: Special eyes are needed to see God's true form
- Infinite Form: Countless faces, arms, eyes - endless in all directions
- Time as Destroyer: Krishna as Kala (Time), devouring all worlds
- The Warriors' Fate: All combatants already slain by divine will
- Return to Gentle Form: Arjuna's plea and Krishna's compassion
- Devotion Superior: Only through bhakti can this form be truly known
Key Verses to Study
na tu mam shakyase drashtum anenaiva sva-chakshusa
"But you cannot see Me with your present eyes. Therefore I give you divine eyes. Behold My mystic opulence!"
Ordinary perception cannot grasp the infinite - special vision is needed.
divi surya-sahasrasya bhaved yugapad utthita
"If hundreds of thousands of suns were to rise at once in the sky, their radiance might resemble the effulgence of the Supreme Person in that universal form."
The famous verse that Robert Oppenheimer quoted at the first atomic bomb test - describing inconceivable luminosity.
kalo 'smi loka-kshaya-krit pravriddho
"Time I am, the great destroyer of the worlds, and I have come here to destroy all people. With the exception of you [the Pandavas], all the soldiers here on both sides will be slain."
Krishna reveals His ultimate nature as Time, which devours all things. Also quoted by Oppenheimer.
tasmat tvam uttishtha yasho labhasva
"Therefore get up and prepare to fight. After conquering your enemies you will enjoy a flourishing kingdom. They are already put to death by My arrangement, and you, O Savyasachin, can be but an instrument in the fight."
The key teaching: become God's instrument; the outcome is already determined.
adrishta-purvam hrishito 'smi drishtva
"After seeing this universal form, which I have never seen before, I am gladdened, but at the same time my mind is disturbed with fear. Therefore please bestow Your grace upon me and reveal again Your form as the Personality of Godhead, O Lord of lords, O abode of the universe."
Arjuna's honest response: joy mixed with terror - please return to the gentle form.
bhaktya tv ananyaya shakya aham evam-vidho 'rjuna
"My dear Arjuna, only by undivided devotional service can I be understood as I am, standing before you, and can thus be seen directly. Only in this way can you enter into the mysteries of My understanding."
The chapter's conclusion: only through pure bhakti can one truly know Krishna.
What Arjuna Saw (11.9-31)
Sanjaya narrates the vision to the blind king Dhritarashtra:
- Infinite forms: Many faces, eyes, mouths, arms - marvelous sights in all directions
- Divine ornaments: Celestial weapons, garments, garlands, fragrances
- Blazing radiance: Like the sun but in all directions simultaneously
- Entire universe: All beings, all worlds contained in this one body
- No beginning, middle, or end: Infinite expansion everywhere
- Cosmic terror: Fire-like eyes, blazing mouths touching the sky
- Warriors entering mouths: Like rivers flowing to the ocean, soldiers rush to destruction
- Crushing in mouths: All beings being devoured and destroyed
Arjuna's Reactions
The chapter traces Arjuna's emotional journey through this vision:
- Wonder (11.14): Hair standing on end, he offers praise
- Amazement (11.15-21): Seeing gods, sages, all creatures in the cosmic body
- Fear (11.23-24): Worlds tremble seeing this form; Arjuna is disturbed
- Terror (11.25-31): Seeing the fiery mouths destroying all beings
- Question (11.31): "Tell me who You are!" - he doesn't recognize his friend
- Apology (11.41-42): For past casual treatment of Krishna as friend
- Plea (11.45-46): Please return to the four-armed or two-armed form