Bhagavad-gita As It Is - Macmillan 1972 Edition -- Prabhupada Books (86 page)

TRANSLATION

You are air, fire, water, and You are the moon! You are the supreme controller and the grandfather. Thus I offer my respectful obeisances unto You a thousand times, and again and yet again!

PURPORT

The Lord is addressed here as air because the air is the most important representation of all the demigods, being all-pervasive. Arjuna also addresses Kṛṣṇa as the grandfather because He is the father of Brahmā, the first living creature in the universe.

Bg 11.40

TEXT 40

TEXT

namaḥ purastād atha pṛṣṭhatas te

namo 'stu te sarvata eva sarva

ananta-vīryāmita-vikramas tvaṁ

sarvaṁ samāpnoṣi tato 'si sarvaḥ

SYNONYMS

namaḥ-
offering obeisances;
purastāt-
from the front;
atha-
also;
pṛṣṭhataḥ
-from behind;
te-
You;
namaḥ astu
-offer my respects;
te
-unto You;
sarvataḥ-
from all sides;
eva sarva-
because You are everything;
ananta-vīrya-
unlimited potency;
amita-vikramaḥ-
unlimited force;
tvam-
You;
sarvam-
everything;
samāpnoṣi-
cover;
tataḥ asi-
therefore You are;
sarvaḥ-
everything.

TRANSLATION

Obeisances from the front, from behind and from all sides! O unbounded power, You are the master of limitless, might! You are all-pervading, and thus You are everything!

PURPORT

Out of loving ecstasy for Kṛṣṇa, his friend, Arjuna is offering his respects from all sides. He is accepting that He is the master of all potencies and all prowess and far superior to all the great warriors assembled on the battlefield. It is said in the
Viṣṇu
Purāṇa: yo 'yaṁ tavāgato deva-samīpaṁ devatā-gaṇaḥ sa tvam eva jagat-sraṣṭā yataḥ sarva-gato bhavān.
"Whoever comes before You, even if he be a demigod, is created by You, O Supreme Personality of Godhead."

Bg 11.41, Bg 11.42, Bg 11.41-42

TEXTS 41-42

TEXT

sakheti matvā prasabhaṁ yad uktaṁ

he kṛṣṇa he yādava he sakheti

ajānatā mahimānaṁ tavedaṁ

mayā pramādāt praṇayena vāpi

vihāra-śayyāsana-bhojaneṣu

eko 'tha vāpy acyuta tat-samakṣaṁ

tat kṣāmaye tvām aham aprameyam

SYNONYMS

sakhā-
friend;
iti-
thus;
matvā-
thinking;
prasabham-
temporary;
yat-
whatever;
uktam-
said;
he
krṣṇa
-O Kṛṣṇa;
he
yādava
-O Yādava;
he
sakhā iti
-O my dear friend,
ajānatā-
without knowing;
mahimānam-
glories;
tava-
Your;
idam-
this;
mayā-
by me;
pramādāt
-out of foolishness;
pranayena-
out of love;
vā
api-
either;
yat
-whatever;
ca-
also;
avahāsārtham-
for joking;
asatkṛtaḥ
-dishonor;
asi-
have been done;
vihāra-
in relaxation;
śayyā
-in joking;
āsana
-in a resting place;
bhojaneṣu-
or while eating together;
ekaḥ
-alone;
athavā
-or;
api-
others;
acyuta
-O infallible one;
tat-samakṣam-
as Your competitor;
tat
-all those;
kṣāmaye
-excuse;
tvām
-You;
aham
-I;
aprameyam
-immeasurable.

TRANSLATION

I have in the past addressed You as "O Kṛṣṇa," "O Yādava," "O my friend," without knowing Your glories. Please forgive whatever I may have done in madness or in love. I have dishonored You many times while relaxing or while lying on the same bed or eating together, sometimes alone and sometimes in front of many friends. Please excuse me for all my offenses.

PURPORT

Although Kṛṣṇa is manifested before Arjuna in His universal form, Arjuna remembers his friendly relationship with Kṛṣṇa and is therefore asking pardon and requesting Him to excuse him for the many informal gestures which arise out of friendship. He is admitting that formerly he did not know that Kṛṣṇa could assume such a universal form, although He explained it as his intimate friend. Arjuna did not know how many times he may have dishonored Him by addressing Him as "O my friend, O Kṛṣṇa, O Yādava," etc., without acknowledging His opulence. But Kṛṣṇa is so kind and merciful that in spite of such opulence He played with Arjuna as a friend. Such is the transcendental loving reciprocation between the devotee and the Lord. The relationship between the living entity and Kṛṣṇa is fixed eternally; it cannot be forgotten, as we can see from the behavior of Arjuna. Although Arjuna has seen the opulence in the universal form, he could not forget his friendly relationship with Kṛṣṇa.

Bg 11.43

TEXT 43

TEXT

pitāsi lokasya carācarasya

tvam asya pūjyaś ca gurur garīyān

na tvat-samo 'sty abhyadhikaḥ kuto 'nyo

loka-traye 'py apratima-prabhāva

SYNONYMS

pitā-
father;
asi-
You are;
lokasya-
of all the world;
cara-
moving;
acarasya-
nonmoving;
tvam-
You are;
asya-
of this;
pūjyaḥ-
worshipable;
ca-
also;
guruḥ
-master;
garīyān-
glorious;
na-
never;
tvat-samaḥ-
equal to You;
asti-
there is;
abhyadhikaḥ-
greater;
kutaḥ-
how is it possible;
anyaḥ-
other;
loka-traye-
in three planetary systems;
api-
also;
apratima-
immeasurable;
prabhāva-
power.

TRANSLATION

You are the father of this complete cosmic manifestation, the worshipable chief, the spiritual master. No one is equal to You, nor can anyone be one with You. Within the three worlds, You are immeasurable.

PURPORT

The Lord Kṛṣṇa is worshipable as a father is worshipable for his son. He is the spiritual master because He originally gave the Vedic instructions to Brahmā, and presently He is also instructing
Bhagavad-gītā
to Arjuna; therefore He is the original spiritual master, and any bona fide spiritual master at the present moment must be a descendant in the line of disciplic succession stemming from Kṛṣṇa. Without being a representative of Kṛṣṇa, one cannot become a teacher or spiritual master of transcendental subject matter.

The Lord is being paid obeisances in all respects. He is of immeasurable greatness. No one can be greater than the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, because no one is equal to or higher than Kṛṣṇa within any manifestation, spiritual or material. Everyone is below Him. No one can excel Him.

The Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa has senses and a body like the ordinary man, but for Him there is no difference between His senses, body, mind and Himself. Foolish persons who do not know Him perfectly say that Kṛṣṇa is different from His soul, mind, heart and everything else. Kṛṣṇa is absolute; therefore His activities and potencies are supreme. It is also stated that He does not have senses like ours. He can perform all sensual activities; therefore His senses are neither imperfect nor limited. No one can be greater than Him, no one can be equal to Him, and everyone is lower than Him.

Whoever knows His transcendental body, activities and perfection, after quitting his body, returns to Him and doesn't come back again to this miserable world. Therefore one should know that Kṛṣṇa's activities are different from others. The best policy is to follow the principles of Kṛṣṇa; that will make one perfect. It is also stated that there is no one who is master of Kṛṣṇa; everyone is His servant. Only Kṛṣṇa is God, and everyone is servant. Everyone is complying with His order. There is no one who can deny His order. Everyone is acting according to His direction, being under His superintendence. As stated in the
Brahmā-saṁhitā,
He is the cause of all causes.

Bg 11.44

TEXT 44

TEXT

tasmāt praṇamya praṇidhāya kāyaṁ

prasādaye tvām aham īśam īḍyam

piteva putrasya sakheva sakhyuḥ

priyaḥ priyāyārhasi deva soḍhum

SYNONYMS

tasmāt-
therefore;
praṇamya
-after offering obeisances;
praṇidhāya
-laying down;
kāyam-
body;
prasādaye-
to beg mercy;
tvām-
unto you;
aham
-I;
īśam
-unto the Supreme Lord;
īḍyam
-who is worshipable;
pitā iva
-like a father;
putrasya
-of a son;
sakhā iva
-like a friend;
sakhyuḥ-
of a friend;
priyaḥ-
lover;
priyāyāḥ-
of the dearmost;
arhasi
-You should;
deva
-my Lord;
soḍhum
-tolerate.

TRANSLATION

You are the Supreme Lord, to be worshiped by every living being. Thus I fall down to offer You my respects and ask Your mercy. Please tolerate the wrongs that I may have done to You and bear with me as a father with his son, or a friend with his friend, or a lover with his beloved.

PURPORT

Kṛṣṇa's devotees relate to Kṛṣṇa in various relationships; one might treat Kṛṣṇa as a son, one might treat Kṛṣṇa as a husband, as a friend, as a master, etc. Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna are related in friendship. As the father tolerates, or the husband or master tolerates, so Kṛṣṇa tolerates.

Bg 11.45

TEXT 45

TEXT

adṛṣṭa-pūrvaṁ hṛṣito 'smi dṛṣṭvā

bhayena ca pravyathitaṁ mano me

tad eva me darśaya deva rūpaṁ

prasīda deveśa jagan-nivāsa

SYNONYMS

adṛṣṭa-pūrvam-
never seen before;
hṛṣitaḥ-
gladdened;
asmi-
I am;
dṛṣṭvā-
by seeing;
bhayena-
out of fear;
ca-
also;
pravyathitam-
perturbed;
manaḥ-
mind;
me-
mine;
tat-
therefore;
eva-
certainly;
me-
unto me;
darśaya-
show;
deva
-O Lord;
rūpam-
the form;
prasīda-
just be gracious;
deveśa-
O Lord of lords;
jagat-nivāsa-
the refuge of the universe.

TRANSLATION

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.

PURPORT

Arjuna is always in confidence with Kṛṣṇa because he is a very dear friend, and as a dear friend is gladdened by his friend's opulence, Arjuna is very joyful to see that his friend, Kṛṣṇa, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and can show such a wonderful universal form. But at the same time, after seeing that universal form, he is afraid that he has committed so many offenses to Kṛṣṇa out of his unalloyed friendship. Thus his mind is disturbed out of fear, although he had no reason to fear. Arjuna therefore is asking Kṛṣṇa to show His Nārāyaṇa form because He can assume any form. This universal form is material and temporary, as the material world is temporary. But in the Vaikuṇṭha planets He has His transcendental form with four hands as Nārāyaṇa. There are innumerable planets in the spiritual sky, and in each of them Kṛṣṇa is present by His plenary manifestations of different names. Thus Arjuna desired to see one of the forms manifest in the Vaikuṇṭha planets. Of course in each Vaikuṇṭha planet the form of Nārāyaṇa is four-handed, and the four hands hold different symbols, the conchshell, mace, lotus and disc. According to the different hands these four things are held in, the Nārāyaṇas are named. All of these forms are one and the same to Kṛṣṇa; therefore Arjuna requests to see His four-handed feature.

Bg 11.46

TEXT 46

TEXT

kirīṭinaṁ gadinaṁ cakra-hastam

icchāmi tvāṁ draṣṭum ahaṁ tathaiva

tenaiva rūpeṇa catur-bhujena

sahasra-bāho bhava viśva-mūrte

SYNONYMS

kirīṭinam-
with helmet;
gadinam-
with club;
cakra-hastam-
disc in hand;
icchāmi-
I wish;
tvām-
You;
draṣṭum-
to see;
aham-
I;
tathā eva-
in that position;
tena eva-
by that;
rūpeṇa-
with form;
catur-bhujena-
four-handed;
sahasra-bāho
-O thousand-handed one;
bhava-
just become;
viśva-mūrte
-O universal form.

TRANSLATION

O universal Lord, I wish to see You in Your four-armed form, with helmeted head and with club, wheel, conch and lotus flower in Your hands. I long to see You in that form.

PURPORT

In the
Brahmā-saṁhitā
it is
stated that the Lord is eternally situated in hundreds and thousands of forms, and the main forms are those like Rāma, Nṛsiṁha, Nārāyaṇa, etc. There are innumerable forms. But Arjuna knew that Kṛṣṇa is the original Personality of Godhead assuming His temporary universal form. He is now asking to see the form of Nārāyaṇa, a spiritual form. This verse establishes without any doubt the statement of the
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
that Kṛṣṇa is the original Personality of Godhead and all other features originate from Him. He is not different from His plenary expansions, and He is God in any of His innumerable forms. In all of these forms He is fresh like a young man. That is the constant feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One who knows Kṛṣṇa at once becomes free from all contamination of the material world.