BG 11.08 na tu mam sakyase drastum... cited

Expressions researched:
"anenaiva sva-caksusa" |"divyam dadami te caksuh" |"na tu mam sakyase drastum" |"pasya me yogam aisvaram"

BG Chapters 7 - 12

BG 11.8, Translation and Purport:

But you cannot see Me with your present eyes. Therefore I give you divine eyes. Behold My mystic opulence!

A pure devotee does not like to see Kṛṣṇa 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 Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna is told not to change his mind but his vision. The universal form of Kṛṣṇa 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 Kṛṣṇa are attracted by loving features, not by a godless display of opulences. The playmates of Kṛṣṇa, the friends of Kṛṣṇa and the parents of Kṛṣṇa never want Kṛṣṇa to show His opulences. They are so immersed in pure love that they do not even know that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In their loving exchange they forget that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is stated that the boys who play with Kṛṣṇa are all highly pious souls and after many, many births they are able to play with Kṛṣṇa. Such boys do not know that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They take Him as a personal friend. Therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī recites this verse:

itthaṁ satāṁ brahma-sukhānubhūtyā

dāsyaṁ gatānāṁ para-daivatena

māyāśritānāṁ nara-dārakeṇa

sākaṁ vijahruḥ kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ

"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." (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.12.11)

The fact is that the devotee is not concerned with seeing the viśva-rūpa, the universal form, but Arjuna wanted to see it to substantiate Kṛṣṇa's statements so that in the future people could understand that Kṛṣṇa 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 paramparā system. Those who are actually interested in understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, and who follow in the footsteps of Arjuna should understand that Kṛṣṇa 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.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- April 3, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: So it was not difficult for him. Immediately He showed him. That is Kṛṣṇa. Not that "I shall show you some day privately."

Dr. Patel:

paśya me pārtha rūpāṇi

śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ

nānā-vidhāni divyāni

nānā-varṇākṛtīni ca

(BG 11.5)

paśyādityān vasūn rudrān

aśvinau marutas tathā

bahūny adṛṣṭa-pūrvāṇi

paśyāścaryāṇi bhārata

(BG 11.6)

Prabhupāda: Just like Mother Yaśodā saw within the mouth of Kṛṣṇa the whole universe.

Dr. Patel:

ihaika-sthaṁ jagat kṛtsnaṁ

paśyādya sa-carācaram

mama dehe guḍākeśa

yac cānyad draṣṭum icchasi

(BG 11.7)

na tu māṁ śakyase draṣṭum

anenaiva sva-cakṣuṣā

divyaṁ dadāmi te cakṣuḥ

paśya me yogam aiśvaram

(BG 11.8)

Prabhupāda: Ah. "Because you are not accustomed to see this virāṭ form, therefore I give you special vision to see it."

Dr. Patel:

evam uktvā tato rājan

mahā-yogeśvaro hariḥ

darśayāmāsa pārthāya

paramaṁ rūpam aiśvaram

(BG 11.9)

Prabhupāda: So this virāṭ-rūpa is subordinate. Darśayāmāsa hari. Hari is the supreme. And the virāṭ-rūpa is a feature, not that virāṭ-rūpa is original.

Dr. Patel: One of the features of His multiple features.

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. Virāṭ-rūpa. Not that the... Māyāvādīs take the virāṭ-rūpa is the origin, and this rūpa, Kṛṣṇa, that is māyā. Therefore they are called Māyāvādīs. But actually, Hari manifested or exhibited...

Morning Walk -- April 4, 1974, Bombay:

Girirāja: (reads synonyms) "Translation: Whatever you wish to see can be seen all at once in this body. This universal form can show you all that you now desire, as well as whatever you may desire in the future. Everything is here completely."

Prabhupāda: That is avatāra. So nobody can compare. In the Vedic literature it is said, na tasya kāryaṁ kāraṇaṁ ca vidyate na tat-samaś cābhyadhikaś ca dṛśyate. Nobody can be equal to Him. Sama, sama means equal. Na tat-samaś cābhyadhikaś ca dṛśyate: "Nobody is greater than Him, nobody is equal to Him." That is Kṛṣṇa. So as soon as one claims that "I am also Kṛṣṇa," he is a bogus immediately.

Dr. Patel: Shall I go further?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Dr. Patel:

na tu māṁ śakyase draṣṭum

anenaiva sva-cakṣuṣā

divyaṁ dadāmi te cakṣuḥ

paśya me yogam aiśvaram

(BG 11.8)

Girirāja: (reads synonyms to:) "draṣṭum—to see..."

Prabhupāda: How one can see? Suppose I am seeing this material sky. I cannot see what are there, not even the stars at the present moment, although we know there are millions and trillions of stars. So this is my power of seeing. So how can I see all the universes in the body of..., unless he gets a special power from Kṛṣṇa to see.

Girirāja: (completes synonyms) "Translation: But you cannot see Me with your present eyes. Therefore I give to you divine eyes by which you can behold My mystic opulence."

Prabhupāda: Now, this is Kṛṣṇa's power. Let us understand. A teeny aeroplane is floating in the air, and it is making so much sound. And millions and trillions of planets are floating, there is no sound. There is no sound. (break) ...if you take it and fix it up... What is that? One thousand or more than, one thousand miles.

Dr. Patel: A second.

Prabhupāda: No, no. This earth, per hour.

Dr. Patel: Earth is rotating and also going round... It has got two movements.

Prabhupāda: Anyway, but we cannot understand any movement, but it is moving. The force is there.

Dr. Patel: Shall I go further?

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes.