53: Krishna at Face Value

CHAPTER 11, TEXT 51: When Arjuna thus saw Kṛṣṇa in His original form, he said: O Janārdana, seeing this humanlike form, so very beautiful, I am now composed in mind, and I am restored to my original nature.

The Gita has been studied for thousands of years. Scholars often recognize certain philosophical points in the Gita as truths and laws of nature, such as the law of karma, the eternality of the soul, the modes of material nature, and much more (https://www.ancient.eu/Bhagavad_Gita/). Krishna's words are taken at face value, no metaphorical bending or interpretation required.  

But when it comes to Krishna's statements that fools deride him when he descends in human form (9.11) or that one should worship Him with love and devotion by meditating on His form (9.22), Krishna's words suddenly are not taken at face value. They're seen as metaphorical.  

Many scholars take one of two standpoints: 1) Either Krishna is seen as an ordinary human being who gave some great wisdom to his friend on a battlefield, or 2) this battle at Kurukshetra never actually took place - the whole Bhagavad-gita is interpreted as a metaphor for the soul's battle for goodness and truth. 

There's a third possibility, though: 3) The battle of Kurukshetra took place, Krishna is God in human form conversing with his dear friend, instructing him how to live in this world and become a loving devotee. Bhaktivedanta Swami's commentary on the Bhagavad-gita is aptly entitled As It Is. 

Take everything Krishna says at face value. As it is. No metaphorical mind-bending.

If He says that there's a law of karma, there's a law of karma. 

If He says that there are three modes of material nature, there are three modes of material nature. 

If Krishna displays the universal, cosmic form, a form that only God can display, then that is Krishna's power and Krishna is God. 

If Krishna is described in His original form as having two hands and being very beautiful, then His original form has two hands and He is very beautiful. 

Prabhupad writes, "Here the words mānuṣaṁ rūpam clearly indicate the Supreme Personality of Godhead to be originally two-handed." This is clear. There is no need for a twisted interpretation to this verse and these statements. 

If Krishna's other statements of profound philosophical truths are so often taken at face value, why not these statements that He is the Supreme Controller, the Supreme Source of All, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead who comes in the form of a human to exchange love with His devotees? Although Krishna may look ordinary, He is not. Prabhupad argues this point, "If Kṛṣṇa is like an ordinary human being, then how is it possible for Him to show the universal form and again to show the four-handed Nārāyaṇa form?" Krishna has already shown and stated that He has displayed His universal form as well as his Narayan form - this is certainly not something an ordinary human being can do. So then the only other option is to see all of Krishna's words as metaphor. That option seems to be a little bit like cherry-picking the verses and ideas that are comfortable and leaving the rest as vaguely "metaphorical." 

After experiencing the terrifying universal form, Arjuna is now satisfied and at peace in his heart to behold his dear friend, Krishna, in his original two-armed form. This form is beautiful, a form that Arjuna can look in the eyes, a form that he can see with his ordinary eyes. 

Two seemingly opposing possibilities - that Krishna is in a human form and Krishna is all-powerful God - are reconciled once we just take Krishna's words at face value, As They Are. 

Prabhupad concludes his commentary on this verse by emphasizing that "the original verses of Bhagavad-gītā are as clear as the sun; they do not require lamplight from foolish commentators." 

I often feel like one of those foolish commentators as I do this Gita Project, trying to shed lamplight upon the brilliance of the sun of Krishna's and Prabhupads' words. That said, I just want to be as loyal and true to their words as possible, and if by God's grace I can accomplish this, then I am content to be a little lamp basking in the radiance of the sun of Krishna's teachings which illuminate the world. 

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/11/51/

52: Jesting With The King

CHAPTER 11, TEXTS 41-42: Thinking of You as my friend, I have rashly addressed You “O Kṛṣṇa,” “O Yādava,” “O my friend,” not knowing Your glories. Please forgive whatever I may have done in madness or in love. I have dishonored You many times, jesting as we relaxed, lay on the same bed, or sat or ate together, sometimes alone and sometimes in front of many friends. O infallible one, please excuse me for all those offenses.

We have been experiencing along with Arjuna the terrifying forms of God in His most powerful, awe-inspiring universal form, which includes viewing the vast pantheon of  demigods, spinning planets and  galaxies, and all beings  rushing into the mouth of death. I would imagine that if I was to witness even a fraction of any of this, my brain would be blank.  

But Arjuna's brain is not blank. In fact, he has the presence of mind to... huh? Apologize to Krishna for being so familiar?

The stark contrast between the universal form and Arjuna's description of intimate moments with Krishna is jarring. He describes lounging on the same bed, eating together, and jesting in the company of friends. There's a sense of  coming back down to earth to the present moment, right there on a chariot in the midst of a battlefield, and  I can almost see Arjuna folding his palms, stuttering his apologies. 

Arjuna's apology brings to mind a simple comparison - he's just joking with an old friend, maybe even making fun of him. His friend would laugh along, maybe tease him in return. And then only much later would he find out that the old friend is actually the king. If I had been in Arjuna's shoes, I would be stumbling out apologies and begging forgiveness, too. 

But the king is not only a king. Being a king is a role, not an identity. 

Ultimately, a king is a person. 

Krishna is a person, and He "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." Although Arjuna is gushing his apologies for his familiarity with Krishna, it's clear that Krishna is quite aware that Arjuna was interacting with him as a friend, eating together, joking with each other. Krishna was not only aware, He enjoyed this kind of exchange, this kind of natural loving reciprocation. 

Arjuna is thoroughly awestruck and trembling from this divine display of the universe - creation, annihilation, all the demigods and planets and galaxies - and yet he has the presence of mind to come back to remembering his relationship with Krishna, which consists  of such seemingly simple, mundane exchanges. This is because "the relationship between the living entity and Kṛṣṇa is fixed eternally; it cannot be forgotten, as we can see from the behavior of Arjuna." Prabhupad writes here that this relationship is eternal, which means that it is beyond this material world. 

The virat-rupa, the universal form, is actually the material manifestation of God's greatness. Prabhupad writes "This universal form is material and temporary, as the material world is temporary" (11.45, purport). So although Arjuna was given divine eyes to behold this universal form, nevertheless the form is material and therefore temporary. After all, the universe and the demigods and the planets are constantly being created and destroyed. 

But if something is eternal - like the soul, like God Himself - there is no creation. There is no destruction. And between the soul and God is a relationship that is eternal - that relationship was never created, it will never be destroyed. 

This means that that relationship - that thread of connection - is more powerful and divine than even the universal form. 

In this way, "Although Arjuna has seen the opulence in the universal form, he cannot forget his friendly relationship with Kṛṣṇa." So although the universes may rise and fall, the demigods create and destroy, the galaxies expand and collapse, living beings rush into the mouths of death in a ceaseless current, all these things will come and go. 

But that friendly relationship is not forgotten. 

Those jests, those moments of lounging and eating together amongst friends - that friendly relationship between Arjuna and Krishna will outlast even the longest lived demigod and universe because that is love, and love is eternal. 

Now that is truly wondrous.

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/11/41-42/

51: Flaming Mouths of Time

CHAPTER 11, TEXT 32: The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Time I am, the great destroyer of the worlds, and I have come here to destroy all people. With the exception of you [the Pāṇḍavas], all the soldiers here on both sides will be slain.

65 million people die each year in the world.  

That is 178,000 each day, 

7425 each hour, 

and 120 each minute (bioethics.georgetown.edu). 

That means that every SECOND, two people die. In the time span of writing this post over the past minute or so, 100 people have died. 

Krishna says in this verse, "Time I am, the great destroyer of the worlds, and I have come here to destroy all people." Time does not only destroy people, but all living beings, all natural formations of the earth, the world itself, all the worlds, all the universes... time destroys all. 

How come Krishna is saying this powerful statement? In the verses previous to this one, Arjuna is describing what he sees in Krishna's universal form: "I see all people rushing full speed into Your mouths, as moths dash to destruction in a blazing fire" (11.29) and "O Viṣhṇu, I see You devouring all people from all sides with Your flaming mouths" (11.30). Arjuna is again repeating himself, terrified and awestruck, trying to make sense of what he sees. How can he see all people rushing into God's mouth to be devoured and destroyed? Isn't God supposed to be... well, good? 

Prabhupad explains, "Although Arjuna knew that Kṛṣṇa was his friend and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he was puzzled by the various forms exhibited by Kṛṣṇa. Therefore he asked further about the actual mission of this devastating force." Puzzled indeed! One can imagine that Arjuna is trying to process not only that his friend is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but that God would devour people and the worlds in such a terrifying display. Interestingly, Prabhupad writes that Arjuna wanted to know further about the "actual mission" of this force - he wants to know what these flaming mouths actually mean and why they matter.  

This is Krishna's response: "Time I am, great destroyer of the worlds." 

Time. 

Amazing. We glance at the clock throughout the day, keeping track of its passage in order to go to work, eat, go to sleep, make appointments, catch a flight, and more. I have glanced at my computer clock a few times during this post, calculating how long I've spent writing.  

In the past 15 minutes, 1,800 people have died. 

Prabhupad writes, "Time is destruction, and all manifestations are to be vanquished by the desire of the Supreme Lord. That is the law of nature."

This destruction is what Arjuna is seeing by the flaming mouths of the universal form. Note that Prabhupad says that "all manifestations" will be destroyed. This means that death will come for all of us one day, for death "is an inevitable process eventually occurring in all living organisms" (wikipedia.org). So yes, over 2,000 human beings have died within the past 20 minutes or so, but what about all the living organisms on this planet? 

Millions, maybe even billions of beings die every minute, every second. 

What's more, the world itself is being destroyed at every minute. For example, if a house is left alone for even a year with no one to live in it or care for it, it begins to decay. Just by the passage of time, the house is destroyed. This goes for anything on this planet, from human structures like The Coliseum to natural formations like The Appalachian Mountains. "All manifestations" are being destroyed. 

This is the reality of this material world.  

And one day, our own lives will snuff out, and we will be like another moth into the flaming mouth of time. 

34 minutes - 4,080 deaths. 

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/11/32/

50: Oh My God.

CHAPTER 11, TEXT 19: You are without origin, middle or end. Your glory is unlimited. You have numberless arms, and the sun and moon are Your eyes. I see You with blazing fire coming forth from Your mouth, burning this entire universe by Your own radiance.

Arjuna has been given divine eyes to behold the universal form. Although we - the readers - do not have divine eyes, in our mind's eye we can somehow behold this dazzling form. Just by reading these words, my mind is awestruck, attempting to grasp the magnitude of God's greatness. 

No beginning, middle, or end. 

Numberless arms. 

The sun and moon are Your eyes. 

Blazing fire pouring from Your mouth, 

burning the universe

by Your own radiance. 

The images, the vastness flash through my mind and leave me breathless and awestruck. 

Interestingly, Arjuna has made very similar exclamations in verses 17 and 18:

You are inexhaustible

You are the oldest

Your form has a glaring effulgence

spreading like blazing fire

or the immeasurable radiance of the sun. 

Arjuna is repeating himself. Although there are poetic reasons for repetition, such as the power of persuasion, added emphasis, and creating rhythm, there is a far simpler reason that Arjuna is repeating himself: he is overcome with wonder. Prabhupad writes, "Here and in many other places there is repetition, but according to the scriptures, repetition of the glories of Kṛṣṇa is not a literary weakness. It is said that at a time of bewilderment or wonder or of great ecstasy, statements are repeated over and over. That is not a flaw." Certainly we can all identify a time in our lives when we were overcome with bewilderment, wonder, or ecstasy, and all we could do was repeat ourselves. 

Forgive me, but the phrase that keeps coming to me when I read these verses is:

Oh 

my 

God. 

Literally. 

Oh my God. 

I want to just keep repeating that phrase as the images flash through my mind - a beginningless and endless form, blinding radiance of the sun, rivers of fire, the planets are God's eyes, the eternality of the universe...

Oh my God. 

Oh my Krishna. 

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/11/19/

49: Seeing Through Arjuna's Eyes

CHAPTER 11, TEXT 8: But you cannot see Me with your present eyes. Therefore I give you divine eyes. Behold My mystic opulence!

In the previous chapter, entitled "Opulence of the Absolute", Krishna shares ways that the common man can identify sparks of God's glory. We can see these sparks of splendor in the mundane world, such as dazzling rainbows and the immovable Himalayas and blazing sunsets. We can behold these wonders with our own mundane eyes - eyes that need glasses, eyes that can't see very well once it gets a little dark, eyes that - if we just close our eyelids - are blind. 

Still, even with these limited, faulty eyes, we can see God. 

Well, kinda. 

Sorta. 

To really SEE God in all of His unlimited glory with these mundane eyes is simply not possible. 

Still, Arjuna is requesting Krisna to "kindly show [him] that unlimited universal Self" (11.4). Arjuna wants to behold Krishna's cosmic form - not because  he has any personal motivation or he wants to be indulged in his fascination. He is actually asking to see Krishna's form on behalf of all of  us, for if Krishna shows His unlimited universal Self, then He is shown to be God, not just some mundane human (11.3, purport). 

Krishna is preparing Arjuna here in Verse 8 that his friend cannot see that universal Self with ordinary eyes - so He gives Arjuna divine eyes (divya-chakshu). By telling Arjuna that he cannot view that universal Self with ordinary eyes, he is also telling all of us that neither can we. 

But through the Bhagavad-gita, we will soon be treated to the most wondrous, jaw-dropping descriptions of God in His cosmic form, his unlimited universal Self. For millennia, people have encountered God in his universal form (virat-rupa) through this medium of the Bhagavad-gita. Although we also cannot see this form with our mundane eyes we are captivated and thrilled to experience God in his unlimited, universal form vicariously through Arjuna. 

Ultimately though, what truly captivates and thrills the mind and the heart is a loving relationship. Prabhupad writes, "A pure devotee does not like to see Kṛṣṇa in any form except His form with two hands." Arjuna was a pure devotee - he is requesting to see this universal form not for himself but for the whole world and for millennia to come. 

Ultimately, those divine eyes to see the universal form are a gift given by Krishna. Krishna bestows that gift upon a friend, and a friend who does not simply want to gawk at God's power. Krishna knows Arjuna's heart, and "The Lord gave Arjuna the necessary power to see His universal form because He knew that Arjuna did not particularly want to see it." Prabhupad writes here that Arjuna did not "particularly want to see" Krishna's universal form, and yet he is asking to see it, even pleading with Krishna. 

In truth, Arjuna is satisfied with Krishna being his friend and being in His "form with two hands." That is the form in which Arjuna can exchange a loving friendship with Krishna. He is satisfied - thus, he doesn't "particularly want to see" this mind-blowing, jaw-dropping universal form. He doesn't need to see it. 

But we do. 

For all the haters and doubters out there, this virat-rupa's for you. 

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/11/8/

48: Spark of Splendor

CHAPTER 10, TEXT 41: Know that all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of My splendor.

"I love to travel, and I've traveled a good part of the world, but I am so tired of traveling right now in my life," I said to my friend Shanti. "What about you? Do you want to travel?"

"I want to travel so badly," she said with passion. "It's been a couple years since I've traveled because I've been completing my degree, but I miss it. I miss the adventure, the fresh culture, the sense that I'm being shaken out of my ordinary routine,"

I paused a moment, for those reasons were the reasons that I had burned to travel the world in my 20s. "Wow. You're right. Travel is magical. Have you seen those new Microsoft landing page image things? These amazing pictures of the world?"

Shanti paused and then nodded, "Yes! Whenever you log in to your account? Yes I have,"

"Amazing, right? These exotic images of places around the world, just so stunning and breathtaking. I feel that wanderlust in my heart again to travel the world,"

"Absolutely," Shanti agreed. "And seeing such beauty it's like, yes, like, this is God. This is God's temple, mama mana mandire, like you always used to sing,"

"Yes," I murmured. "Yes indeed."  

When I was 14 years old living in Hawaii, I did not live near a physical temple of Krishna. I longed to live near one, but I could not. So I turned to a temple that I experienced every day - the breathtaking beauty of nature in Hawaii. Almost every evening I would ride my bike to the crest of a mountain to watch the glorious sunset over the Pacific Ocean, and I would sing the song Mama Mana Mandire: may You reside in the temple of my heart. 

I began to realize that God's creation is His temple and appreciating His beauty is worship. 

In the years that followed when I lived near a temple and also traveled the world, that song threaded its way into my life. Every time I experienced some moment of beauty in nature that took my breath away, I would sing, as Shanti reminded me, "Mama mana mandire...".

This is God. This is His temple. 

So when I read this verse of the Gita this morning, 10.41, I exclaimed in delight. This verse is like an old friend, words that I've heard since I was a little girl, reminding me that even the most wondrous, breathtaking sunset or waterfall or rainbow is but the tiniest, glittering spark of God's splendor. 

below are screenshots of the Microsoft landing page things :)

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/10/41/

47: Gold Medal of Morality

CHAPTER 10, TEXT 38: Among all means of suppressing lawlessness I am punishment, and of those who seek victory I am morality. Of secret things I am silence, and of the wise I am the wisdom. 

When an elite athlete competes in the Olympics, a gold medal is burning within his or her heart. The athlete desires to vault that podium and be decorated by the presiding judge. This is the ultimate sign of victory for the whole world to see and remember forever in history. 

I mean, besides a war general, this is what I envision to be the pinnacle of someone seeking victory. 

In these verses in Chapter 10, Krishna is describing ways that He can be recognized in this material world. In this verse 38, I am intrigued by this declaration: "Of those who seek victory I am morality." 

Morality? 

What does morality have to do with a gold medal? The war that is won? The trophy? The Award - Oscar, Pulitzer, Emmy, Newbery, etc. etc.? 

What does morality have to do with victory? 

Srila Prabhupad writes, "Among those who are trying to be victorious in some field of activity, the most victorious element is morality." So whether someone is trying to be victorious in swimming (Michael Phelps), battles (Napoleon), or the Oscars (Katharine Hepburn), Prabhupad is emphasizing that morality is the most important element to all of these victories.

I'm still somewhat confounded here. 

When all else fails, look up the definition. 

So the definition of morality is, according to Cambridge Dictionary, "a set of personal or social standards for good or bad behavior and character."

I must say, this definition does not resonate for me. In fact, I challenge this definition as being superficial. Cambridge is saying that standards for morality are derived only from personal standards or social standards. Inherent rightness or goodness is not a factor, which means that morality is relative. 

When all else fails, look up another definition. 

According to the Oxford Dictionary, morality is "principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior." This definition resonates much more deeply, because morality is now a matter of principle that helps us to distinguish between different kinds of behavior. Making these distinctions and choosing the right and the good decision is at the heart of moral behavior. 

Making the right and the good decision is hard. Living a virtuous, moral life is really, really hard. 

I have not been victorious at much in my life - I'm certainly no Napoleon or Oscar winner. But I do know what it feels like to make a right and good moral decision after a long battle of discernment. Sure, no one even really knows that I came out victorious, but for me? Making the right decision is worth ten gold medals.

That victory is Krishna Himself. 

Full purport here: https://vedabase.io/en/library/bg/10/38/