Gita 11.5
Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga
श्रीभगवानुवाच | पश्य मे पार्थ रूपाणि शतशोऽथ सहस्रशः | नानाविधानि दिव्यानि नानावर्णाकृतीनि च ||५||
śrī-bhagavān uvāca | paśya me pārtha rūpāṇi śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ | nānā-vidhāni divyāni nānā-varṇākṛtīni ca ||5||
In essence: The request is granted instantly - Behold not one form but hundreds, thousands, in infinite divine variety.
A conversation between a seeker and guide to help you feel this verse deeply
Sadhak-Guru Dialogue
Sadhak: "Krishna agrees so quickly! No test, no waiting period, no 'meditate for 12 years first.' Why?"
Guru: "What was Arjuna's preparation?"
Sadhak: "Ten chapters of teaching... lifetimes of spiritual merit... total surrender in his request..."
Guru: "So the 12 years had already happened - just not in the form you'd expect. Grace looks instant but it meets readiness that took time to develop."
Sadhak: "But he says 'by hundreds and thousands' - is that literal? Are there really that many divine forms?"
Guru: "How many forms does the ocean take?"
Sadhak: "Infinite - every wave is different, every droplet unique..."
Guru: "Now imagine every being, every phenomenon, every possibility across all time and space. 'Hundreds and thousands' is not a count but a signal: 'abandon your concepts of singular form.'"
Sadhak: "He says 'divine' forms. Why not just forms?"
Guru: "Can ordinary eyes see what Krishna is about to show?"
Sadhak: "No, I suppose the cosmic form would be invisible to normal perception."
Guru: "These forms exist in a dimension beyond ordinary perception. They're 'divya' - made of divine light, divine substance, perceivable only through divine capacity. That's why Krishna will give Arjuna special eyes."
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🌅 Daily Practice
Pashya meditation: Begin with the simple command 'pashya' - see. Before doing anything, just see. See your room. See the light. See without naming, analyzing, or reacting. Let seeing itself be the meditation. This trains the capacity for pure witnessing that cosmic vision requires.
Divine forms recognition: Throughout the day, practice seeing 'divine forms' in ordinary appearances. That colleague is a form of the divine. That tree is a divine form. That traffic jam contains divine forms. This isn't pretense - it's training perception to recognize what's actually there. 'Nana-vidhani divyani' - various kinds, all divine.
Color-quality correlation: Notice what 'colors' dominated your day - not just visual colors but emotional-energetic ones. Was it a red day (fiery, active) or blue day (calm, contemplative)? Golden (illuminating) or grey (unclear)? Recognize that all colors belong to the divine palette; none are excluded from Krishna's 'nana-varna' display.