Five thousand years ago, in the holy grounds of Kurukshetra
The Pandavas were ready to take on the sons of Dhrtarashtra
The two great armies met for the final test
To see which would emerge the victorious best
In the midst of the assembled warriors
Between the rows of arrayed soldiers
Arjuna, the supreme archer, paused and reflected
Lord Krishna, his charioteer, smiled and waited
Arjuna now knew that Krishna was the Supreme Lord
Of all creatures, the one and only worshipable God
Arjuna believed that Lord Krishna had spoken the truth
Of all knowledge, the most mature and mystical fruit
Arjuna was glad that The Lord is ever in control
In the laws of nature, His writ is absolute and whole
He was anxious for everyone to know this supreme philosophy
Arjuna requested the Lord to show him His universal form in whole
So that in future pretenders could be caught out in their dubious role
The Lord, in His mercy, proceeded to comply
For the revelation, Arjuna was awarded with divine eyes
Arjuna saw the vast unparalleled cosmic form of the Lord
Countless varied divine figures, multicoloured
He beheld all the celestial beings and demigods
Within the ever expanding body of the Lord
Arjuna beheld many things no one had seen or heard before
He saw everything he had desired or would desire in future
In that form there were countless arms and wondrous garments
All magnificent, with divine ornaments and divine scents
The Lord’s body was clothed in many garbs, resplendent
Unlimited, expanding, glittering, radiant
The emission from His body was like a thousand suns
The Lord was the centre of the cosmic effulgence
Arjuna saw the unlimited expansions of creation
All from his lone vantage position
Within the Lord’s body were many embodiments
Divided into thousands of diverse segments
Within the Lord, he saw Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva
And all the exalted beings, rishis, munis and devtas
Fearfully, with hairs standing on ends
Arjuna began to pray with folded hands
I see in Your Body many forms which I cannot comprehend
Without beginning, without middle and without end
Your radiant form, adorned with gadas and chakras
Is very difficult to see, because of the scorching rays
The sun and the moon and the stars are among your eyes and ears
By your own radiance, you are heating the entire universe
All the devtas are very much afraid seeing your materialization
Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva are beholding your manifestation
O mighty armed one, all the planetary systems are in fear
And the demigods and devtas are beholding you in terror
O all pervading Vishnu, O Lord of the universe
I can no longer maintain my mental balance
All the great warriors are entering Your blazing mouths, bodies mutilated
All the soldiers are rushing into Your fiery mouths, heads buffeted
Just as moths rush into the blazing fire
You destroy and burn whole armies entire
You are covering the universe with your immeasurable brilliance
You are manifest everywhere, with your omnipotent effulgence
O Lord of lords, please tell me what is your scheme
What is your mission ? Please be gracious to me
Seeing Your blazing deathlike faces
And Your chakras, shields and maces
I am very much disturbed and afraid
I am confused, agitated and terrified
The Blessed Lord said : I am time personified,
Destroyer of all the worlds, all the warriors here are already dead
You are but an instrument in this religious fight
Simply fight, and you shall be victorious by right
O Arjuna, all the warriors here have already been routed
By my special arrangement, O best among archers, undefeated
All the great warriors here are already annihilated
The might of the Kaurava army is fully exterminated
On hearing this, Arjuna hesitatingly did proclaim
O Hrisikesa, the world becomes joyful at hearing your name
The demons are afraid and flee here and there
While the perfected beings are beholding you with pleasure
O great one, O limitless of form, the supreme controller
O refuge of the universe, You are the original master
You are the source of all sources
The cause of all causes
The material modes are subordinate to You
The cosmic manifestation is pervaded by You
You comprise the elements, and You are the controller
Of all living beings the only grandfather
I offer my respectful obeisances to You, my Lord benign
A thousand times and again and yet again
Obeisances from all sides, O unbounded power
Of all living entities, the omnipotent emperor
You are the supreme objective for all living entities
The ultimate destination for all the conditioned bodies
Who have been imprisoned in this material life
Born into misery, anxiety and strife
No one is equal to You, nor can anyone be comparable
Within all the worlds, You are immeasureable
Please bestow Your grace upon me
And drive away this fear that has befallen me
Please pacify me and drive away this dread
Show me Your form as the Supreme personality of godhead
O invincible Lord of all the cosmos
O unquestioned master of the universe
O Supreme Lord, I long to see Your four armed form
Wearing your helmet and with an adornment on each arm
The mace, the sudarshan chakra, the conchshell and the lotus
All compliment Your glorious features
O best among warriors, My Universal Form only you have seen
Which cannot be seen by Vedic studies, sacrifices, penances or any other means
You have been disturbed by seeing My horrible feature
Now I want you to be peaceful and free from fear
The Lord then showed Arjuna His four armed form
And at last, He showed him His two armed form
Arjuna, thus seeing the beautiful form of the Lord
Was pacified and happy, and his equanimity was restored
My dear Arjuna, the form that you now see is most desired
Even the demigods are forever trying to see this form so admired
My dear Arjuna, only by pure devotional service can you see Me hence
Only in this way can you understand the mystery of My cosmic presence
My dear Arjuna, one who is engaged in My pure devotional service
Free from the contaminations of all previous activities
Is free from speculation, and is friendly to every living entity
Will definitely come to Me, with full certainty
- Gautam Saha.
No comments:
Post a Comment