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TEXT 54 bhaktya tv ananyaya sakya
SYNONYMS  bhaktya--by
devotional service; tu--but; ananyaya--without being mixed
with fruitive activities or speculative knowledge; sakyah--possible;
aham--I; evam-vidhah--like this; arjuna--O Arjuna;
jnatum--to know; drastum--to see; ca--and; tattvena--in
fact; pravestum--and to enter into; ca--also; parantapa--O
mighty-armed one.
TRANSLATION My dear Arjuna,
only by undivided devotional service can I be understood as I am, standing
before you, and can thus be seen directly. Only in this way can you enter
into the mysteries of My understanding.
PURPORT Krsna can be
understood only by the process of undivided devotional service. He explicitly
explains this in this verse so unauthorized commentators, who try to understand
Bhagavad-gita by the speculative process, will know that they are
simply wasting their time. No one can understand Krsna or how He came from
parents in a four-handed form and at once changed Himself into a two-handed
form. It is clearly stated here that no one can see Him. Those who, however,
are very experienced students of Vedic literature can learn about Him from
the Vedic literature in so many ways. There are so many rules and regulations,
and if one at all wants to understand Krsna, he must follow the regulative
principles described in the authoritative literature. One can perform penance
in accordance with those principles. As far as charity is concerned, it
is plain that charity should be given to the devotees of Krsna who are
engaged in His devotional service to spread the Krsna philosophy or Krsna
consciousness throughout the world. Krsna consciousness is a benediction
to humanity. Lord Caitanya was appreciated by Rupa Gosvami as the most
munificent man of charity because love of Krsna, which is very difficult
to achieve, was distributed freely by Him. And if one worships as prescribed
in the temple (in the temples in India there is always some statue, usually
of Visnu or Krsna), that is a chance to progress. For the beginners in
devotional service to the Lord, temple worship is very essential, and this
is confirmed in the Vedic literature.
One who
has unflinching devotion for the Supreme Lord and is directed by the spiritual
master can see the Supreme Personality of Godhead by revelation. For one
who does not take personal training under the guidance of a bona fide spiritual
master, it is impossible to even begin to understand Krsna. The word tu
is specifically used here to indicate that no other process can be used,
can be recommended, or can be successful in understanding Krsna.
The personal
forms of Krsna, the two-handed form and the four-handed, are completely
different from the temporary universal form shown to Arjuna. The four-handed
form is Narayana, and the two-handed form is Krsna; they are eternal and
transcendental, whereas the universal form exhibited to Arjuna is temporary.
The very word sudurdarsam, meaning difficult to see, suggests that
no one saw that universal form. It also suggests that amongst the devotees
there was no necessity of showing it. That form was exhibited by Krsna
at the request of Arjuna because in the future, when one represents himself
as an incarnation of God, people can ask to see his universal form.
Krsna changes
from the universal form to the four-handed form of Narayana and then to
His own natural form of two hands. This indicates that the four-handed
forms and other forms mentioned in Vedic literature are all emanations
of the original two-handed Krsna. He is the origin of all emanations. Krsna
is distinct even from these forms, what to speak of the impersonal conception.
As far as the four-handed forms of Krsna are concerned, it is stated clearly
that even the most identical four-handed form of Krsna (which is known
as Maha-Visnu, who is lying on the cosmic ocean and from whose breathing
so many innumerable universes are passing out and entering) is also an
expansion of the Supreme Lord. Therefore one should conclusively worship
the personal form of Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead who is
eternity, bliss and knowledge. He is the source of all forms of Visnu,
He is the source of all forms of incarnation, and He is the original Supreme
Personality, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gita.
In the Vedic
literature it is stated that the Supreme Absolute Truth is a person. His
name is Krsna, and He sometimes descends on this earth. Similarly, in Srimad-Bhagavatam
there is a description of all kinds of incarnations of the Supreme Personality
of Godhead, and there it is said that Krsna is not an incarnation of God
but is the original Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself. Krsnas tu
bhagavan svayam. Similarly, in Bhagavad-gita the Lord says,
mattah parataram nanyat: "There is nothing superior to My form as
the Personality of Godhead Krsna." He also says elsewhere in Bhagavad-gita,
aham adir hi devanam: "I am the origin of all the demigods." And
after understanding Bhagavad-gita from Krsna, Arjuna also confirms
this in the following words: param brahma param dhama pavitram-paramam
bhavan: "I now fully understand that You are the Supreme Personality
of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, and that You are the refuge of everything."
Therefore the universal form which Krsna showed to Arjuna is not the original
form of God. The original is the Krsna form. The universal form, with its
thousands and thousands of heads and hands, is manifest just to draw the
attention of those who have no love for God. It is not God's original form.
The universal
form is not attractive for pure devotees, who are in love with the Lord
in different transcendental relationships. The Supreme Godhead exchanges
transcendental love in His original form of Krsna. Therefore to Arjuna,
who was so intimately related with Krsna in friendship, this form of the
universal manifestation was not pleasing; rather, it was fearful. Arjuna,
who is a constant companion of Krsna's, must have had transcendental eyes;
he was not an ordinary man. Therefore he was not captivated by the universal
form. This form may seem wonderful to persons who are involved in elevating
themselves by fruitive activities, but to persons who are engaged in devotional
service, the two-handed form of Krsna is the most dear.
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