न तु मां शक्यसे द्रष्टुमनेनैव स्वचक्षुषा |
दिव्यं ददामि ते चक्षु: पश्य मे योगमैश्वरम् || 8||
na tu māṁ śhakyase draṣhṭum anenaiva sva-chakṣhuṣhā
divyaṁ dadāmi te chakṣhuḥ paśhya me yogam aiśhwaram
na—not; tu—but; mām—me; śhakyase—you can; draṣhṭum—to see; anena—with these; eva—even; sva-chakṣhuṣhā—with your physical eyes; divyam—divine; dadāmi—I give; te—to you; chakṣhuḥ—eyes; paśhya—behold; me—my; yogam aiśhwaram—majestic opulence
Translation:
But with these eyes of yours you cannot see Me. I give you a divine eye; behold, now, My sovereign yoga-power.
Commentary:
The eye of flesh can only see material things. Even physical ether is invisible to the naked eye. The limitations of the human eye and the gross delusions to which it is subject every moment, it within the experience of every thoughtful man. That the human eye is grossly erroneous in its perceptions can be seen from very simple facts. Sitting in the railway carriage, the eye sees the objects around moving with terrific speed. It sees the stationery sun crossing the sky from east to west. It sees the moon running behind the rushing clouds. All these show that the naked eye cannot be trusted to give us a correct picture of anything in the world. In fact, the eye is the most powerful cause of delusion for man. So, the Lord here says that Arjuna cannot see the Cosmic-Form by himself with his own eyes.
“Drisyate tvagraya buddhya sukshamaya sukshmadarsibhih.” Paramatma is seen by the subtle concentrated intellect of the Seers. So say the Upanishads. Though the Lord is everywhere, man is not able to see Him because ignorance covers the eye. This is the evil of Māyā; this is the darkness or ignorance. When the covering film is taken away, the eye of knowledge sees the Truth, and delusion vanishes.
As the blind man cannot see the sun, so also the eye of the ignorant cannot see the all-pervading Self. It is utter nonsense to say that God does not exist because He is not seen by the eye of flesh. The argument would be as convincing as the blind man’s denial of the existence of the sun.
How then can man attain the divine eye to see the Lord? Assuredly, by the grace of the Lord, by His love, by His compassion. “Dadami te chakshuh“, says the Lord (I give to you the divine eye). To whom does he give the divine eye? To those who are devoted to Him. (Tesham satatayuktanam dadami buddhiyogam 10.10). The same idea is emphasised here. Repeatedly does the Lord inculcate the idea of surrender to Him in a spirit of devotion and humility. “Worship Me,” He says, “in every possible way; take refuge in Me; surrender to Me; I will give you knowledge, peace and bliss”. Arjuna had surrendered to the Lord, and so he has qualified himself to see the Cosmic-From, and the Lord bestows on him the divine eye for that purpose.
The divine eye comes to all without distinction of caste, creed, religion, or nationality. If it does not open, it is one’s own fault. “Knock and it shall be opened.” The knocking must be there. Relentless perseverance is needed. Such spiritual thirst for the Divine bears fruition in the Lord’s grace descending on man. Let everyone follow the footsteps of Arjuna and obtain the Lord’s grace.
From “Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna” —
M: “When one sees God does one see Him with these eyes?”
Sri Ramakrishna: “God cannot be seen with these physical eyes. In the course of spiritual discipline one gets a ‘love body’, endowed with ‘love eves’, ‘love ears’, and so on. One sees God with those ‘love eyes’. One hears the voice of God with those ‘love ears’. One even gets a sexual organ made of love.”
At these words M. burst out laughing. The Master continued, unannoyed, “With this ‘love body’ the soul communes with God.”
It is by God’s grace alone, not self effort, that human beings can have the vision of God. In the Gita, Krishna told Arjuna: “You cannot see Me with these eyes, so I give you a divine eye.” Then only could Arjuna behold Krishna’s cosmic form.
— Sri Sarada Devi (Source: Sri Sarada Devi and Her Divine Play)
Divyam: Divine-obtained by the possession of divine virtues (daivisampat).
Question: Can man see the Lord with the physical eye?
Answer: No.
Question: How to see Him then?
Answer: With the divine eye of Knowledge.
Question: How can this divine eye open?
Answer: By the grace of the Lord.
Question: Who obtains the Lord’s grace?
Answer: He who is devoted to Him with faith and humility obtains His grace.
Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 11 🔻 (55 Verses)
| 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 |
| 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 |
| 51 | 52 | 53 | 54 | 55 |
