Step 4 of 7 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Pick any verse to see what it means and how to use it in your life.

700 verses37 detailed

Or browse by chapter

Chapter

Chapter 11 · The Universal Form · 55 verses

Deep profile← → keys move between verses

Questions & crisisChapter 11 · The Universal Form

Bhagavad-gītā As It Is · Text 11.4

Arjuna requests the universal form

मन्यसे यदि तच्छक्यं मया द्रष्टुमिति प्रभो ।

योगेश्वर ततो मे त्वं दर्शयात्मानमव्ययम् ॥ ४ ॥

manyase yadi tac chakyaṁ

mayā draṣṭum iti prabho

yogeśvara tato me tvaṁ

darśayātmānam avyayam

Translation

If You think that I am able to behold Your cosmic form, O my Lord, O master of all mystic power, then kindly show me that unlimited universal Self.

What this verse is saying, and where it sits in the story.

1Arjuna asks Kṛṣṇa, the master of all mystic power, to show His unlimited cosmic form if He thinks Arjuna can see it.
2Prabhupāda explains that material senses and speculation cannot reveal Kṛṣṇa. He reveals Himself by His grace to those engaged in loving devotional service.
3Follow Arjuna’s humility: admit your limitations, surrender to Kṛṣṇa, and serve Him rather than demand to see Him.

In the story

Chapter 11, The Universal Form: arjuna requests the universal form.

Theme summary

Honest questions open the way to wisdom.

The spiritual concepts this verse connects to.

Key ideas: saṁśaya, viṣāda.

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

What does BG 11.4 establish in Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport, and how does it connect to questions & crisis?

Write down the real question behind your current dilemma.

Keep going: verses that carry this teaching further.

Study notes are editorial summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport.

Ask about BG 11.4 — get a simple answer linked to related ideas and verses.