Bhagavad Gita Chapter 11, Verse 6

Chapter 11 – Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga · Speaker: Krishna

Sanskrit verse

पश्यादित्यान्वसून्रुद्रानश्विनौ मरुतस्तथा ।
बहून्यदृष्टपूर्वाणि पश्याश्चर्याणि भारत ॥

Transliteration

paśyādityānvasūnrudrānaśvinau marutastathā .
bahūnyadṛṣṭapūrvāṇi paśyāścaryāṇi bhārata ॥

Meaning

Behold the Adityas, the Vasus, the Rudras, the twin Ashvins and the Maruts; behold, O Bharata, many wonders never seen before.

Word meanings

पश्य – behold
आदित्यान् – the (twelve) Adityas
वसून् – the (eight) Vasus
रुद्रान् – the (eleven) Rudras
अश्विनौ – the two Ashvins
मरुतः – the (forty-nine) Maruts
तथा – and also
बहूनि – many
अदृष्टपूर्वाणि – never seen before
आश्चर्याणि – wonders, marvels
भारत – O descendant of Bharata (Arjuna)

Anvaya (word order)

हे भारत, आदित्यान् वसून् रुद्रान् अश्विनौ तथा मरुतः पश्य; बहूनि अदृष्ट-पूर्वाणि आश्चर्याणि पश्य ।

Explanation

Having spoken generally of countless forms, Krishna now names some of the great orders of gods. The twelve Adityas are the sons of Aditi, the solar deities; the eight Vasus preside over the elemental foundations of nature such as earth, water and fire; the eleven Rudras are powers of dissolution and transformation; the twin Ashvins are the physicians of the gods; and the forty-nine Maruts are the storm-winds. Together these represent the entire Vedic pantheon — tradition counts the Adityas, Vasus, Rudras and the Ashvins among the thirty-three gods.

The point is profound. The deities to whom the Vedic hymns are addressed are not independent powers; they all reside within the one Supreme Being. In 10.21–23 Krishna said, ‘Among the Adityas I am Vishnu, among the Rudras I am Shankara, among the Vasus I am Agni.’ Now He reveals not just the chief of each group but the entire groups as present within Him. Ramanuja explains that all gods are the body of the Lord, who is their indwelling Self. Shankara reads them as expressions of the one Lord’s sovereignty.

Adrishta-purvani ashcharyani — ‘wonders never seen before.’ Shankara notes that neither Arjuna nor anyone else in this human world had seen them. The cosmic form is not merely a gallery of familiar deities; it is a disclosure of mysteries beyond all imagining, and it prepares Arjuna for the overwhelming vision to come.

Context

After the general invitation of verse 5, Krishna names specific divine orders. In the next verse He goes further still, inviting Arjuna to see the entire moving and unmoving universe gathered in His single body.

Life lesson

The many gods and powers are expressions of one Supreme Reality, so see unity rather than rivalry in different forms of worship. Keep a sense of wonder alive: life constantly reveals what has never been seen before.

Key terms

Adityas: the twelve sons of Aditi, solar deities
Vasus: eight deities presiding over the elements of nature
Rudras: eleven deities of dissolution and transformation
Ashvins: the twin divine physicians
Maruts: the forty-nine storm-gods