Paramacharya of SWAHA, Pt. Hardeo Persad
We are fortunate that Gyaan Deepak Kirtan Mandali has been blessed with the beautiful murti of Viraat Swaroop (November 25, 2020). This universal form of Lord Vishnu represents the sum total of all forms of divinity. Each of the numerous faces of the murti represents an aspect of divinity; it is a representation of His infinite cosmic form.
His advent took place on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, as narrated in the Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 11. Shree Krishna revealed the infinite form to Arjuna in the midst of battle. When Arjuna beheld that form of the Supreme Purusha, there were millions present, but only Arjuna saw the Divine form. Bhagavan explained that Arjuna was blessed with divya drishti, divine vision, in order to see His form. Sanjay, who was explaining the goings-on in the war to the blind king, Raja Dhritarashtra, also described the Divine form with His infinite number of heads, hands and bodies.
Kaushalya Maata was also blessed with that Divine vision. Shri Raam in the cradle as a baby had appeared in that infinite form to show his mother that he was the Supreme Being. In a previous birth, Kaushalya as Shatrupa and King Dashrath as Manu had prayed for thousands of years, Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya, the Dwadas akshar mantra (12-syllabled mantra) dedicated to Lord Vishnu. When the Lord granted them a boon, they said that although they knew He was the unseen, they wished to see Him in a form. Although the Lord is Ek Brahm, one God, He appeared many times as their son, as Saguna Brahm, the Divine in physical form.
Here are excerpts from the Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 11 on that infinite Divine form: “Arjuna saw the Supreme Deity possessing many mouths and eyes, presenting many a wonderful sight, decked with many divine ornaments, wielding many uplifted divine weapons, wearing divine garlands and vestments, anointed all over with divine fragrances, full of all wonders, infinite and having faces on all sides.
“If there be the effulgence of a thousand suns shining forth all at once in the heavens, even that would hardly approach the splendour of the mighty Lord.
“Established in one place in the person of that Supreme Deity, Arjuna then beheld the whole universe with its manifold divisions.
“Then Arjuna, full of wonder and with his hair standing on end, reverentially bowed his head to the Divine Lord, and with folded hands addressed him thus.
“Arjuna said: Lord, I behold within Your body all gods and hosts of different beings, Brahma throned on his lotus seat, Shiva and all Rishis and celestial beings.
“O Lord of the universe, I see You endowed with numerous arms, bellies, mouths, and eyes, and having innumerable forms extended on all sides. O Lord, manifested in the form of the universe, I see neither Your beginning nor middle, nor even Your end.
“I see You endowed with diadem, club and discus, a mass of splendour glowing all round, having the brilliance of a blazing fire and the sun, hard to gaze at and immeasurable on all sides.
“You are the Supreme Indestructible, worthy of being known; You are the ultimate refuge of this universe. You are, again, the protector of the ageless Dharma; I consider You to be the eternal, imperishable Being.”
The murti represents that infinite, imperishable form. This is the mystery of divinity: it has no beginning or end. It is inexpressible and unfathomable. Arjuna himself could not comprehend what he had witnessed. When Arjuna praised the Lord, he said, “O Lord, you have blessed me by showing me this infinite form but please also show me your benign form, Vishnu.” Bhagavan obliged and appeared in the four-armed form of Shree Vishnu Bhagavan. Arjuna then asked Him to return to the familiar form of Krishna. Thus, from the infinite form, Viraat Swaroop, the Divine transformed into Chaturbhuj (the Four-Armed One) and then, once again, as Shree Krishna.
