Chapter 31

According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī, Arjuna remembered such verses from the Gītā as: nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasyayoga-māyā-samāvṛtaḥmūḍho ’yaṁ nābhijānātiloko mām ajam avyayam (Bg. 7.25) “I am never manifest to the foolish and unintelligent. For them I am covered by My eternal creative potency (yoga-māyā), and so the deluded world knows Me not, who am unborn and infallible.” Similarly, Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has mentioned the Gītā verse mām evaiṣyasi satyaṁ te pratijāne priyo ’si me (Bg. 18.65): “You will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.” He has also quoted from the Svarga-parva of the Mahābhārata as follows: dadarśa tatra govindaṁbrahmaṇe vapuṣānvitamtenaiva dṛṣṭa-pūrveṇasādṛśyenopasūcitam dīpyamānaṁ sva-vapuṣādivyair astrair upaskṛtamcakra-prabhṛtibhir ghorairdivyaiḥ puruṣa-vigrahaiḥ upāsyamānaṁ vīreṇaphālgunena su-varcasāyathā-svarūpaṁ kaunteyatathaiva madhusūdanam tāv ubhau puruṣa-vyāghrausamudvīkṣya yudhiṣṭhiramyathārhaṁ pratipedātepūjayā deva-pūjitau “There Yudhiṣṭhira saw Lord Govinda as the Absolute Truth in His original, personal form. He appeared just as Yudhiṣṭhira had seen Him before, with all the same characteristics. He was glowing brilliantly with the effulgence coming from His own body, and He was surrounded by His transcendental weapons — the disc and so on — which appeared in their fearsome personified forms. O descendant of Kuntī, Lord Madhusūdana was being worshiped by the effulgent hero Arjuna, who also appeared in his original form. When these two lions among men, who are worshipable by the demigods, noticed the presence of Yudhiṣṭhira, they approached him with proper respect and offered him worship.”