FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Bhagavad-gītā 11.21

अमी हि त्वां सुरसङ्घा विशन्ति केचिद्भ‍ीता: प्राञ्जलयो गृणन्ति । स्वस्तीत्युक्त्वा महर्षिसिद्धसङ्घा: स्तुवन्ति त्वां स्तुतिभि: पुष्कलाभि: ॥ २१ ॥
amī hi tvāṁ sura-saṅghā viśanti
[amee hi tvaam sura-sanghaa vishanti]
kecid bhītāḥ prāñjalayo gṛṇanti
[kechid bheetaah praanjalayo grinanti]
svastīty uktvā maharṣi-siddha-saṅghāḥ
[svasteety uktvaa maharshi-siddha-sanghaah]
stuvanti tvāṁ stutibhiḥ puṣkalābhiḥ
[stuvanti tvaam stutibhih pushkalaabhih]
Word-for-word
amī — all those hi — certainly tvām — You sura - saṅghāḥ — groups of demigods viśanti — are entering kecit — some of them bhītāḥ — out of fear prāñjalayaḥ — with folded hands gṛṇanti — are offering prayers svasti — all peace iti — thus uktvā — speaking mahā - ṛṣi — great sages siddha - saṅghāḥ — perfect beings stuvanti — are singing hymns tvām — unto You stutibhiḥ — with prayers puṣkalābhiḥ — Vedic hymns .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
amī hi tvāṁ sura-saṅghā viśanti
amī
all those
hi
certainly
tvām
You
sura - saṅghāḥ
groups of demigods
viśanti
are entering
kecid bhītāḥ prāñjalayo gṛṇanti
kecit
some of them
bhītāḥ
out of fear
prāñjalayaḥ
with folded hands
gṛṇanti
are offering prayers
svastīty uktvā maharṣi-siddha-saṅghāḥ
svasti
all peace
iti
thus
uktvā
speaking
mahā - ṛṣi
great sages
siddha - saṅghāḥ
perfect beings
stuvanti tvāṁ stutibhiḥ puṣkalābhiḥ
stuvanti
are singing hymns
tvām
unto You
stutibhiḥ
with prayers
puṣkalābhiḥ
Vedic hymns .
Important Words
  • sura - saṅghāḥ — hosts of demigods
    Compound: sura (demigod) + saṅgha (host). The devas are in groups, not isolated. Even the gods have communities — and the communities surrender together.
  • viśanti — they enter
    Third-person plural present. The verb is the chapter's terrible echo — viśanti will reappear in 11.27–29 for the warriors entering the mouths. Here, surrender is entering; there, destruction is entering.
  • prāñjalayaḥ — with folded hands
    Nominative plural of prāñjali (pra + añjali). The same gesture Arjuna made in 11.14 — Arjuna sees that his bodily response is being mirrored by the devas inside the form.
  • mahā - ṛṣi — great sages
    Compound: mahā + ṛṣi. The Saptarṣis and other great seers — the highest tier of human spiritual attainment — are also chanting praises, not analysing.
  • stutibhiḥ — with prayers
    Instrumental plural of stuti — 'praise-hymn.' The technical Vedic word for formal Sanskrit stotras. The mahā-ṛṣis are not improvising; they are reciting in the established register.
  • puṣkalābhiḥ — abundant, full
    Instrumental plural of puṣkala — 'full, complete.' The praise is fully-stocked, not a token gesture. Paired with stutibhiḥ, the phrase names the formal stotra-tradition given in its plenitude.
All the hosts of demigods are surrendering before You and entering into You. Some of them, very much afraid, are offering prayers with folded hands. Hosts of great sages and perfected beings, crying “All peace!” are praying to You by singing the Vedic hymns.
Classical Sanskrit analysis शास्त्रीय विश्लेषण
How Sanskrit scholars read this verse — split, rearranged, grammar-tagged. For the plain English distilled meaning, jump to Plain meaning below.
Auto-generated study layers — original analysis of the public-domain śloka. Review against a published edition for academic work.
Plain meaning (तात्पर्य · Tātparya)
Arjuna reports a cosmic spectacle: even the devas are being swallowed into the form; the frightened among them pray, while sages and siddhas extol with copious stotras. Heaven itself is both terrified and reverent — a striking reversal of ordinary devotion.
Further notes (विवरण · Vivaraṇa)
Three responses are catalogued: viśanti (helpless absorption), gṛṇanti (frightened murmured praise), stuvanti (formal stotra-recitation). 'Svasti' is the canonical Vedic peace-blessing. The verse positions the unseen heavens reacting in parallel to Arjuna's own reactions — he is the human echo of a cosmic event.
Prose order (अन्वय · Anvaya)
अमी सुर-सङ्घाः त्वां विशन्ति हि; केचित् भीताः प्राञ्जलयः गृणन्ति; महर्षि-सिद्ध-सङ्घाः 'स्वस्ति' इति उक्त्वा पुष्कलाभिः स्तुतिभिः त्वां स्तुवन्ति ।
amī sura-saṅghāḥ tvāṃ viśanti hi; kecit bhītāḥ prāñjalayaḥ gṛṇanti; maharṣi-siddha-saṅghāḥ 'svasti' iti uktvā puṣkalābhiḥ stutibhiḥ tvāṃ stuvanti |
These hosts of gods are entering into You; some, frightened, with folded hands recite (Your praise); hosts of great sages and perfected beings, crying 'May it be well!', extol You with abundant hymns.
Word split (पदच्छेद · Padaccheda)
अमी हि त्वां सुर-सङ्घाः विशन्ति केचित् भीताः प्राञ्जलयः गृणन्ति । स्वस्ति इति उक्त्वा महर्षि-सिद्ध-सङ्घाः स्तुवन्ति त्वां स्तुतिभिः पुष्कलाभिः ॥
amī hi tvāṃ sura-saṅghāḥ viśanti kecit bhītāḥ prāñjalayaḥ gṛṇanti | svasti iti uktvā maharṣi-siddha-saṅghāḥ stuvanti tvāṃ stutibhiḥ puṣkalābhiḥ ||
Grammar (व्याकरण · Vyākaraṇa)
SanskritIASTGrammarMeaning
अमी amī अदस् (dem. (demonstrative) pron. (pronoun)) nom.pl. (nominative plural)m. these (yonder)
हि hi ind. (indeclinable), emphatic indeed
त्वाम् tvām युष्मद् (pron. (pronoun)) acc.sg. (accusative singular) You
सुर-सङ्घाः sura-saṅghāḥ सुर (m.) + सङ्घ (m.) nom.pl. (nominative plural), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) hosts of gods
विशन्ति viśanti √विश् pres. (present) 3pl.par. (parasmaipada / active voice) they enter
केचित् kecit किम् + चित् indef. pron. (pronoun) nom.pl. (nominative plural)m. some
भीताः bhītāḥ √भी p.p.p. (past passive participle) nom.pl. (nominative plural)m. frightened
प्राञ्जलयः prāñjalayaḥ प्र + अञ्जलि (m.) nom.pl. (nominative plural)m., bahuvrīhi cpd. (compound) with folded hands
गृणन्ति gṛṇanti √गॄ pres. (present) 9cl. 3pl.par. (parasmaipada / active voice) they praise, recite
स्वस्ति svasti ind. (indeclinable), benediction may it be well, hail
इति iti ind. (indeclinable), quotative thus
उक्त्वा uktvā √वच् abs. (absolutive) having said
महर्षि-सिद्ध-सङ्घाः maharṣi-siddha-saṅghāḥ महा + ऋषि (m.) + सिद्ध (m.) + सङ्घ (m.) nom.pl. (nominative plural), tatpuruṣa cpd. (compound) hosts of great sages and siddhas
स्तुवन्ति stuvanti √स्तु pres. (present) 2cl. 3pl.par. (parasmaipada / active voice) they praise
स्तुतिभिः stutibhiḥ स्तुति (f.) ins.pl. (instrumental plural) with hymns
पुष्कलाभिः puṣkalābhiḥ पुष्कल (adj.) ins.pl. (instrumental plural)f. abundant, full
Purport

The demigods in all the planetary systems feared the terrific manifestation of the universal form and its glaring effulgence and so prayed for protection.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
21. This host of devatās enters into You. Some in fear praise You with folded hands. Shouting “Svasti!” the host of great sages and Siddhas praise You with excellent verses.
Commentary

Tvā stands for tvām.

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa Gauḍīya
Translation
21. This host of devatās take shelter of You. Some in fear praise You with folded hands. Shouting “svasti!” the host of great sages and siddhas praise You with excellent verses.
Commentary

This host of devatās resort to You, take shelter of You (tvā viśanti). Among the devatās, some, being afraid, are standing at a distance with folded hands, praying “Please protect us, master!” The host of great sages and siddhas, seeing the great danger, (in order to pacify You), praise You, saying, “Let there be auspiciousness for the universe!”

Study Notes — Gauranga Priya Dāsa
Gauranga Priya Dāsa Study
Bhakti-śāstrī Notes, ISKCON Chowpatty (2009)
Theme

Now Arjuna describes Kala-rupa

COMMON THEME: Text 11.19 marks the beginning of description of ‘Kala-rupa’ (The form as Time) which

continues up till Text 11.31

PLEASE NOTE: All points of the purports are included as the sub-points; as such there are no individual ‘Focus of

Learning’ sections for these verses.

ARJUNA’S FURTHER DESCRIPTION OF THE UNIVERSAL FORM AS ‘KALA-RUPA’.

Blazing fire coming forth from your mouth, burning this entire universe (11.19)
Numberless arms and sun and moon are the eyes
Without origin, middle and end
Repetition of glories is not a flaw – It is a sign of bewilderment, wonder or great ecstasy
Spread throughout – Spread throughout the sky and planets and all space in between; and all the planetary systems are perturbed seeing you (11.20)
‘Dyav-a-prthivyoh’ (Space between heaven and earth) and ‘Loka-trayam’ (Three worlds) –indicate that not only Arjuna saw, but other planetary systems, whoever endowed with divine vision, also saw this form and got perturbed
This proves that Arjuna’s seeing was not a dream
Petitioned by demigods – Kala-rupa is petitioned by demigods and sages – All are fearful (11.21 – 11.22)
Demigods are surrendering and praying with folded hands
Great sages are praying with Vedic hymns
Siva, Adityas, Vasus etc beholding You in wonder
Rasa changes to fear – Arjuna experiences a terrible fearsome sight (11.23)
Arjuna loses steadiness and equilibrium of mind, because mind is perturbed by fear (11.24)
Arjuna sees blazing death-like faces and awful teeth (11.25)
Link between texts 11.25 & 11.26: Text 11.26 through 11.30 describe future occurrences that Arjuna sees within the kala-rupa. In Text 11.7, Krishna said that Arjuna could see “whatever *he+ may want to see in the future.” In these texts, Arjuna sees that Bhisma, Drona and Karna – the three most feared members of the opposing army – will be destroyed.
Two Analogies: Devouring all soldiers of both armies on both sides, including Bhisma, Drona & Karna, rushing into Your mouth (11.26 – 11.27)
Analogy: As many waves of river flow into the ocean (11.28)
Analogy: As moths dash to destruction in blazing fire (11.29*)
Indicates that Arjuna could see his awaited victory
All-devouring – You are devouring all people from all sides, your effulgence is covering all the universe with terrible scorching rays(11.30)

ARJUNA’S QUESTIONS

Arjuna in great fear asks two questions (11.31)
Who are You?
What is Your mission?
Why Arjuna asks these questions – Because although Arjuna knew Krishna as his friend and Supreme Personality of Godhead, but he was puzzled by various forms exhibited by Krishna
Classical Ācāryas
Śrī Śaṅkarācārya Classical
Translation
11.21 Ami hi, those very; sura-sanghah, groups of gods, the soldiers engaged in battle-groups of gods such as the Vasus who have descended here in the form of human beings for eliminating the burden of the earth; visanti, enter-are seen to be entering; tvam, You. Bhitah, struck with fear, and unable to flee; kecit, some among them; grnanti, extol You; pranjalayah, with their palms joined. Maharsi-siddha [Siddha: A semi-divine being supposed to be of great purity and holiness, and said to be particularly characterized by eight supernatural faculties called siddhis.-V.S.A.]-sanghah, groups of great sages and perfected beings; seeing protents foroding evil, etc. as the battle became imminent; stuvanti, praise; tvam, You; puskalabhih, with elaborate, full; stutibhih, hymns; uktva, saying; 'svasti iti, May it be well!' And further,
Śrī Rāmānujācārya Classical
Translation
11.21 These hosts of superior Devas beholding You as the foundation of the universe, rejoice and move towards You. Among them, some in fear, on seeing Your extremely terrible and wonderful form, 'extol,' namely pronounce sentences in the form of praise, according to their knowledge. Others, the bands of seers and Siddhas, knowers of the truth, higher and lower, saying 'Hail,' glorify You in hymns of abounding praise which are suitable to the Lord.
Śrī Abhinavagupta Classical
Translation
11.21 Sri Abhinavagupta did not comment upon this sloka.
Swami Sivananda Classical
Translation
11.21 Verily, into Thee enter these hosts of gods; some extol Thee in fear with joined palms; saying 'may it be well', bands of great sages and perfected ones praise Thee with hymns complete.
Commentary

11.21 अमी these? हि verily? त्वाम् Thee? सुरसङ्घाः hosts of gods? विशन्ति enter? केचित् some? भीताः in fear? प्राञ्जलयः with joined palms? गृणन्ति extol? स्वस्ति may it be well? इति thus? उक्त्वा having said? महर्षिसिद्धसङ्घाः bands of great Rishis and Siddhas? स्तुवन्ति paise? त्वाम् Thee? स्तुतिभिः with hymns? पुष्कलाभिः complete.Commentary Pushkalabhih means complete or wellworded praises or praises full of deep meanings.Great sages like Narada and perfected ones like Kapila praise Thee with inspiring hymns.

Swami Gambhīrānanda Classical
Translation
11.21 Those very groups of gods enter into You; struck with fear, some extol (You) with joined palms. Groups of great sages and perfected beings praise You with elaborate hymns,saying 'May it be well!'
Shri Purohit Swami Classical
Translation
11.21 The troops of celestial beings enter into Thee, some invoking Thee in fear, with folded palms; the Great Seers and Adepts sing hymns to Thy Glory, saying All Hail.'
Related values & verses
Related values
Prema (Divine Love)Tyaga (Renunciation / Letting Go)Dana (Charity / Generosity)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)Yajña (Sacrifice / Spirit of Offering)Shraddha (Faith / Reverence)
Related verses
BG 10.12 BG 11.36 BG 10.13 SB 10.14.1 SB 8.5.26 SB 10.87.1 CC Madhya 21.77 CC Ādi 3.89 CC Madhya 20.298 Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.4.22Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 4.13
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
All the demigods are surrendering to You; some, fearful, fold hands and offer prayers — the great sages chant Your glory.
Practical Applications
  • Recognize that even demigods surrender to Kṛṣṇa.
  • Trust the testimony of the highest beings.
  • Don't think your skepticism is more sophisticated than their surrender.
Reflection Questions
  • Where is my sophistication actually delusion?
  • What does demigod-level surrender teach?
Analogy

When the king himself enters the throne room, even his ministers and generals fold their hands. Some are afraid, some recite the formal greeting, but no one stands as a peer. The devas, full of their own power, become petitioners when the Lord's full form is exposed.

Stories
The Demigods at the Churning of the Ocean

When the halāhala poison rose from the ocean during the churning (SB 8.6–7), the demigods, terrified, fled to Lord Śiva — and to Lord Viṣṇu through Brahmā — folding their hands and chanting prayers (stutibhiḥ puṣkalābhiḥ). The Bhāgavatam records the great sages and siddhas joining the chorus.

This is the exact tableau Arjuna sees in 11.21: sura-saṅghāḥ entering, kecit bhītāḥ prāñjalayaḥ, mahā-ṛṣi-siddha-saṅghāḥ chanting svasti. The viśva-rūpa scene contains, in one frame, every such moment in cosmic history.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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