Bhagavad Gita — Vishwarupa Darshana Yoga, Shloka 36
Vishwarupa Darshana Yoga
अर्जुन उवाच । स्थाने हृषीकेश तव प्रकीर्त्या जगत्प्रहृष्यत्यनुरज्यते च । रक्षांसि भीतानि दिशो द्रवन्ति सर्वे नमस्यन्ति च सिद्धसङ्घाः ॥
arjuna uvāca | sthāne hṛṣīkeśa tava prakīrtyā jagat prahṛṣyaty anurajyate ca | rakṣāṁsi bhītāni diśo dravanti sarve namasyanti ca siddhasaṅghāḥ ||
Arjuna said: Rightly, O Hṛṣīkeśa, by Thy glory the world rejoices and is drawn to Thee. The Rākṣasas, terrified, flee in all directions, and all the hosts of Siddhas bow down to Thee.
अर्जुन बोले: हे हृषीकेश! आपकी कीर्ति से जगत् उचित ही हर्षित होकर अनुरक्त होता है। और राक्षस भयभीत होकर दिशाओं में भागते हैं तथा सिद्धों के समूह सब आपको नमस्कार करते हैं।
Arjuna said: Rightly, O Hṛṣīkeśa, the world rejoices at your praise and becomes devoted; the rākṣasas, frightened, flee in all directions, and all the hosts of siddhas bow down.
Rākṣasas here can be taken literally as mythic beings within the epic worldview or figuratively as chaotic/discordant tendencies; the verse juxtaposes attraction (devotion) and aversion (fear) as responses to the divine.
FAQs
Arjuna begins to regulate fear by reinterpreting the experience as meaningful: he frames responses as devotion (attraction) and flight (avoidance) to restore coherence.
The verse depicts the divine as a normative center: harmonious beings align through reverence, while discordant forces recoil—an image of cosmic order.
After Krishna’s identification with Time, Arjuna acknowledges that the world’s varied reactions are ‘fitting,’ preparing for further praise and requests for reassurance.
It can be read as guidance for value-alignment: what is orderly and constructive tends to resonate with truth, while destabilizing tendencies withdraw when confronted by clarity.