Shloka 28
The Appearance of Lord Viṣṇu (Kṛṣṇa) and the Divine Exchange with Yoga-māyā
स त्वं घोरादुग्रसेनात्मजान्न- स्त्राहि त्रस्तान् भृत्यवित्रासहासि । रूपं चेदं पौरुषं ध्यानधिष्ण्यं मा प्रत्यक्षं मांसदृशां कृषीष्ठा: ॥ २८ ॥
sa tvaṁ ghorād ugrasenātmajān nas trāhi trastān bhṛtya-vitrāsa-hāsi rūpaṁ cedaṁ pauruṣaṁ dhyāna-dhiṣṇyaṁ mā pratyakṣaṁ māṁsa-dṛśāṁ kṛṣīṣṭhāḥ
Mein Herr, Du vertreibst alle Furcht Deiner Geweihten; bitte rette und beschütze uns vor dem schrecklichen Schrecken, den Kaṁsa, der Sohn Ugrasenas, verbreitet. Deine vierarmige Viṣṇu-Gestalt ist der Gegenstand der Meditation der Yogis; bitte mache diese Gestalt nicht sichtbar für jene, die nur mit materiellen Augen sehen—lass sie verhüllt bleiben.
The word dhyāna-dhiṣṇyam is significant in this verse because the form of Lord Viṣṇu is meditated upon by yogīs ( dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ ). Devakī requested the Lord, who had appeared as Viṣṇu, to conceal that form, for she wanted to see the Lord as an ordinary child, like a child appreciated by persons who have material eyes. Devakī wanted to see whether the Supreme Personality of Godhead had factually appeared or she was dreaming the Viṣṇu form. If Kaṁsa were to come, she thought, upon seeing the Viṣṇu form he would immediately kill the child, but if he saw a human child, he might reconsider. Devakī was afraid of Ugrasena-ātmaja; that is, she was afraid not of Ugrasena and his men, but of the son of Ugrasena. Thus she requested the Lord to dissipate that fear, since He is always ready to give protection ( abhayam ) to His devotees. “My Lord,” she prayed, “I request You to save me from the cruel hands of the son of Ugrasena, Kaṁsa. I am praying to Your Lordship to please rescue me from this fearful condition because You are always ready to give protection to Your servitors.” The Lord has confirmed this statement in the Bhagavad-gītā by assuring Arjuna, “You may declare to the world, My devotee shall never be vanquished.”
FAQs
It says Krishna’s divine form is the proper object of meditation, but it should not be exposed to those who look with merely material vision—unable to recognize His divinity.
Because Kaṁsa, the cruel son of Ugrasena, was hunting the newborn Lord; Vasudeva feared that if the divine form were seen, Kaṁsa would immediately try to kill the child.
It teaches to protect sacred devotion from hostile or cynical environments and to cultivate “dhyāna”—steady meditation—so the divine is approached with reverence rather than superficial judgment.