Shloka 162
Śiva-nāmānukīrtana-prastāvaḥ
Prologue to the praise of Śiva and the Upamanyu testimony
गौर: श्यामस्तथा कृष्ण: पाण्डुरो धूमलोहित: । विकृताक्षो विशालाक्षो दिग्वासा: सर्ववासक:
gauraḥ śyāmas tathā kṛṣṇaḥ pāṇḍuro dhūmalohitaḥ | vikṛtākṣo viśālākṣo digvāsāḥ sarvavāsakaḥ ||
Vāsudeva said: “He appears in many forms—sometimes fair, sometimes dusky, sometimes dark, sometimes pale; at times smoke-hued or copper-red. Sometimes his eyes seem distorted, and at other times he is adorned with beautiful, wide eyes. Sometimes he is seen unclothed, and sometimes adorned with every kind of garment.”
वासुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes the many-sidedness of a divine or exalted being: the same reality may be perceived in diverse, even contradictory, appearances (colors, eyes, clothing). Ethically, it cautions against judging spiritual truth by external form alone and points to a transcendent essence beyond changing attributes.
Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa) is describing how the subject under discussion is seen in varying manifestations—different complexions, eye-forms, and modes of dress (from naked to fully adorned). The description functions as a catalog of appearances to convey variability of manifestation rather than a single fixed form.