Krishna is beyond all limits.
Arjuna speaks to Krishna
अनेकबाहूदरवक्त्रनेत्रंपश्यामि त्वां सर्वतोऽनन्तरूपम् |नान्तं न मध्यं न पुनस्तवादिंपश्यामि विश्वेश्वर विश्वरूप ||११-१६||
anekabāhūdaravaktranetraṃ paśyāmi tvāṃ sarvato.anantarūpam . nāntaṃ na madhyaṃ na punastavādiṃ paśyāmi viśveśvara viśvarūpa ||11-16||
Use this verse when your mind feels trapped in smallness.
Meaning
I see You with countless arms, bellies, mouths, and eyes, infinite in every direction. I see no end, middle, or beginning, O Lord of the universe, O universal form.
Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).
In plain words
Arjuna sees Krishna as infinite and beyond beginning, middle, and end.
Word-by-word meaning
Tap a word to see its meaning.
Explanation
The universal form breaks every limited idea of Krishna. Arjuna no longer sees a single friend in front of him; he sees endless divine existence in all directions.
Read the traditional commentary
Arjuna tries to trace the limits of the form and finds none. He sees countless arms, bellies, mouths and eyes stretching ananta-rupam, in boundless shape, in every direction. Then comes the threefold confession of the infinite: na antam, na madhyam, na adim — no end, no middle, no beginning can he perceive.
This is the language of true infinity. The mind grasps things by their boundaries — where they start, where they cease. Here Arjuna meets a Reality that has no edges, and so the mind has nothing to hold.
He addresses Krishna as Visvesvara and Visvarupa, Lord and Form of the universe. The vision teaches that the Divine is beginningless and endless, eternal beyond time's measure. To stand before the boundless is to feel the limits of one's own understanding — and in that very limitation, to sense how vast the Reality truly is.
In daily life
When life feels too small or narrow, remember the infinite scale of Krishna.
A person overwhelmed by one problem can step back and remember that reality is much larger than the current issue.
Try this today
Reflect on Krishna as beginningless and endless for one minute.
Krishna is infinite beyond my limits.Reflect
Where am I limiting Krishna in my mind?
Private — only you can see this
Quick check
What does ‘सर्वतः अनन्तरूपम्’ mean in this verse?
The Gita on eternity, in other chapters
- Verse 14.2When you anchor your identity in the eternal rather than the changing, neither beginnings nor endings can shake you.
- Verse 15.6The supreme goal is a self-luminous, eternal home from which the soul never has to return.
- Verse 10.33The Divine is the everlasting Time and all-seeing sustainer from whom nothing in the cosmos is ever hidden.
- Verse 18.77 · SanjayaRemembering the majesty of the Divine fills the heart with wonder and recurring joy.
Swipe left for 11.17 · Divine power is radiant and immeasurable.
Questions about Bhagavad Gita 11.16
Who says Bhagavad Gita 11.16, and to whom?
Arjuna speaks to Krishna in verse 11.16, in Chapter 11, Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga (Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga).
What does Bhagavad Gita 11.16 mean?
I see You with countless arms, bellies, mouths, and eyes, infinite in every direction. I see no end, middle, or beginning, O Lord of the universe, O universal form. (Translation: Gita Guidance (original English rendering).)
What is the lesson of Bhagavad Gita 11.16 for daily life?
When life feels too small or narrow, remember the infinite scale of Krishna. A person overwhelmed by one problem can step back and remember that reality is much larger than the current issue.
What do the Sanskrit words in Bhagavad Gita 11.16 mean?
अनेकबाहूदरवक्त्रनेत्रम् — with many arms, stomachs, mouths and eyes; पश्यामि त्वाम् — I see You; सर्वतः अनन्तरूपम् — of boundless form on every side; न अन्तम् — no end; न मध्यम् — no middle.
Where does verse 11.16 come in the Bhagavad Gita?
It is verse 16 of 55 in Chapter 11, Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga. The next verse is 11.17.