Hundreds, then thousands of forms

śrībhagavānuvācapaśya me pārtha rūpāṇi śataśo’atha sahasraśaḥnānāvidhāni divyāni nānāvarṇākṛtīni ca

Partha, son of Pritha, behold my forms, by hundreds and by thousands, divine, of countless kinds, colours and shapes.

What it means

Krishna answers at once, and his first word is behold. He does not show Arjuna a single image of God. He shows a flood of forms, every colour and shape. The point is not variety for its own sake. Everything that exists is held within one divine reality.

The story

Arjuna asked to see, perhaps expecting one radiant figure. Instead Krishna opens the door wide. Forms multiply by the hundred, then the thousand. The friend holding the reins is about to become impossible to measure.

In your life

Rush hour at a busy train station. Faces of every age and colour pour past, each in a private hurry. Next time you're in a crowd, pause, and let each face be a small window onto something larger.