Then Dhanajaya, overpowered with wonder, and his hair standing on end, bending down his head in awe to the Deity, spoke with folded hands. (Bhagavad Gita Chapter XI – Verse 14)
And now Arjuna declares his own experience. He is filled with wonder and awe. But soon that wonder makes room for ecstasy. His soul is lifted up to higher spheres. Divine energy flows through him. He cannot contain himself. He must give utterance to that exalted feeling. His heart flows over and he begins to sing the praises of Bhagavan, relating all that passes before his vision. And so…
Arjuna said:
O Bhagavan! In Your body I see all the gods, as well as multitudes of all kinds of beings; Bhagavan Brahma seated on the lotus throne, all the rishis and all the celestial serpents. (Bhagavad Gita Chapter XI – Verse 15)
Omnipresent and all-containing Bhagavan, in Your body I see all the devas and all forms, animate and inanimate. Outside of You, nothing exists. Even Lord Brahma, the Creator of the universe, who is seated in the centre of the Earth-lotus, is contained in You.
The lotus is the emblem of the universe. The supreme Deity, as the Creator Brahma, is seated in the centre of the infinite universe; this is his lotus seat. All the rishis, the great sages of yore, and the celestial serpents are enfolded in You... The celestial serpents (the Uragas) are an order of celestial beings who possess great wisdom, usually understood to be in some way connected with serpents.
Bhagavan has said, ‘By Me is this entire world pervaded, and all beings abide in Me’. Yes, it is true. Now Arjuna sees it. Gods, rishis, celestials, even the Creator has his abode in Him. Outside Him nothing exists. Arjuna knew it before but he had never seen it. He accepted it as truth because Sri Krishna had told him so. But now comes realization. It is no longer a question of believing. It is established knowledge. It is experience. That is very different. We know and we believe many things about God, but once it flashes in our mind as Truth, then it is Knowledge forever. It becomes part of us. We can never again doubt it; we can never forget it. From the deepest recesses of our being that Knowledge rises up and reveals itself to our consciousness. That is called inspiration, intuition, the still small voice, or the voice of God, who dwells within us, teaching from within.