द्यावापृथिव्योरिदमन्तरं हि व्याप्तं त्वयैकेन दिशश्च सर्वाः | दृष्ट्वाद्भुतं रूपमुग्रं तवेदं लोकत्रयं प्रव्यथितं महात्मन् ||२०||
dyāvā-pṛthivyoḥ idam antaram hi vyāptaṃ tvayaikena diśaś ca sarvāḥ | dṛṣṭvādbhutaṃ rūpam ugraṃ tavedam loka-trayaṃ pravyathitaṃ mahātman || 20 ||
You alone fill the space between heaven and earth — three worlds tremble beholding Your marvellous, awful form!
Word by word (3)
- dyāvā-pṛthivyoḥ idam antaram hi vyāptam tvayā ekena diśaḥ ca sarvāḥ
- — This space between heaven and earth — and all the directions — is filled by You alone · dyāvā-pṛthivyoḥ = of heaven and earth (dual genitive of dyāvā = heaven/sky + pṛthivī = earth; a Vedic dvandva compound for the two fundamental poles of the cosmos; dyāvā-pṛthivī = 'the two — sky and earth' — the most ancient Indian expression for the totality of the manifest world). idam antaram = this space in between (idam = this; antara = space between, interval; idam antaram = 'this space-between, this intermediate space' = all of visible space, the region between sky and earth = the cosmos we inhabit). hi = indeed, verily (emphatic particle confirming what Arjuna is declaring). vyāptam = filled, pervaded (past passive participle of vi + √āp = to fill, to pervade; vyāpta = 'filled, pervaded throughout' — the same root as V7.9's sarasāṃ vṛṣṇināṃ vyāpya sthitaḥ; vyāptam = 'thoroughly filled'). tvayā = by You (instrumental singular — 'by You, through You'). ekena = by the one alone (ekena = 'by one alone, by the single' — emphatic: the entire intermediate space is filled by the ONE divine alone, not by multiple agents). diśaś ca sarvāḥ = and all the directions (diśas = directions; sarvāḥ = all; all ten directions: the four cardinal + four ordinal + up + down = the totality of spatial orientation). V11.20's vyāptam tvayaikena is the direct sensory confirmation of V7.4-V7.5's vyāpya teaching: the divine pervades all space. Now Arjuna sees it directly.
- dṛṣṭvā adbhutam rūpam ugram tava idam loka-trayam pravyathitam mahātman
- — Having seen Your marvellous and terrible form, the three worlds are trembling, O Great Being! · dṛṣṭvā = having seen (gerund of √dṛś = to see; dṛṣṭvā = 'having seen, after seeing'). adbhutam = marvellous, wonderful (adbhuta = same as V11.6's āścaryāṇi; adbhuta = 'extraordinary, beyond ordinary expectation'). rūpam = form. ugram = terrible, awe-inspiring (ugra = 'fierce, terrible, awesome, powerful' — from √uj = to be strong; ugra = 'the powerful, the awe-inspiring, the fierce'; ugra is not merely frightening but carries the Sanskrit aesthetic quality of raudra [fury] and vīra [heroic power] combined). tava idam = Your this (genitive + demonstrative). loka-trayam = the three worlds (loka = world; traya = three; loka-traya = 'the three worlds' — in Indian cosmology: earth [bhūḥ] + atmosphere [bhuvaḥ] + heaven [svaḥ]; or: earth + mid-world + upper-world; the triloky/trilokī = the three realms that constitute the entire universe). pravyathitam = trembling (pra = intensely + vyathita = troubled/agitated — from vi + √yath = to stagger; pravyathita = 'greatly agitated, intensely trembling, thrown into trembling'). mahātman = O Great Being (same as V11.12's mahātmanaḥ — the vocative form; mahā = great; ātman = Self/Being; mahātman = 'O Great Soul, O Great Being'). 'Having seen Your marvellous and terrible form — the three worlds are trembling.' V11.20 introduces the terrifying dimension: the vision that was marvellous (adbhuta) is also ugra (terrible/fierce). From V11.20 onward, Arjuna's response shifts from appreciation to awe-and-terror — the transition into the most overwhelming phase of the vision.
- [dyāvā-pṛthivī and the three worlds — cosmological frame]
- — V11.20's cosmic geography: the three worlds trembling · V11.20's loka-trayam pravyathitam (the three worlds trembling) introduces one of the most important elements of Ch.11's vision: the cosmic form's presence causes the entire universe to tremble. This trembling (pravyathita) of the three worlds is not a geological event — it is the existential trembling of all beings in all realms recognizing the overwhelming presence of the absolute. The Vedic tradition knows three levels: (1) pṛthivī (earth-realm = the physical), (2) antarikṣa (intermediate realm = the atmospheric/psychological), (3) dyaus (heaven-realm = the celestial/divine). V11.20's dyāvā-pṛthivī (heaven and earth) + loka-traya (three worlds) = all levels of existence simultaneously recognizing and responding to the cosmic form. V11.20 is the first verse where the vision's impact on the three worlds is stated — from V11.20-V11.25, the terror dimension will intensify, culminating in V11.25's Arjuna asking for mercy.
V11.20: dyāvā-pṛthivyoḥ idam antaram hi vyāptam tvayā ekena (this entire space between heaven and earth — ALL DIRECTIONS — filled by You ALONE; tvayā ekena = by the ONE You) + dṛṣṭvā adbhutam rūpam ugram (having seen Your marvellous AND terrible form — first use of ugra [terrible/fierce] in Arjuna's response: the vision is both adbhuta [wonderful] and ugra [terrible]) + loka-trayam pravyathitam (the THREE WORLDS TREMBLE — not just Arjuna but ALL THREE LEVELS of cosmic existence are trembling). V11.20 = the turning point of Arjuna's response: from appreciation (V15-V19) to the first emergence of overwhelming terror. Ugra begins here.
A modern analogy
V11.20's loka-trayam pravyathitam (three worlds trembling) parallels Rudolph Otto's concept of the 'tremendum' in 'The Idea of the Holy' — the experience of the divine as mysterium tremendum (the mystery that causes trembling). Otto identifies two qualities of religious experience: the fascinosum (the attractive, the wonderful = V11.20's adbhuta) and the tremendum (the overwhelming, the terrifying = V11.20's ugra + pravyathita). V11.20 is the Gita's most direct expression of the mysterium tremendum — the divine's overwhelming presence that causes universal trembling.
What it does NOT mean
V11.20's ugram (terrible/fierce/awesome) form is not saying the divine is malevolent or cruel. The ugra quality = the overwhelming power that transcends all ordinary categories of safe or manageable. Like standing too close to a waterfall or an erupting volcano: the power is not directed AT you but the sheer scale is overwhelming. V11.20's ugra = cosmic awe at the scale that exceeds all boundaries. The three worlds 'trembling' = existential recognition, not physical earthquake.
Take with you
- V11.20's vyāptam tvayaikena (filled by the ONE alone) as an omnipresence practice: there is no direction (diśaḥ sarvāḥ = all directions) that is not filled by the divine. V11.20 practice: wherever you are right now — whatever space you inhabit — it is vyāpta (filled) by the divine. Not just sacred spaces or meditation halls. The office, the traffic jam, the difficult conversation. Vyāptam tvayaikena = everywhere, by the one divine alone.
- V11.20's adbhuta + ugra simultaneously as a complexity practice: the cosmic form is BOTH wonderful (adbhuta) AND terrible (ugra) at the same time. This is not a contradiction — it is the complete nature of the overwhelming real. Practice V11.20: identify one situation or person in your life that is simultaneously wonderful AND terrible. Resist the impulse to resolve the tension into one or the other. Let both be true simultaneously.
- V11.20's pravyathita (trembling) as a teaching on appropriate response to the overwhelming: even the three worlds tremble at this vision. Trembling = the appropriate physical response to the genuinely overwhelming. V11.20 practice: when you feel the trembling quality in the face of something genuinely immense (a great work, a profound loss, an overwhelming beauty) — don't suppress it. V11.20 teaches: the three worlds tremble; you may too.
V11.20 is the pivot verse of Arjuna's response: it marks the transition from the appreciative-descriptive phase (V15-V19) to the awe-and-terror phase (V20-V25). Vyāptam tvayaikena: the divine ALONE fills all space. Tvayā (by You) + ekena (by the one = by the single) — the emphatic singularity of the one divine filling all of space-time. This is the direct confirmation of the Gita's panentheism: the divine is not in the world but fills the world from within and beyond. Vyāpta (pervaded) = the divine is the ground of all space, not a being within space. Dyāvā-pṛthivyoḥ antaram (the space between heaven and earth): the ancient Vedic expression for the entire inhabited cosmos — the space between sky and earth = the space of all human experience. V11.20 says this space is vyāpta (filled) by the divine alone. Every cubic centimeter of the air we breathe, every moment of the sky above us, every square meter of the earth below — all vyāpta (pervaded) by the ONE. Ugram rūpam: the first use of ugra in Arjuna's response. From V11.20 forward, the vision becomes increasingly terrifying. The progression: V15-V17 = visual description (the form); V18-V19 = theological declaration (who the form is); V20-V25 = the form's impact on the cosmos and on Arjuna himself (the awe-and-terror phase). Loka-trayam pravyathitam: all three worlds tremble. In V4.7's avatāra teaching: the divine incarnates when all three worlds are in disorder. V11.20's pravyathitam (trembling of all three worlds) is not disorder but awe-recognition — all beings in all realms are struck by the cosmic form's overwhelming presence. The three worlds trembling = the entire creation acknowledging the uncreated's presence.
Advaita lens
Shankaracharya: vyāptam tvayaikena (filled by You alone) = Brahman's vyāpti (omnipresent pervasion). In Advaita, Brahman pervades all space — but from within: not as water fills a cup (from outside) but as the very substance of space itself. V11.20's vyāptam tvayaikena = the direct visual confirmation of the Upaniṣadic teaching: 'ākāśavat sarvagataṃ' (like space, all-pervading). The divine is not in space — the divine IS space's ground.
Bhakti lens
For bhakti, V11.20's loka-trayam pravyathitam (three worlds trembling) = the entire creation's bhakti-response to the divine's overwhelming presence. Even the non-personal elements of creation (the three worlds as a whole) tremble (pravyathita) before the cosmic form — a form of spontaneous devotion in the whole of creation. V11.20 teaches: bhakti is not only a human response; it is the entire cosmos's response to the overwhelming presence of the source.
Karma-Yoga lens
V11.20 for karma yoga: vyāptam tvayaikena diśaś ca sarvāḥ (all directions filled by the One alone) = the karma yogi's spatial realization. There is no direction the karma yogi can act in that is outside the divine's vyāpta field. Every action in every direction — professional, personal, civic, creative — occurs within the divine's pervading presence. V11.20 grounds karma yoga spatially: there is no 'secular' or 'non-divine' space. All action is within the vyāpta field.
Modern parallels
V11.20's vyāptam tvayaikena (filled by You alone) + loka-trayam pravyathitam (three worlds trembling) parallels the concept of universal consciousness in panpsychism: the position that consciousness is not produced by brains but is the fundamental feature of reality — every level of organization participates in consciousness. V11.20: every level of the three worlds trembles — not merely because they perceive the cosmic form but because consciousness IS their ground, and that ground is recognizing itself. The three worlds 'trembling' = universal consciousness resonating with its source.
Practice
V11.20 space-pervasion meditation (15 minutes): sit quietly in any space. Take 5 breaths. Then: let your awareness fill the room — not just the space around your body but the walls, the ceiling, the floor. Recognize: this space is vyāpta (pervaded) by the divine. Then extend: the building, the city, the country, the planet, the solar system. Let awareness pervade the expanding space. At each level: vyāptam tvayaikena (filled by You alone). After 10 minutes of expansion: return to your body. Recognize: this body, this breath, this moment — also vyāpta. Rest in this recognition for 5 minutes.
Public-domain translations (3) compare all →
This space betwixt heaven and earth and all the quarters are filled by Thee alone; having seen this, Thy marvellous and awful Form, the three worlds are trembling with fear, O Great-souled One. [4]
filling the universe with splendor. Thou alone fillest the quarters and this space between heaven and earth. [6]
Doth to warm life surprise / Thy Universe. The worlds are filled with wonder [7]
This verse speaks to
Where this thread continues
Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intellect, ego — these eight are the divisions of My lower nature.
Tusked mouths blazing like fires of Time — losing all direction, all peace; be gracious, O Deveśa, O World's Abode!
Intellect, wisdom, patience, truth, calm, restraint, joy, pain, birth, death, fear, fearlessness — all arise from Me.
Gods' hosts enter You; some join palms in fear — great seers and Siddhas sing 'Svasti!' and praise You with full hymns!
Many mouths, eyes, arms, bellies, terrible tusks — Your vast form terrifies the worlds; I too tremble!
Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Jayadratha, Karṇa — all already slain by Me! You kill them. Fear not — fight! You shall conquer!