Shloka
आख्याहि मे को भवानुग्ररूपो
नमोऽस्तु ते देववर प्रसीद |
विज्ञातुमिच्छामि भवन्तमाद्यं
न हि प्रजानामि तव प्रवृत्तिम् ||११-३१||Transliteration
ākhyāhi me ko bhavānugrarūpo namo.astu te devavara prasīda .
vijñātumicchāmi bhavantamādyaṃ na hi prajānāmi tava pravṛttim ||11-31||Translations
Dr.S.Sankaranarayan
11.31. Please, tell me who You are with a terrible form; O the Best of gods ! Salutation to You, please be merciful. I am desirious of knowing You, the Primal One in detail; for I do not clearly comprehend Your behaviour.
Shri Purohit Swami
11.31 Tell me then who Thou art, that wearest this dreadful Form? I bow before Thee, O Mighty One! Have mercy, I pray, and let me see Thee as Thou wert at first. I do not know what Thou intendest.
Sri Abhinav Gupta
11.31 Akhyahi etc. I do not clearly comprehend Your behaviour : I.e. with what intention this terrific nature of this sort [has been assumed by You].
Sri Ramanuja
11.31 Who are You of this terrible form, what do You intend to do? I wish to know. For I do not know Your intended actions. Tell me this. Salutations to You, O Supreme God! Salutations to You, Lord of everything! Say with what object and for what purpose You have assumed this form of the destroyer. Assume a pleasing form.
The Lord, the charioteer of Arjuna, being estioned, ‘What is Your intention in assuming a terrible form when revealing Your cosmic sovereignty out of overflowing love for Your proteges?’ - He spoke to the following effect: The manifestation of a terrible form by Me is to point out that I Myself am operative for the annihilation of the entire world of kings headed by the sons of Dhrtarastra, without any effort on your (Arjuna’s) part. Reminding Arjuna of this, is to goad him to fight:
Sri Shankaracharya
11.31 Akhyahi, tell; me; kah, who; bhavan, You are; ugrarupah, fierce in form. Namah, salutation; astu, be; te, to You; deva-vara, O supreme God, foremost among the gods. Prasida, be gracious. Icchami, I desire; vijnatum, to fully know; bhavantam, You; adyam, who are the Primal One, who exist in the beginning. Hi, for; na prajanami, I do not understand; tava, Your; pravrttim, actions!
Swami Adidevananda
11.31 Tell me who You are with this terrible form? Salutation to You, O Supreme God. Be gracious. I desire to know You, the Primal One. I do not know Your activity.
Swami Gambirananda
11.31 Tell me who You are, fierce in form. Salutation be to you, O supreme God; be gracious. I desire to fully know You who are the Prima One. For I do not understand Your actions!
Swami Sivananda
11.31 Tell me, who Thou art, so fierce of form. Salutations to Thee, O God Supreme: have mercy. I desire to know Thee, the original Being. I know not indeed Thy working.
Commentaries
Swami Sivananda
11.31 आख्याहि tell? मे me? कः who (art)? भवान् Thou? उग्ररूपः fierce in form? नमः salutation? अस्तु be? ते to Thee? देववर O God Supreme? प्रसीद have mercy? विज्ञातुम् to know? इच्छामि (I) wish? भवन्तम् Thee? आद्यम् the original Being? न not? हि indeed? प्रजानामि (I) know? तव Thy? प्रवृत्तिम् doing.No Commentary.