Verse 11.3

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 11.3:

एवम् एतद् यथात्थ त्वम् आत्मानं परमेश्वर ।
द्रष्टुम् इच्छामि ते रूपम् ऐश्वरं पुरुषोत्तम ॥ ३ ॥

evam etad yathāttha tvam ātmānaṃ parameśvara |
draṣṭum icchāmi te rūpam aiśvaraṃ puruṣottama || 3 ||

evam–I accept; etat–this; yathā–as; āttha–have spoken; tvam–You; ātmānam–of Yourself; parameśvara–O Supreme Controller; draṣṭum–to see; icchāmi–I wish; te–Your; rūpam–form; aiśvaram–of opulence; puruṣa-uttama–O Supreme Person.

O Parameśvara, I accept all that You have spoken about Yourself as true. Still, O Puruṣottama, I now wish to see Your form that is replete with majesty.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

(By Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura; the innermost intention of the commentary named ‘the shower of essential meanings’)

Ātmānaṃ tvam yathāttha. “You said, ‘I am situated in this world by pervading it with but one portion of Myself’ (Gītā 10.42). This is indeed true; I have not even a trace of doubt about this. Yet I desire the satisfaction of beholding Your form of majesty (aiśvarya). I want to see with my own eyes Your partial manifestation, Your īśvara form, by which You enter this world.”

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Prakāśikā-vṛtti

(By Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; the explanation that illuminates the commentary named Sārārtha-varṣiṇī)

With a desire to see the form of Bhagavān that is full of aiśvarya, or opulence, Arjuna is saying, “O Parameśvara, I have heard about Your wonderful, unlimited opulences (vibhūtis) and I have not even the slightest doubt about them. Now, however, I am becoming eager to actually see Your form that is full of opulence. You are Antaryāmī, existing within everyone’s heart. There-fore, You also know my inner desire and You are capable of fulfilling it.”

Someone may raise the following doubt: If Arjuna is an eternal friend of Kṛṣṇa, who is the embodiment of sweetness (mādhurya-maya-vigraha), why does he desire to see the universal form, which expresses Bhagavān’s majestic opulence? The answer is that, just as a person who is very fond of sweets sometimes desires to eat bitter and sour food (such as neem leaves or pickle), Arjuna, who is forever tasting Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness (mādhurya) also developed a desire to see His universal form, which is an expression of His majesty (aiśvarya).

This has another meaning. Although Arjuna does not doubt the reverential opulence of Śrī Kṛṣṇa or His super-excellence, he desires to see this aiśvarya feature simply for his own personal satisfaction.