Verse 18.77

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 18.77:

तच् च संस्मृत्य संस्मृत्य रूपम् अत्यद्भुतं हरेः ।
विस्मयो मे महान् राजन् हृष्यामि च पुनः पुनः ॥ ७७ ॥

tac ca saṃsmṛtya saṃsmṛtya rūpam atyadbhutaṃ hareḥ |
vismayo me mahān rājan hṛṣyāmi ca punaḥ punaḥ || 77 ||

tat–that; ca–and; saṃsmṛtya saṃsmṛtya–remembering repeatedly; rūpam–form; ati adbhutam–most wonderful; hareḥ–of Śrī Hari; vismayaḥ–amazement; me–my; mahān–great; rājan–O King; hṛṣyāmi–I rejoice and become thrilled; ca–and; punaḥ punaḥ–again and again.

O King, as I remember again and again that marvellous form of Śrī Hari, I become struck with great amazement, and at every moment I rejoice and thrill with rapture.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Prakāśikā-vṛtti

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

From this verse, it appears that the universal form of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, which Arjuna saw at Kurukṣetra, was also seen by Sañjaya by the grace of Śrīla Vyāsadeva as he sat in the royal palace in Hastināpura. Śrī Kṛṣṇa had explained to Arjuna that He had not shown that form to anyone before and that He was showing it to Arjuna for the first time. However, by thoroughly deliberating upon this point, it can be understood that both Sañjaya and Vyāsa most definitely saw the universal form when Arjuna did. And from Arjuna’s statement, it can be understood that even ṛṣis, maharṣis and demigods saw it. Śrī Vedavyāsa is Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s topmost devotee. Not only that, he is also a śaktyāveśa-avatāra (a jīva especially empowered with a potency of the Lord) of Bhagavān Himself. It follows, therefore, that only those who are in the paramparā of Śrīla Vyāsa are capable of realizing the essence of Bhagavad-gītā.