Bhagavad Gita · Chapter 11: The Vision of the Cosmic Form
Bhagavad Gita 11.31
आख्याहि मे को भवानुग्ररूपो
नमोऽस्तु ते देववर प्रसीद ।
विज्ञातुमिच्छामि भवन्तमाद्यं
न हि प्रजानामि तव प्रवृत्तिम् ॥
ākhyāhi me ko bhavānugrarūpo namo'stu te devavara prasīda | vijñātumicchāmi bhavantamādyaṃ na hi prajānāmi tava pravṛttim ||
Tell me who you are in this terrible form. I bow to you, best of gods; be gracious. I want to understand you, the primal one, for I do not know what you intend to do.
Modern context
'Who are you, in this terrible form?' Arjuna, who has known Krishna all his life, no longer recognises him. He bows, asks for grace, and asks to understand. This is a profound moment in any relationship with the sacred: the realisation that what we thought we knew is only part of the truth. The right response is what Arjuna does: reverence and an honest question.