Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 1.3.23
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesKṛṣṇa Is the Original Personality of Godhead
“In the nineteenth and twentieth incarnations, the Lord advented Himself as Lord Balarāma and Lord Kṛṣṇa in the family of Vṛṣṇi [the Yadu dynasty], and by so doing He removed the burden of the world.”
What the purport teaches
- Lord Balarāma and Lord Kṛṣṇa appeared in the Vṛṣṇi family and removed the burden of the world.
- The word bhagavān indicates that Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa are original forms of the Lord. Kṛṣṇa is directly the original Personality of Godhead, not an incarnation of the puruṣa.
- Balarāma is the Lord’s first plenary manifestation. From Baladeva expand Vāsudeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Aniruddha and Pradyumna.
Try this today
Read aloud once: “Kṛṣṇa is the original Personality of Godhead, and Balarāma is His first plenary manifestation.”
Ask yourself
How does understanding Kṛṣṇa as the original Personality of Godhead shape my regard for Him?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.