Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.3.24
Āśraya· The supreme shelterKṛṣṇa Is the Origin of Everything
“Śrī Devakī said: My dear Lord, there are different Vedas, some of which describe You as unperceivable through words and the mind. Yet You are the origin of the entire cosmic manifestation. You are Brahman, the greatest of everything, full of effulgence like the sun. You have no material cause, You are free from change and deviation, and You have no material desires. Thus the Vedas say that You are the substance. Therefore, my Lord, You are directly the origin of all Vedic statements, and by understanding You, one gradually understands everything. You are different from the light of Brahman and Paramātmā, yet You are not different from them. Everything emanates from You. Indeed, You are the cause of all causes, Lord Viṣṇu, the light of all transcendental knowledge.”
What the purport teaches
- There is no difference between Lord Viṣṇu and Lord Kṛṣṇa, because both are viṣṇu-tattva. Kṛṣṇa is the original cause of all spiritual and material worlds.
- Although everything emanates from Kṛṣṇa, He is ultimately a person. Brahman depends on Him, and He is present within the universe and the atom as Paramātmā.
- As an unalloyed devotee, Devakī understood that Lord Viṣṇu had appeared as her son. His eternal forms are changeless, full of knowledge and bliss, and uncontaminated by material qualities.
Try this today
Offer a short prayer acknowledging Kṛṣṇa as the source of everything and expressing your desire for devotional service.
Ask yourself
How does knowing Kṛṣṇa as the personal source of everything shape my desire to serve 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.