Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.17.16
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesLord Śiva Meditates Upon Saṅkarṣaṇa
“In Ilāvṛta-varṣa, Lord Śiva is always encircled by ten billion maidservants of Goddess Durgā, who minister to him. The quadruple expansion of the Supreme Lord is composed of Vāsudeva, Pradyumna, Aniruddha and Saṅkarṣaṇa. Saṅkarṣaṇa, the fourth expansion, is certainly transcendental, but because His activities of destruction in the material world are in the mode of ignorance, He is known as tāmasī, the Lord’s form in the mode of ignorance. Lord Śiva knows that Saṅkarṣaṇa is the original cause of his own existence, and thus he always meditates upon Him in trance by chanting the following mantra.”
What the purport teaches
- Lord Śiva knows Saṅkarṣaṇa to be the original cause of his existence. He always meditates upon Him in trance.
- Lord Brahmā creates the material world, Lord Viṣṇu maintains it, and Lord Śiva destroys it. Destruction is associated with the mode of ignorance.
- Lord Śiva and Saṅkarṣaṇa are technically called tāmasī because their activities involve destruction. Yet both remain enlightened and transcendental, unaffected by the modes of material nature.
Try this today
Spend one quiet minute reflecting on Lord Śiva's constant meditation upon Saṅkarṣaṇa, the source of his existence.
Ask yourself
How does Lord Śiva's meditation help me appreciate his relationship with the Supreme Lord?
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.