1 · LearnExplore more · 10 min
The ten subjects
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam names ten subjects it speaks about. Nine of them explain the tenth: Kṛṣṇa, the shelter of everything.
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.10.1
śrī-śuka uvāca
atra sargo visargaś ca
sthānaṁ poṣaṇam ūtayaḥ
manvantareśānukathā
nirodho muktir āśrayaḥ
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there are ten divisions of statements regarding the following: the creation of the universe, subcreation, planetary systems, protection by the Lord, the creative impetus, the change of Manus, the science of God, returning home, back to Godhead, liberation, and the summum bonum.
Study SB 2.10.1Why nine, and then the tenth
“To isolate the transcendence of the summum bonum, the symptoms of the rest are described sometimes by Vedic inference, sometimes by direct explanation, and sometimes by summary explanations given by the great sages.”
The tenth: the supreme shelter
“All three of the above-mentioned stages of different living entities are interdependent. In the absence of one, another is not understood. But the Supreme Being who sees every one of them as the shelter of the shelter is independent of all, and therefore He is the supreme shelter.”
Across the whole Bhāgavatam
How the 14,094 verse entries fall
Canto by canto
Each verse is tagged with the one subject it mainly presents, judged from its translation against the definitions in SB 2.10. The tags are a study guide; many verses touch several subjects, and the purport is always the final word.
The ten subjects
Tap a subject to open it
Subject 1 of 10 · 249 verses
Sarga · The creation of the universe
Where does the universe come from?
Subject 1 of 10 · 249 verses
Sarga · The creation of the universe
Where does the universe come from?
“The elementary creation of sixteen items of matter — namely the five elements [fire, water, land, air and sky], sound, form, taste, smell, touch, and the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin and mind — is known as sarga.”
Subject 2 of 10 · 696 verses
Visarga · Subcreation
How do living beings and their worlds appear?
Subject 2 of 10 · 696 verses
Visarga · Subcreation
How do living beings and their worlds appear?
“Subsequent resultant interaction of the modes of material nature is called visarga.”
Subject 3 of 10 · 358 verses
Sthāna · Planetary systems
How is the universe arranged, and what is our right place in it?
Subject 3 of 10 · 358 verses
Sthāna · Planetary systems
How is the universe arranged, and what is our right place in it?
“The right situation for the living entities is to obey the laws of the Lord and thus be in perfect peace of mind under the protection of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
Subject 4 of 10 · 1,161 verses
Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord
How does the Lord care for His devotees?
Subject 4 of 10 · 1,161 verses
Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord
How does the Lord care for His devotees?
“The right situation for the living entities is to obey the laws of the Lord and thus be in perfect peace of mind under the protection of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
Subject 5 of 10 · 1,805 verses
Ūti · The creative impetus
Why do we act, and what keeps us bound?
Subject 5 of 10 · 1,805 verses
Ūti · The creative impetus
Why do we act, and what keeps us bound?
“The impetus for activity is the desire for fruitive work.”
Where it is taught most
Subject 6 of 10 · 996 verses
Manvantara · The change of Manus
What gives human life its right direction?
Subject 6 of 10 · 996 verses
Manvantara · The change of Manus
What gives human life its right direction?
“The Manus and their laws are meant to give right direction in life.”
Subject 7 of 10 · 5,628 verses
Īśānukathā · The science of God
Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live?
Subject 7 of 10 · 5,628 verses
Īśānukathā · The science of God
Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live?
“The science of God describes the incarnations of the Personality of Godhead and His different activities together with the activities of His great devotees.”
Subject 8 of 10 · 410 verses
Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead
What happens when everything here comes to an end?
Subject 8 of 10 · 410 verses
Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead
What happens when everything here comes to an end?
“The merging of the living entity, along with his conditional living tendency, with the mystic lying down of the Mahā-Viṣṇu is called the winding up of the cosmic manifestation.”
Where it is taught most
Subject 9 of 10 · 1,918 verses
Mukti · Liberation
What is real freedom for the soul?
Subject 9 of 10 · 1,918 verses
Mukti · Liberation
What is real freedom for the soul?
“Liberation is the permanent situation of the form of the living entity after he gives up the changeable gross and subtle material bodies.”
Where it is taught most
Subject 10 of 10 · 873 verses
Āśraya · The summum bonum
Who is the shelter of everything?
Subject 10 of 10 · 873 verses
Āśraya · The summum bonum
Who is the shelter of everything?
“The supreme one who is celebrated as the Supreme Being or the Supreme Soul is the supreme source of the cosmic manifestation as well as its reservoir and winding up. Thus He is the Supreme Fountainhead, the Absolute Truth.”