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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 1 · Creation · 19 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
  3. 3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
  4. 4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
  5. 5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
  6. 6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.
Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›
Canto 1 · Chapter 3: Kṛṣṇa Is the Source of All Incarnations
1.3.291.3.31

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.3.30

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Sūta Gosvāmīsince 1.3.1inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

एतद्रूपं भगवतो ह्यरूपस्य चिदात्मन: ।

मायागुणैर्विरचितं महदादिभिरात्मनि ॥ ३० ॥

etad rūpaṁ bhagavato

hy arūpasya cid-ātmanaḥ

māyā-guṇair viracitaṁ

mahadādibhir ātmani

Translation

The conception of the virāṭ universal form of the Lord, as appearing in the material world, is imaginary. It is to enable the less intelligent [and neophytes] to adjust to the idea of the Lord’s having form. But factually the Lord has no material form.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Form Is Spiritual, Not Material

  1. 1

    The virāṭ-rūpa is a conception of the material universe as the Lord’s body, presented for beginning worshipers. It helps those who cannot yet conceive of anything beyond matter.

  2. 2

    The Lord’s actual incarnations are entirely transcendental, without a trace of materialism in their bodies. Unlike the conditioned soul, the Lord has no difference between His body and His self.

  3. 3

    As Paramātmā, the Lord is present within every material form, even within atoms. Both the Lord and the living beings are living spirits with original spiritual bodies.

Key points from the purport
  • In the virāṭ-rūpa the material manifestations of different planets have been conceived as His legs, hands, etc. Actually all such descriptions are for the neophytes.
  • The material conception of the Lord is not counted in the list of His factual forms.
  • The conclusion is that the material conception of the body of the Lord as virāṭ is imaginary.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Concern → Purpose. A spiritually urgent question emerges for the age of Kali.

Chapters 1–3 of Canto 1: The sages ask the ultimate questions. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 3: Kṛṣṇa Is the Source of All Incarnations

Sūta describes the Lord’s incarnations and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as His literary incarnation.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.3
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. etatall these
  2. rūpamforms
  3. bhagavataḥof the Lord
  4. hicertainly
  5. arūpasyaof one who has no material form
  6. cit-ātmanaḥof the Transcendence
  7. māyāmaterial energy
  8. guṇaiḥby the qualities
3

Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 1.3

    In this verse: “material”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 1.3

    In this verse: “worshipers”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Do I mistake having a spiritual form for having no form at all?

Practice

Reread the translation and write this distinction: the Lord has no material form, but He has an original spiritual form.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayThe Lord’s Form Is Spiritual, Not MaterialThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 1.3.30? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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