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

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Canto 10 · The Summum Bonum · 90 chapters

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Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 10 · Chapter 14: Brahmā’s Prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa
10.14.1410.14.16

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.14.15

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 10.14.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

तच्चेज्जलस्थं तव सज्जगद्वपु:

किं मे न द‍ृष्टं भगवंस्तदैव ।

किं वा सुद‍ृष्टं हृदि मे तदैव

किं नो सपद्येव पुनर्व्यदर्शि ॥ १५ ॥

tac cej jala-sthaṁ tava saj jagad-vapuḥ

kiṁ me na dṛṣṭaṁ bhagavaṁs tadaiva

kiṁ vā su-dṛṣṭaṁ hṛdi me tadaiva

kiṁ no sapady eva punar vyadarśi

Translation

My dear Lord, if Your transcendental body, which shelters the entire universe, is actually lying upon the water, then why were You not seen by me when I searched for You? And why, though I could not envision You properly within my heart, did You then suddenly reveal Yourself?

Read the purport on Vedabase.io

From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Form Is Eternal and Spiritual

  1. 1

    At the beginning of creation, Brahmā searched along the lotus stem for his source but could not find the Lord. He then followed the Lord’s unseen voice and performed severe austerities.

  2. 2

    After long meditation, Brahmā saw the Lord and then again lost sight of Him. This experience showed that the Lord’s body is not material.

  3. 3

    The Personality of Godhead has an eternal, spiritual form endowed with inconceivable mystic potencies. Brahmā recognizes that he should not have challenged the master of all mystic power.

Key points from the purport
  • Unable to find the Personality of Godhead, he returned to his seat and engaged in severe austerities, having been ordered to do so by the transcendental voice of the Lord, who could be heard but not seen.
  • Thus Brahmā concludes that the transcendental body of the Personality of Godhead is not material but rather an eternal, spiritual form endowed with inconceivable mystic potencies.
  • In other words, Lord Brahmā should not have challenged the Personality of Godhead, the Lord of all mystic power.

The purport'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

Peril and pride → Friendship and humility. Divinity is revealed amid intimate childhood play.

Chapters 12–19 of Canto 10: Childhood dangers and Brahmā's amazement. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 14: Brahmā’s Prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Finally realizing this, Brahmā repeatedly condemned his own actions and recognized that Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the ultimate shelter of the universe, is Brahmā’s own father, the original Nārāyaṇa. In this way Brahmā begged the Lord’s forgiveness.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.14
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tatthat
  2. cetif
  3. jala-sthamsituated upon the water
  4. tavaYour
  5. satreal
  6. jagatsheltering the entire universe
  7. vapuḥthe transcendental body
  8. kimwhy
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Īśānukathā · The science of God

    Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10

  • Śaraṇāgati · Wholehearted surrender

    Relinquishing ownership while entrusting oneself to the Lord. · Theme in SB 10.14

    In this verse: “shelters”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 10.14

    In this verse: “material”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does Brahmā’s experience teach me about the limits of my own attempts to understand the Lord?

Practice

Read the translation slowly and pause to acknowledge that the Lord’s spiritual form is beyond your power to control.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 10.14's connections

Live this todayThe Lord’s Form Is Eternal and SpiritualThis 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 10.14.15? Get an answer from the verses themselves.