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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
10.14.1810.14.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.14.19

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

अजानतां त्वत्पदवीमनात्म-

न्यात्मात्मना भासि वितत्य मायाम् ।

सृष्टाविवाहं जगतो विधान

इव त्वमेषोऽन्त इव त्रिनेत्र: ॥ १९ ॥

ajānatāṁ tvat-padavīm anātmany

ātmātmanā bhāsi vitatya māyām

sṛṣṭāv ivāhaṁ jagato vidhāna

iva tvam eṣo ’nta iva trinetraḥ

Translation

To persons ignorant of Your actual transcendental position, You appear as part of the material world, manifesting Yourself by the expansion of Your inconceivable energy. Thus for the creation of the universe You appear as me [Brahmā], for its maintenance You appear as Yourself [Viṣṇu], and for its annihilation You appear as Lord Trinetra [Śiva].

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 Ultimate Truth Is a Supreme Person

  1. 1

    Those ignorant of Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental position see Him as part of the material world. His manifestations actually arise through His inconceivable energy.

  2. 2

    Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva are real expansions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not illusory figures. They are extraordinarily powerful controllers of the universe.

  3. 3

    The ultimate truth is a supreme and beautiful person. Throughout His creation, we therefore find the personal touch.

Key points from the purport
  • Although the impersonal Māyāvādī philosophers think that the demigods are illusory, Lord Brahmā, Lord Śiva and Lord Viṣṇu are stated here to be expansions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and are thus real.
  • Indeed, they are the extraordinarily powerful controllers of the universe.
  • The ultimate truth is a supreme and beautiful person, and thus throughout the creation of God we will always find the personal touch.

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:

Brahmā then glorified the inconceivable opulence of the Personality of Godhead and described the ways in which Brahmā and Śiva differ from Lord Viṣṇu, the reason for the Supreme Lord’s appearance in various species of demigods, animals and so on, the eternal nature of the pastimes of the Personality of Godhead, and the temporality of the material world. By knowing the Supreme Personality in truth, the individual spirit soul can achieve liberation from bondage.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.14
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. ajānatāmto persons who are in ignorance
  2. tvat-padavīmof Your transcendental position
  3. anātmaniin the material energy
  4. ātmāYourself
  5. ātmanāby Yourself
  6. bhāsiappear
  7. vitatyaexpanding
  8. māyāmYour inconceivable energy
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 10.14

    In this verse: “material”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What changes in your understanding when you consider the ultimate truth to be a beautiful person?

Practice

Reread the translation and identify the personal controller named for creation, maintenance and annihilation.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Ultimate Truth Is a Supreme PersonThis 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 10.14.19? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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