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Canto 10 · The Summum Bonum · 90 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 10 · Chapter 87: The Prayers of the Personified Vedas
10.87.1410.87.16

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.87.15

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The śrutissince 10.87.14inside 5 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārāyaṇa Ṛṣi → Nārada MuniSanandana Kumāra → the sages of JanalokaThe personified Vedas → the Supreme Lord

बृहदुपलब्धमेतदवयन्त्यवशेषतया

यत उदयास्तमयौ विकृतेर्मृदि वाविकृतात् ।

अत ऋषयो दधुस्त्वयि मनोवचनाचरितं

कथमयथा भवन्ति भुवि दत्तपदानि नृणाम् ॥ १५ ॥

bṛhad upalabdham etad avayanty avaśeṣatayā

yata udayāstam-ayau vikṛter mṛdi vāvikṛtāt

ata ṛṣayo dadhus tvayi mano-vacanācaritaṁ

katham ayathā bhavanti bhuvi datta-padāni nṛṇām

Translation

This perceivable world is identified with the Supreme because the Supreme Brahman is the ultimate foundation of all existence, remaining unchanged as all created things are generated from it and at last dissolved into it, just as clay remains unchanged by the products made from it and again merged with it. Thus it is toward You alone that the Vedic sages direct all their thoughts, words and acts. After all, how can the footsteps of men fail to touch the earth on which they live?

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.

Everything Depends on the Supreme Lord

  1. 1

    There is only one ultimate source of creation: the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Lord Viṣṇu alone is the Absolute Truth; the demigods possess only powers He grants them.

  2. 2

    Everything expands from the Lord and dissolves into Him, yet He remains eternally unchanged. Like clay underlying its various products, He is the constant basis of all manifestations.

  3. 3

    Lord Kṛṣṇa identifies Himself as the Supreme Absolute Truth, on whom everything depends. Understanding this dependence, the Vedic sages direct their thoughts, words and acts toward Him.

Key points from the purport
  • The Vedic sages understand that this entire world — including Indra, Agni, and everything else perceivable by the eyes, ears and other senses — is identical with the one Supreme Truth, the Personality of Godhead, who is called Bṛhat, “the greatest,” because He is avaśeṣa, “the ultimate substance that remains.”
  • Brahman alone is real, not because nothing we see in this world is real, but because Brahman is the absolute, final cause of everything.
  • Actually the term Brahman actually applies to Kṛṣṇa only; therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā Arjuna admitted that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Parabrahman, or the supreme rest of everything.

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

Connected verses· 3

The purport of SB 10.87.15 quotesSB 8.3.15

You are the inconceivable cause of all causes, and of You there is no other cause.”

The purport of SB 10.87.15 quotesSB 11.24.19

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.24.19), Lord Kṛṣṇa says: “The material universe is real, having prakṛti as its original ingredient and final state.

The purport of SB 10.87.15 quotesSB 11.24.18

A particular thing may be called real in that it possesses the basic nature of another object that constitutes its cause and original state.”

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

How it feels

Awe → Reverent fulfillment. The canto closes with theological wonder.

Chapters 87–90 of Canto 10: The Vedas praise and the Lord's glories conclude. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 87: The Prayers of the Personified Vedas

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

King Parīkṣit asked Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī how the Vedas can directly refer to the Supreme Absolute Truth, Brahman, since the Vedas deal with the material realm governed by the three modes of nature and Brahman is completely transcendental to these modes. In reply, Śukadeva Gosvāmī described an ancient encounter between Śrī Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi and Nārada Muni at Badarikāśrama.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.87
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. bṛhatas the Supreme
  2. upalabdhamperceived
  3. etatthis (world)
  4. avayantithey consider
  5. avaśeṣatayāin terms of its being the all-pervading foundation of existence
  6. yataḥsince
  7. udayathe generation
  8. astam-ayauand dissolution
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 10.87

    In this verse: “absolute truth”, “understanding”

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

How would remembering that everything depends on the Lord change the way I use my words today?

Practice

Choose one ordinary object today and reflect on its dependence on the Supreme Lord, then offer Him a short prayer of respect.

5

Connected stories

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

The purport quotesSB 8.3.15SB 11.24.19SB 11.24.18

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 10.87's connections

Live this todayEverything Depends on the Supreme LordThis 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 10.87.15? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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