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

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Canto 11 · General History · 31 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 11 · Chapter 15: Lord Kṛṣṇa’s Description of Mystic Yoga Perfections
11.15.1211.15.14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.15.13

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Supreme Personality of Godheadsince 11.15.3inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Kṛṣṇa → Uddhava

धारयन् मय्यहंतत्त्वे मनो वैकारिकेऽखिलम् ।

सर्वेन्द्रियाणामात्मत्वं प्राप्तिं प्राप्नोति मन्मना: ॥ १३ ॥

dhārayan mayy ahaṁ-tattve

mano vaikārike ’khilam

sarvendriyāṇām ātmatvaṁ

prāptiṁ prāpnoti man-manāḥ

Translation

Fixing his mind completely in Me within the element of false ego generated from the mode of goodness, the yogī obtains the power of mystic acquisition, by which he becomes the proprietor of the senses of all living entities. He obtains such perfection because his mind is absorbed in Me.

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.

Mystic Perfection Depends on Absorption in God

  1. 1

    By fixing the mind completely on the Lord within false ego generated from goodness, the yogī obtains mystic acquisition and proprietorship of all living entities’ senses.

  2. 2

    To acquire each mystic perfection, one must fix the mind on the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Without this, one gains only a gross and inferior reflection of the potency.

  3. 3

    Those who are not conscious of the Lord cannot perfectly synchronize their minds with universal functions. Therefore they cannot raise their mystic opulences to the universal platform.

Key points from the purport
  • It is significant that in order to acquire each mystic perfection one must fix one’s mind on the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura states that those who pursue such perfections without fixing the mind in the Supreme Lord acquire a gross and inferior reflection of each mystic potency.
  • Those who are not conscious of the Lord cannot actually synchronize their minds perfectly with the universal functions and therefore cannot elevate their mystic opulences to the universal platform.

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

Uncertainty → Clarity. The coming separation makes the instruction personally urgent.

Chapters 10–20 of Canto 11: Kṛṣṇa's teachings on self, yoga and wisdom. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 15: Lord Kṛṣṇa’s Description of Mystic Yoga Perfections

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

They are developed by fixing one’s mind in yoga, but they are ultimately obstructions to achieving the spiritual abode of Lord Viṣṇu. Being questioned by Uddhava, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa describes the characteristics of the eighteen mystic perfections and the particular kind of meditation by which each is achieved.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.15
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. dhārayanconcentrating
  2. mayiin Me
  3. aham-tattvewithin the element of false ego
  4. manaḥthe mind
  5. vaikārikein that which is produced from the mode of goodness
  6. akhilamcompletely
  7. sarvaof all living entities
  8. indriyāṇāmof the senses
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Dainya · Humility

    Ego yields to insight, service and surrender. · Theme in SB 11.15

    In this verse: “false ego”

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

Is my attention on the Supreme Lord Himself or mainly on what I hope to obtain?

Practice

Spend one quiet minute directing your attention to the Supreme Personality of Godhead rather than to an ability you wish to gain.

Live this todayMystic Perfection Depends on Absorption in GodThis 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 11.15.13? Get an answer from the verses themselves.