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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
11.15.1911.15.21

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.15.20

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

चक्षुस्त्वष्टरि संयोज्य त्वष्टारमपि चक्षुषि ।

मां तत्र मनसा ध्यायन् विश्वं पश्यति दूरत: ॥ २० ॥

cakṣus tvaṣṭari saṁyojya

tvaṣṭāram api cakṣuṣi

māṁ tatra manasā dhyāyan

viśvaṁ paśyati dūrataḥ

Translation

Merging one’s sight into the sun planet and then the sun planet into one’s eyes, one should meditate on Me as existing within the combination of sun and vision; thus one acquires the power to see any distant thing.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

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.

Distant Vision Through Meditation on the Lord

  1. 1

    The practice described joins one’s sight with the sun planet and the sun planet with one’s eyes.

  2. 2

    Within this combination of sun and vision, the yogī meditates on Kṛṣṇa. The Lord remains the focus of the meditation.

  3. 3

    Through this meditation, the yogī acquires the power to see distant things.

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:

In conclusion, Kṛṣṇa states that for one who desires to perform pure devotional service to the Personality of Godhead, the achievement of these mystic perfections is a waste of time, because they distract one from proper worship. All these perfections are automatically offered to a pure devotee, but he does not accept them.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.15
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. cakṣuḥthe eyes
  2. tvaṣṭariin the sun
  3. saṁyojyamerging
  4. tvaṣṭāramthe sun
  5. apialso
  6. cakṣuṣiin one’s eyes
  7. māmMe
  8. tatrathere, in the mutual merging of sun and eye
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

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

What does the Lord’s central place in this meditation teach me about the source of this ability?

Practice

Reread the translation slowly, noticing that meditation on Kṛṣṇa is central to the described perfection.

Live this todayDistant Vision Through Meditation on the 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 11.15.20? Get an answer from the verses themselves.