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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 28: Jñāna-yoga
11.28.1811.28.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.28.19

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Supreme Personality of Godheadsince 11.28.12inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Kṛṣṇa → Uddhava

यथा हिरण्यं स्वकृतं पुरस्तात्

पश्चाच्च सर्वस्य हिरण्मयस्य ।

तदेव मध्ये व्यवहार्यमाणं

नानापदेशैरहमस्य तद्वत् ॥ १९ ॥

yathā hiraṇyaṁ sv-akṛtaṁ purastāt

paścāc ca sarvasya hiraṇ-mayasya

tad eva madhye vyavahāryamāṇaṁ

nānāpadeśair aham asya tadvat

Translation

Gold alone is present before its manufacture into gold products, the gold alone remains after the products’ destruction, and the gold alone is the essential reality while it is being utilized under various designations. Similarly, I alone exist before the creation of this universe, after its destruction and during its maintenance.

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 Is the Essential Reality

  1. 1

    Gold remains the essential reality before it becomes a product, while the product is used and after the product is destroyed.

  2. 2

    Similarly, the Supreme Personality of Godhead exists before the universe’s creation, during its maintenance and after its destruction.

  3. 3

    The Lord is both the dynamic cause and the ingredient cause of everything. Throughout creation, He sets His own potency into motion, and that potency is not different from Him.

Key points from the purport
  • Gold is manufactured into many types of jewelry, as well as into coins and other luxurious products.
  • But at each stage — before manufacture, during manufacture, during utilization and afterward — the essential reality is gold.
  • In the same way, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the essential reality — both the dynamic and the ingredient cause 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.

How it feels

Striving → Complete devotional trust. The Lord redirects Uddhava toward enduring loving service.

Chapters 21–29 of Canto 11: Spiritual practice culminating in bhakti-yoga. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 28: Jñāna-yoga

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

During its interim, or maintenance phase, the cosmic manifestation is also founded upon the same Absolute Truth. This Absolute, Brahman, exists everywhere, both positively by its manifestations and negatively by its aloofness.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.28
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yathājust as
  2. hiraṇyamgold
  3. su-akṛtamunmanifest as manufactured products
  4. purastātpreviously
  5. paścātsubsequently
  6. caand
  7. sarvasyaof everything
  8. hiraṇ-mayasyathat is made of gold
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

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 does the example of gold help me understand the Lord’s relationship with creation?

Practice

Look at one material object today and reflect that the Lord’s potency, not its temporary form or name, is its underlying reality.

Live this todayThe Lord Is the Essential RealityThis 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.

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