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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
11.28.2111.28.23

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.28.22

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

अविद्यमानोऽप्यवभासते यो

वैकारिको राजससर्ग एष: ।

ब्रह्म स्वयंज्योतिरतो विभाति

ब्रह्मेन्द्रियार्थात्मविकारचित्रम् ॥ २२ ॥

avidyamāno ’py avabhāsate yo

vaikāriko rājasa-sarga eṣaḥ

brahma svayaṁ jyotir ato vibhāti

brahmendriyārthātma-vikāra-citram

Translation

Although thus not existing in reality, this manifestation of transformations created from the mode of passion appears real because the self-manifested, self-luminous Absolute Truth exhibits Himself in the form of the material variety of the senses, the sense objects, the mind and the elements of physical nature.

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.

Material Variety Depends on the Supreme Lord

  1. 1

    Material nature is originally undifferentiated and inert. The Supreme Lord activates the mode of passion through His time agent, bringing about material transformation.

  2. 2

    Material transformations display the Lord’s inferior energy. His personal abode has eternal, self-luminous variety, untouched by creation, transformation or annihilation.

  3. 3

    The material world is simultaneously one with and different from the Absolute Truth. Its apparent reality depends on the self-luminous Lord.

Key points from the purport
  • The total material nature, pradhāna, is originally undifferentiated and inert, but later it undergoes transformation when the Supreme Lord, through His time agent, glances upon it and activates the mode of passion.
  • In contrast, the Supreme Lord’s personal abode possesses eternal variety, which is the self-luminous, internal opulence of the Absolute Truth and is not subject to material creation, transformation or annihilation.
  • The material world is in this way simultaneously one with and different from the Absolute Truth.

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:

Brahman is unique in being self-sufficient, whereas this world is the expansion of Brahman produced through the material mode of passion. By the mercy of a bona fide spiritual master, one can understand the Absolute Truth and come to appreciate the nonspiritual nature of the material body and its extensions.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.28
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. avidyamānaḥactually not existing
  2. apialthough
  3. avabhāsateappears
  4. yaḥwhich
  5. vaikārikaḥmanifestation of transformations
  6. rājasaof the mode of passion
  7. sargaḥthe creation
  8. eṣaḥthis
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 11.28

    In this verse: “absolute truth”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 11.28

    In this verse: “material”

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 remembering the Lord’s eternal abode change my view of temporary material variety?

Practice

Notice one changing material object today and recall that the Lord’s personal abode is free from such transformation.

Live this todayMaterial Variety 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 11.28.22? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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