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

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Canto 2 · The Cosmic Manifestation · 10 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 2 · Chapter 1: The First Step in God Realization
2.1.232.1.25

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.1.24

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 2.1.23inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

विशेषस्तस्य देहोऽयं स्थविष्ठश्च स्थवीयसाम् ।

यत्रेदं व्यज्यते विश्वं भूतं भव्यं भवच्च सत् ॥ २४ ॥

viśeṣas tasya deho ’yaṁ

sthaviṣṭhaś ca sthavīyasām

yatredaṁ vyajyate viśvaṁ

bhūtaṁ bhavyaṁ bhavac ca sat

Translation

This gigantic manifestation of the phenomenal material world as a whole is the personal body of the Absolute Truth, wherein the universal resultant past, present and future of material time is experienced.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Recognize the Lord Through His Energies

  1. 1

    Everything material or spiritual is an expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s energy. He remains in His own abode while being present everywhere as the Supersoul.

  2. 2

    As the sun remains localized while spreading its rays, the Lord distributes His energy everywhere. The gigantic universe is only a part of His virāṭ body.

  3. 3

    Lord Kṛṣṇa’s manifestation of the virāṭ-rūpa is a merciful opportunity for those absorbed in material strength and grandeur. Contemplating this form can gradually cleanse their hearts and qualify them to see His transcendental form.

Key points from the purport
  • Anything, either material or spiritual, is but an expansion of the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (13.13), the omnipotent Lord has His transcendental eyes, heads and other bodily parts distributed everywhere.
  • Therefore they can see the gigantic body of the Lord as virāṭ, which will answer their challenge, and since they are accustomed to paying homage to superior material strength like that of the tiger, elephant and lightning, they can offer respect to the virāṭ-rūpa.
  • The virāṭ-rūpa manifestation of the Lord is simultaneously a challenge to the atheist and a favor for the asuras, who can think of the Lord as virāṭ and thus gradually cleanse the dirty things from their hearts in order to become qualified to actually see the transcendental form of the Lord in the near future.

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

Connected verses· 1

The purport of SB 2.1.24 quotesBG 13.13

Anything, either material or spiritual, is but an expansion of the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (13.13), the omnipotent Lord has His transcendental eyes, heads and other bodily parts distributed everywhere.

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

Death anxiety → Steady attention. The answer to mortality begins with spiritual focus.

Chapters 1–3 of Canto 2: The practice of hearing, remembering and devotion. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: The First Step in God Realization

Śukadeva describes the value of conscious living, self-control, and meditation on the Lord’s universal form.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.1
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. viśeṣaḥpersonal
  2. tasyaHis
  3. dehaḥbody
  4. ayamthis
  5. sthaviṣṭhaḥgrossly material
  6. caand
  7. sthavīyasāmof all matter
  8. yatrawherein
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 2.1

    In this verse: “absolute truth”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 2.1

    In this verse: “material”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 2.1

    In this verse: “merciful”

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

When I admire the power or grandeur of nature, do I remember the Lord whose energy it expresses?

Practice

Observe sunlight or another striking feature of nature today and respectfully remember it as an expansion of the Lord’s energy.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayRecognize the Lord Through His EnergiesThis 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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