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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 6: Puruṣa-sūkta Confirmed
2.6.102.6.12

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.6.11

Nirodha· Winding up
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 2.6.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Brahmā → Nārada Muni

अव्यक्तरससिन्धूनां भूतानां निधनस्य च ।

उदरं विदितं पुंसो हृदयं मनस: पदम् ॥ ११ ॥

avyakta-rasa-sindhūnāṁ

bhūtānāṁ nidhanasya ca

udaraṁ viditaṁ puṁso

hṛdayaṁ manasaḥ padam

Translation

The impersonal feature of the Lord is the abode of great oceans, and His belly is the resting place for the materially annihilated living entities. His heart is the abode of the subtle material bodies of living beings. Thus it is known by the intelligent class of men.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Living Beings Survive Material Annihilation

  1. 1

    During the night of Brahmā, living entities repose in the belly of the Lord. When creation begins again, they resume their respective parts as if awakened from deep sleep.

  2. 2

    The annihilation of the material world does not destroy the living entities. Until liberation, they must accept one material body after another.

  3. 3

    Human life is meant for solving this repeated change of bodies. Its purpose is to attain a place in the spiritual sky, where everything is eternal, blissful and full of knowledge.

Key points from the purport
  • Avyakta, mentioned here in this verse, means the night of Brahmā, when partial annihilation takes place and the living entities of that particular brahmāṇḍa, up to the planets of Brahmaloka, along with the big oceans, etc., all repose in the belly of the virāṭ-puruṣa.
  • At the end of a Brahmā’s night, the creation again takes place, and the living entities, reserved within the belly of the Lord, are let loose to play their respective parts as if being awakened from a deep slumber.
  • In other words, the subtle forms of the living entities take place in the heart of the Supreme Being, and such forms take tangible shape at the time of creation.

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 2.6.11 quotesBG 8.17

In the Bhagavad-gītā (8.17-18) it is stated that according to human calculations one day of Brahmā is equal to one thousand ages of four millenniums (4,300,000 years) each, and the same period is calculated to be his night also.

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

Uncertainty → Awe. The scale of reality widens dramatically.

Chapters 4–7 of Canto 2: The creation, cosmic Person and incarnations. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 6: Puruṣa-sūkta Confirmed

Brahmā describes the universal form, his sacrifice, and the Lord’s control over creation, maintenance, and destruction.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.6
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. avyaktathe impersonal feature
  2. rasa-sindhūnāmof the seas and oceans of water
  3. bhūtānāmof those who take birth in the material world
  4. nidhanasyaof the annihilation
  5. caalso
  6. udaramHis belly
  7. viditamis known by the intelligent class of men
  8. puṁsaḥof the great personality
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead

    What happens when everything here comes to an end? · Subject 8 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 2.6

    In this verse: “materially”, “material”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 2.6

    In this verse: “knowledge”

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 knowing that life continues beyond the present body affect my priorities?

Practice

Take two minutes today to reflect on the purpose of human life described in this purport.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayLiving Beings Survive Material AnnihilationThis 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 2.6.11? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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