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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 7: Scheduled Incarnations with Specific Functions
2.7.392.7.41

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.7.40

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 2.7.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Brahmā → Nārada Muni

विष्णोर्नु वीर्यगणनां कतमोऽर्हतीह

य: पार्थिवान्यपि कविर्विममे रजांसि ।

चस्कम्भ य: स्वरहसास्खलता त्रिपृष्ठं

यस्मात् त्रिसाम्यसदनादुरुकम्पयानम् ॥ ४० ॥

viṣṇor nu vīrya-gaṇanāṁ katamo ’rhatīha

yaḥ pārthivāny api kavir vimame rajāṁsi

caskambha yaḥ sva-rahasāskhalatā tri-pṛṣṭhaṁ

yasmāt tri-sāmya-sadanād uru-kampayānam

Translation

Who can describe completely the prowess of Viṣṇu? Even the scientist, who might have counted the particles of the atoms of the universe, cannot do so. Because it is He only who in His form of Trivikrama moved His leg effortlessly beyond the topmost planet, Satyaloka, up to the neutral state of the three modes of material nature. And all were moved.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

No One Equals Lord Viṣṇu

  1. 1

    Even someone able to count all the universe’s atomic particles could not measure the Supreme Lord’s prowess and energy.

  2. 2

    In His incarnation of Vāmana, the Lord extended His leg beyond Satyaloka and penetrated the material coverings. Thus He is known as Trivikrama.

  3. 3

    Through the hole made by His toe, water from the Causal Ocean enters as the sacred Ganges, purifying the three worlds. Viṣṇu is omnipotent; no one is equal to or greater than Him.

Key points from the purport
  • The highest scientific advancement of the material scientists is atomic energy.
  • But the material scientist is not able to have an estimation of the particles of atoms contained in the whole universe.
  • He is known as Trivikrama because once, in His incarnation of Vāmana, He expanded His leg beyond the highest planetary system, Satyaloka, and reached the neutral state of the modes of nature called the covering of the material world.

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

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 24.21

This is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.7.40).

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 7: Scheduled Incarnations with Specific Functions

Brahmā recounts the Lord’s incarnations and explains that unalloyed surrender enables one to understand Him.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.7
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. viṣṇoḥof Lord Viṣṇu
  2. nubut
  3. vīryaprowess
  4. gaṇanāmin the matter of accounting
  5. katamaḥwho else
  6. arhatiis able to do it
  7. ihain this world
  8. yaḥone who
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Īśānukathā · The science of God

    Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 2.7

    In this verse: “material”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 2.7

    In this verse: “purifying”

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 Lord’s immeasurable power affect your sense of your own knowledge?

Practice

Reread the translation slowly, then spend a quiet moment acknowledging Lord Viṣṇu’s unequaled power.

5

The story around it

The stories this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 2.7's connections

Live this todayNo One Equals Lord ViṣṇuThis 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 2.7.40? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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