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

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Canto 3 · The Status Quo · 33 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 3 · Chapter 28: Kapila’s Instructions on the Execution of Devotional Service
3.28.403.28.42

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.28.41

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Personality of Godheadsince 3.28.1inside 4 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → ViduraLord Kapila → Devahūti

भूतेन्द्रियान्त:करणात्प्रधानाज्जीवसंज्ञितात् ।

आत्मा तथा पृथग्द्रष्टा भगवान्ब्रह्मसंज्ञित: ॥ ४१ ॥

bhūtendriyāntaḥ-karaṇāt

pradhānāj jīva-saṁjñitāt

ātmā tathā pṛthag draṣṭā

bhagavān brahma-saṁjñitaḥ

Translation

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is known as Parambrahma, is the seer. He is different from the jīva soul, or individual living entity, who is combined with the senses, the five elements and consciousness.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Simultaneously One With and Different

  1. 1

    The living entity is different from the material elements. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, their creator and the seer, is also different from the individual living entity.

  2. 2

    Lord Caitanya taught acintya-bhedābheda-tattva: simultaneous oneness and difference. Both the living entity and the material energy are one with and different from the Supreme Lord.

  3. 3

    Living entities are part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, like sparks of a fire. As fire distributes heat and light, the Lord distributes His different energies throughout creation.

Key points from the purport
  • The living entity is different from the material elements, and the supreme living entity, the Personality of Godhead, who is the creator of the material elements, is also different from the individual living entity.
  • The cosmic manifestation created by the Supreme Lord by His material energy is also simultaneously different and nondifferent from Him.
  • The material energy is nondifferent from the Supreme Lord, but at the same time, because that energy is acting in a different way, it is different from Him.

Śrīla Prabhupāda'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

Entanglement → Insight and liberation. Inquiry matures into instruction in devotion and spiritual nature.

Chapters 25–33 of Canto 3: Kapila instructs Devahūti. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 28: Kapila’s Instructions on the Execution of Devotional Service

Kapila teaches disciplined yoga and devoted meditation upon the Lord’s eternal form.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.28
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. bhūtathe five elements
  2. indriyathe senses
  3. antaḥ-karaṇātfrom the mind
  4. pradhānātfrom the pradhāna
  5. jīva-saṁjñitātfrom the jīva soul
  6. ātmāthe Paramātmā
  7. tathāso
  8. pṛthakdifferent
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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 3.28

    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 being part and parcel of the Supreme Lord differ from being the Supreme Lord?

Practice

Write one sentence describing your relationship with the Supreme Lord using the words “part and parcel.”

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todaySimultaneously One With and DifferentThis 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 3.28.41? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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