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

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Canto 4 · The Creation of the Fourth Order · 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 4 · Chapter 24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Śiva
4.24.594.24.61

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.24.60

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.24.32inside 4 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → ViduraLord Śiva → the Pracetās

यत्रेदं व्यज्यते विश्वं विश्वस्मिन्नवभाति यत् ।

तत् त्वं ब्रह्म परं ज्योतिराकाशमिव विस्तृतम् ॥ ६० ॥

yatredaṁ vyajyate viśvaṁ

viśvasminn avabhāti yat

tat tvaṁ brahma paraṁ jyotir

ākāśam iva vistṛtam

Translation

My dear Lord, the impersonal Brahman spreads everywhere, like the sunshine or the sky. And that impersonal Brahman, which spreads throughout the universe and in which the entire universe is manifested, is You.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Brahman Is the Supreme Lord’s Effulgence

  1. 1

    The whole cosmic manifestation rests on the Brahman effulgence. Like sunshine spreading from the sun, this effulgence is the Supreme Lord’s all-pervading feature.

  2. 2

    The Lord exists everywhere yet remains uncontaminated and independent of the manifestations resting in Him. His energy carries on both the material and spiritual worlds.

  3. 3

    The Absolute Truth is realized as Brahman, Paramātmā and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. Devotional service is necessary to understand even His impersonal Brahman feature.

Key points from the purport
  • Here it is clearly said that the Lord is spread everywhere, just like the sunshine, by virtue of His Brahman feature.
  • In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also the Absolute Truth is described as the one without a second, but He is realized in three features — impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the ultimate issue, and in this verse Lord Śiva confirms that ultimately the Absolute Truth is a person.

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· 2

The purport of SB 4.24.60 quotesBG 9.4

In Bhagavad-gītā (9.4) the Lord clearly says: “By Me, in My unmanifested form, this entire universe is pervaded.

The purport of SB 4.24.60 quotesBG 7.8

“O son of Kuntī [Arjuna], I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and moon, the syllable oṁ in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man.”

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

Worldly absorption → Sobering awareness. The mind's identification with material life becomes visible.

Chapters 24–29 of Canto 4: Śiva's song and the allegory of Purañjana. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Śiva

Lord Śiva mercifully teaches the Pracetās prayers glorifying the Supreme Lord.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.24
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yatrawhere
  2. idamthis
  3. vyajyatemanifested
  4. viśvamthe universe
  5. viśvasminin the cosmic manifestation
  6. avabhātiis manifested
  7. yatthat
  8. tatthat
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 4.24

    In this verse: “absolute truth”, “understand”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “material”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “devotional service”

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 Brahman comes from a person deepen my understanding of the Lord?

Practice

When drinking water today, remember Kṛṣṇa’s statement that He is the taste of water.

5

The story around it

The story 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 4.24's connections

Live this todayBrahman Is the Supreme Lord’s EffulgenceThis 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 4.24.60? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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