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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 31: Nārada Instructs the Pracetās
4.31.154.31.17

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.31.16

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Nārada Munisince 4.31.9inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

एतत्पदं तज्जगदात्मन: परं

सकृद्विभातं सवितुर्यथा प्रभा ।

यथासवो जाग्रति सुप्तशक्तयो

द्रव्यक्रियाज्ञानभिदाभ्रमात्यय: ॥ १६ ॥

etat padaṁ taj jagad-ātmanaḥ paraṁ

sakṛd vibhātaṁ savitur yathā prabhā

yathāsavo jāgrati supta-śaktayo

dravya-kriyā-jñāna-bhidā-bhramātyayaḥ

Translation

Just as the sunshine is nondifferent from the sun, the cosmic manifestation is also nondifferent from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Personality is therefore all-pervasive within this material creation. When the senses are active, they appear to be part and parcel of the body, but when the body is asleep, their activities are unmanifest. Similarly, the whole cosmic creation appears different and yet nondifferent from the Supreme Person.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord and His Energies

  1. 1

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead is simultaneously different and nondifferent from the cosmic manifestation. Sunshine is nondifferent from the sun, yet being in sunshine is not the same as being on the sun.

  2. 2

    Kṛṣṇa is the cause of all causes, and the entire cosmic manifestation is His expanded energy. He is present within everything, although those in the material condition cannot see Him personally.

  3. 3

    Creation is sometimes manifest and sometimes unmanifest, like senses that become inactive during sleep. The Lord’s energy always exists; appearance and disappearance apply only to the cosmic manifestation.

Key points from the purport
  • The Supreme Personality of Godhead is simultaneously different and nondifferent from this cosmic manifestation.
  • The entire cosmic manifestation should be understood as the expanded energy of the Supreme Lord.
  • Whether the cosmic manifestation is active or inactive, the energy of the Supreme Lord is always existing.

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

Search → Devotional resolution. Prayer and instruction redirect household and societal life.

Chapters 30–31 of Canto 4: Pracetās and Nārada's concluding guidance. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 31: Nārada Instructs the Pracetās

The Pracetās leave home and receive Nārada’s instructions on satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.31
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. etatthis cosmic manifestation
  2. padamplace of habitation
  3. tatthat
  4. jagat-ātmanaḥof the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  5. paramtranscendental
  6. sakṛtsometimes
  7. vibhātammanifested
  8. savituḥof the sun
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 4.31

    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 seeing the world as the Lord’s energy change my sense of who owns it?

Practice

Look at the sunshine or a plant today and reflect that the cosmic manifestation is the Supreme Lord’s expanded energy.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Lord and 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.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 4.31.16? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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