1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

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

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 5 · The Creative Impetus · 26 chapters

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.22.3

Who is speaking and story frame

स एष भगवानादिपुरुष एव साक्षान्नारायणो लोकानां स्वस्तय आत्मानं त्रयीमयं कर्मविशुद्धिनिमित्तं कविभिरपि च वेदेन विजिज्ञास्यमानो द्वादशधा विभज्य षट्‌सु वसन्तादिष्वृतुषु यथोपजोषमृतुगुणान् विदधाति ॥ ३ ॥

sa eṣa bhagavān ādi-puruṣa eva sākṣān nārāyaṇo lokānāṁ svastaya ātmānaṁ trayīmayaṁ karma-viśuddhi-nimittaṁ kavibhir api ca vedena vijijñāsyamāno dvādaśadhā vibhajya ṣaṭsu vasantādiṣv ṛtuṣu yathopa-joṣam ṛtu-guṇān vidadhāti.

Translation

The original cause of the cosmic manifestation is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa. When great saintly persons, fully aware of the Vedic knowledge, offered prayers to the Supreme Person, He descended to this material world in the form of the sun to benefit all the planets and purify fruitive activities. He divided Himself into twelve parts and created seasonal forms, beginning with spring. In this way He created the seasonal qualities, such as heat, cold and so on.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Nārāyaṇa Benefits the Worlds Through the Sun

  1. 1

    Nārāyaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the original cause of the cosmic manifestation.

  2. 2

    In response to the prayers of great saintly persons learned in Vedic knowledge, He descended in the form of the sun. He did so to benefit all the planets and purify fruitive activities.

  3. 3

    He divided Himself into twelve parts and created seasonal forms beginning with spring, along with qualities such as heat and cold.

How it feels

Smallness → Awe and reverence. A vast cosmos changes the reader's perspective.

Chapters 15–25 of Canto 5: The cosmic regions and divine worship. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 22: The Orbits of the Planets

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The demigod Sūrya is always in touch with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa. Residing in outer space, which is in the middle of the universe, between Bhūloka and Bhuvarloka, the sun rotates through the time circle of the zodiac, represented by twelve rāśis, or signs, and assumes different names according to the sign he is in.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.22
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. saḥthat
  2. eṣaḥthis
  3. bhagavānthe supremely powerful
  4. ādi-puruṣaḥthe original person
  5. evacertainly
  6. sākṣātdirectly
  7. nārāyaṇaḥthe Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa
  8. lokānāmof all the planets
3

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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 5.22

    In this verse: “knowledge”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.22

    In this verse: “material”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 5.22

    In this verse: “purify”

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 this description help me see the seasons in relation to the Supreme Personality of Godhead?

Practice

Notice today’s warmth or cold and briefly remember Nārāyaṇa as the source of the seasonal qualities.

Live this todayNārāyaṇa Benefits the Worlds Through the SunThis 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 5.22.3? Get an answer from the verses themselves.