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

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Canto 6 · Prescribed Duties for Mankind · 19 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 6 · Chapter 16: King Citraketu Meets the Supreme Lord
6.16.516.16.53-54

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.16.52

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Anantadevasince 6.16.50inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

लोके विततमात्मानं लोकं चात्मनि सन्ततम् ।

उभयं च मया व्याप्तं मयि चैवोभयं कृतम् ॥ ५२ ॥

loke vitatam ātmānaṁ

lokaṁ cātmani santatam

ubhayaṁ ca mayā vyāptaṁ

mayi caivobhayaṁ kṛtam

Translation

In this world of matter, which the conditioned soul accepts as consisting of enjoyable resources, the conditioned soul expands, thinking that he is the enjoyer of the material world. Similarly, the material world expands in the living entity as a source of enjoyment. In this way they both expand, but because they are My energies, they are both pervaded by Me. As the Supreme Lord, I am the cause of these effects, and one should know that both of them rest in Me.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Everything Rests Upon the Supreme Lord

  1. 1

    The living entities wrongly consider material elements to be resources for their enjoyment and themselves to be the enjoyers. Neither is independent; both are energies of the Supreme Lord.

  2. 2

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the original cause of both material and spiritual energies. Everything rests upon Him.

  3. 3

    The living entities are parts of the Lord, but they are not the Lord Himself. His material expansion is temporary, whereas He is not, and His energies are not equally worshipable with Him.

Key points from the purport
  • However, although the expansion of the Lord’s energies is the original cause, one should not think that the Lord Himself has expanded in different ways.
  • The living entities are parts of the Lord, but they are not the Lord Himself.
  • The living entities in this material world are not inconceivable, but the Lord is.

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

Parental grief → Detachment and surrender. A flashback discloses the devotional history behind Vṛtrāsura.

Chapters 14–17 of Canto 6: Citraketu's grief, realization and curse. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 16: King Citraketu Meets the Supreme Lord

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

In his prayers, Citraketu said that millions of universes rest in the pores of Saṅkarṣaṇa, who is limitless, having no beginning and end. The Lord is well known to the devotees for His eternity.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.16
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. lokein this material world
  2. vitatamexpanded (in the spirit of material enjoyment)
  3. ātmānamthe living entity
  4. lokamthe material world
  5. caalso
  6. ātmaniin the living entity
  7. santatamspread
  8. ubhayamboth (the material world of material elements and the living entity)
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 6.16

    In this verse: “material”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 6.16

    In this verse: “worshipable”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Where do I treat the Lord’s energy as something meant only for my enjoyment?

Practice

Choose one possession you use today and pause to remember that it belongs to the Lord’s energy, not to your independent control.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayEverything Rests Upon the Supreme LordThis 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 6.16.52? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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