Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 11

Devotion in Kimpuruṣa-varṣa and the Glory of Bhārata-varṣa

Rāmacandra & Nara-Nārāyaṇa; Rivers, Varṇāśrama, and Liberation

Devanagari script

ॐ नमो भगवते उपशमशीलायोपरतानात्म्याय नमोऽकिञ्चनवित्ताय ऋषिऋषभाय नरनारायणाय परमहंसपरमगुरवे आत्मारामाधिपतये नमो नम इति ॥ ११ ॥

Transliteration

oṁ namo bhagavate upaśama-śīlāyoparatānātmyāya namo ’kiñcana-vittāya ṛṣi-ṛṣabhāya nara-nārāyaṇāya paramahaṁsa-parama-gurave ātmārāmādhipataye namo nama iti.

Translation

Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto Nara-Nārāyaṇa, the best of all saintly persons, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is the most self-controlled and self-realized, He is free from false prestige, and He is the asset of persons who have no material possessions. He is the spiritual master of all paramahaṁsas, who are the most exalted human beings, and He is the master of the self-realized. Let me offer my repeated obeisances at His lotus feet.

Synonyms

• oṁ: Om
• oṁ: Sambandha (मङ्गलाचरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: oṁ (अव्यय/प्रणव)
• Form: Sacred syllable (प्रणव), indeclinable

• namaḥ: salutation
• namaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बोधन/नमस्कार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyaya used as salutation; governs dative (चतुर्थी)

• bhagavate: to the Lord
• bhagavate: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular

• upaśama-śīlāya: to him whose nature is tranquility
• upaśama-śīlāya: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: upaśama (प्रातिपदिक) + śīla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; ‘upaśama-śīla’ = having tranquility as nature

• uparata-anātmyāya: to him who has withdrawn from the non-self
• uparata-anātmyāya: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uparata (कृदन्त; upa + √ram (रम्) + क्त, ‘ceased/withdrawn’) + anātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; ‘anātmyāt uparataḥ’ / ‘withdrawn from non-self’ (sense: free from identification with non-self)

• namaḥ: salutation
• namaḥ: Sambandha (नमस्कार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Salutation-avyaya

• akiñcana-vittāya: to the one whose wealth is nothing (possessing nothing)
• akiñcana-vittāya: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a (नञ्) + kiñcana (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + vitta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; ‘akiñcana’ = having nothing; ‘akiñcana-vitta’ = whose wealth is nothing (i.e., without possessions)

• ṛṣi-ṛṣabhāya: to the bull (best) among sages
• ṛṣi-ṛṣabhāya: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक) + ṛṣabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; ‘ṛṣīṇām ṛṣabhaḥ’ (श्रेष्ठ)

• nara-nārāyaṇāya: to Nara-Nārāyaṇa
• nara-nārāyaṇāya: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक) + nārāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; समाहार/नामद्वन्द्व (proper-name dvandva)

• paramahaṁsa-parama-gurave: to the supreme guru of the paramahaṁsas
• paramahaṁsa-parama-gurave: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paramahaṁsa (प्रातिपदिक) + parama (प्रातिपदिक) + guru (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; ‘paramahaṁsānām paramaḥ guruḥ’

• ātmārāma-adhipataye: to the lord of the self-delighted sages
• ātmārāma-adhipataye: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ātmārāma (प्रातिपदिक) + adhipati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; ‘ātmārāmāṇām adhipatiḥ’

• namaḥ: salutation
• namaḥ: Sambandha (नमस्कार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Salutation-avyaya

• namaḥ: salutation
• namaḥ: Sambandha (नमस्कार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Repetition for emphasis; salutation-avyaya

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (उद्धरण-चिह्न)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: Quotative particle (इति-निपात)

Characters & Entities

• Nara-Nārāyaṇa
• Bhagavān (Supreme Lord)

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about the qualities of a truly renounced devotee?

This verse praises the Lord as “akiñcana-vittāya”—one whose real wealth is nothing material—highlighting that genuine spiritual richness is renunciation, tranquility, and freedom from worldly identification.

Why does Śukadeva Gosvāmī offer obeisances to Nara-Nārāyaṇa in Canto 5 Chapter 19?

In describing Bhārata-varṣa and its sacred worship, Śukadeva invokes Nara-Nārāyaṇa as the ideal of austerity, devotion, and liberated guidance—“paramahaṁsa-parama-guru”—the supreme teacher for those seeking liberation.

How can the teaching of upaśama (inner calm) be applied in modern life?

Practice reducing agitation by simplifying desires, cultivating self-control, and regularly turning the mind toward the Lord through prayer and remembrance—making spiritual steadiness your “wealth,” as this verse emphasizes.