Srimad Bhagavatam — Dvitiya Skandha, Shloka 7
Daśa-lakṣaṇam: The Ten Topics, Virāṭ-Puruṣa Sense-Manifestation, and the Supreme Shelter (Āśraya)
आभासश्च निरोधश्च यतोऽस्त्यध्यवसीयते । स आश्रय: परं ब्रह्म परमात्मेति शब्द्यते ॥ ७ ॥
ābhāsaś ca nirodhaś ca yato ’sty adhyavasīyate sa āśrayaḥ paraṁ brahma paramātmeti śabdyate
যাঁহা থেকে সৃষ্টির প্রকাশ, তার আশ্রয় ও তার নিরোধ—সবই নির্ণীত হয়, তিনিই আশ্রয়। তিনিই পরব্রহ্ম, পরমাত্মা নামে খ্যাত; তিনিই পরম সত্য, সর্বকারণ।
Synonyms for the supreme source of all energies, as explained in the very beginning of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, are janmādy asya yataḥ, vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam/ brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate, called Parambrahma, Paramātmā or Bhagavān. The word iti used here in this verse completes the synonyms and thus indicates Bhagavān. This will be further explained in the later verses, but this Bhagavān ultimately means Lord Kṛṣṇa because the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam has already accepted the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. The original source of all energies, or the summum bonum, is the Absolute Truth, which is called Parambrahma, etc., and Bhagavān is the last word of the Absolute Truth. But even with the synonyms for Bhagavān, such as Nārāyaṇa, Viṣṇu and Puruṣa, the last word is Kṛṣṇa, as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā: ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate, etc. Besides that, the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the representation of Lord Kṛṣṇa as a sound incarnation of the Lord.
FAQs
This verse defines Āśraya as the supreme foundation from whom manifestation and dissolution are understood; He is known as the Supreme Brahman and the Paramātmā.
In explaining the Bhagavatam’s core topics, Śukadeva identifies the ultimate reality (Āśraya) and clarifies that the Absolute is realized and described as Brahman and as the indwelling Paramātmā.
Seeing all change—creation, growth, and endings—as resting on a higher shelter cultivates steadiness, humility, and devotion, helping one respond to life’s shifts with faith rather than fear.