Shloka 40

Kāliya-damana: Kṛṣṇa Subdues the Serpent and Purifies the Yamunā

Devanagari script

ज्ञानविज्ञाननीधये ब्रह्मणेऽनन्तशक्तये । अगुणायाविकाराय नमस्ते प्राकृताय च ॥ ४० ॥

Transliteration

jñāna-vijñāna-nīdhaye brahmaṇe ’nanta-śaktaye aguṇāyāvikārāya namas te prākṛtāya ca

Translation

Ehrerbietung Dir, der Absoluten Wahrheit, dem Schatz von Erkenntnis und Verwirklichung, dem Brahman mit unendlichen Energien. Du bist frei von materiellen Qualitäten und Wandlungen und doch der erste Beweger der Natur.

Synonyms

• jñāna-vijñāna-nīdhaye: to the treasure of knowledge and realization
• jñāna-vijñāna-nīdhaye: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jñāna (प्रातिपदिक) + vijñāna (प्रातिपदिक) + nidhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Caturthī (4th), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa chain: jñānasya ca vijñānasya ca nidhiḥ (treasure of knowledge and realized knowledge)

• brahmaṇe: to Brahman
• brahmaṇe: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka (ब्रह्मन् often neuter), Caturthī (4th), Ekavacana

• ananta-śaktaye: to Him of infinite power
• ananta-śaktaye: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ananta (प्रातिपदिक) + śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Caturthī (4th), Ekavacana; bahuvrīhi: anantāḥ śaktayaḥ yasya (he whose powers are infinite)

• aguṇāya: to the one without material qualities
• aguṇāya: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a- (नञ्) + guṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Caturthī (4th), Ekavacana; used substantively

• avikārāya: to the unchanging one
• avikārāya: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a- (नञ्) + vikāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Caturthī (4th), Ekavacana; used substantively

• namaḥ: salutations
• namaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/utterance)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Nipāta (नमः) indeclinable salutation

• te: to you
• te: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Ekavacana; enclitic pronoun

• prākṛtāya: to the primal/source of prakṛti (nature)
• prākṛtāya: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prākṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Caturthī (4th), Ekavacana; used substantively

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samuccaya-avyaya (समुच्चय-अव्यय)

Purport

Those who consider themselves intellectual, philosophic or rational should carefully note here that the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the ocean of all knowledge and consciousness. Thus surrendering unto the Supreme Lord does not entail giving up the method of rationally comprehending reality. Rather, one merges into the ocean of rational, logical comprehension. The Supreme Lord is the perfection of all sciences and all forms of knowledge, and only envious and trivial minds would deny this obvious fact.

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Kāliya

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about Krishna being beyond the three modes (nirguṇa)?

This verse praises Krishna as aguṇa (beyond material qualities) and avikāra (unchanging), affirming that His divinity is not conditioned by prakṛti even when He appears within it.

Why did Kāliya’s wives offer prayers like this to Krishna?

Seeing Krishna’s supreme power and mercy while He subdued Kāliya, the Nāga-patnīs pleaded for protection and forgiveness by glorifying Him as the unlimited, transcendental Brahman who can still act within the material world.

How can this teaching be applied in modern life?

It encourages devotion grounded in understanding: seek not only information (jñāna) but lived realization (vijñāna), and remember that the divine can be approached as transcendental—yet present and accessible in everyday life through bhakti.