Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 21
Nondual Vision Beyond Praise and Blame
Dvandva-nivṛtti and Ātma-viveka
न यत् पुरस्तादुत यन्न पश्चा- न्मध्ये च तन्न व्यपदेशमात्रम् । भूतं प्रसिद्धं च परेण यद् यत् तदेव तत् स्यादिति मे मनीषा ॥ २१ ॥
na yat purastād uta yan na paścān madhye ca tan na vyapadeśa-mātram bhūtaṁ prasiddhaṁ ca pareṇa yad yat tad eva tat syād iti me manīṣā
Was in der Vergangenheit nicht war und in der Zukunft nicht sein wird, besitzt auch während der Zeit seines scheinbaren Bestehens kein eigenes Sein; es ist nur eine oberflächliche Benennung. Meiner Ansicht nach ist alles, was durch etwas anderes geschaffen und offenbart wird, letztlich nichts anderes als eben dieses Andere.
Although all material products, such as our own bodies, are temporary and thus ultimately false, the material world is a real manifestation of the Lord’s potency. The basic substance, or reality, of this world is the Personality of Godhead Himself, whereas the temporary designations imposed by the conditioned souls are illusion. Thus we consider ourselves American, Russian, British, German, Indian, black, white, Hindu, Muslim, Christian and so forth. In fact, we are the marginal potency of the Supreme Lord, but by attempting to exploit the Lord’s inferior material potency we have become entangled in illusion. Everything should be properly defined in terms of the Personality of Godhead, who is the essential reality of this and all other worlds.
FAQs
This verse says that anything not found before, after, or in the middle has no true existence and is only a verbal label; what is actually experienced and also recognized by others is to be accepted as real.
In the Uddhava-gītā teachings, Kṛṣṇa trains Uddhava in clear discrimination (viveka) so he can see through mere conceptual labels and understand reality properly while progressing toward liberation and steady devotion.
Don’t build your identity on labels alone; test beliefs and fears by whether they have consistent reality in experience and time—then anchor your life in what is truly enduring and spiritually meaningful.