Shloka 42
The Pracetās Meet Lord Viṣṇu—Benedictions, Pure Prayer, and the Birth of Dakṣa
नम: समाय शुद्धाय पुरुषाय पराय च । वासुदेवाय सत्त्वाय तुभ्यं भगवते नम: ॥ ४२ ॥
namaḥ samāya śuddhāya puruṣāya parāya ca vāsudevāya sattvāya tubhyaṁ bhagavate namaḥ
O Bhagavān, You are equal to all, perfectly pure, and the Supreme Purusha. Dwelling everywhere within all existence, You are known as Vāsudeva; You are of the nature of sattva and beyond all material contamination. We offer You our respectful obeisances.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is known as Vāsudeva because He lives everywhere. The word vas means “to live.” As stated in Brahma-saṁhitā, eko ’py asau racayituṁ jagad-aṇḍa-koṭim: the Lord, through His plenary portion, enters into each and every universe to create the material manifestation. He also enters into each and every heart in all living entities and into each and every atom also ( paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham ). Because the Supreme Lord lives everywhere, He is known as Vāsudeva. Although He lives everywhere within the material world, He is not contaminated by the modes of nature. The Lord is therefore described in Īśopaniṣad as apāpa-viddham: He is never contaminated by the modes of material nature. When the Lord descends to this planet, He acts in many ways. He kills demons and performs acts not sanctioned by the Vedic principles, that is, acts considered sinful. Even though He acts in such a way, He is never contaminated by His action. He is therefore described herein as śuddha, meaning “always free from contamination.” The Lord is also sama, equal to everyone. In this regard, He states in Bhagavad-gītā (9.29) , samo ’haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu na me dveṣyo ’sti na priyaḥ: the Lord has no one as His friend or enemy, and He is equal to everyone.
FAQs
This verse praises Vāsudeva as “sattvāya”—the Lord situated in pure spiritual goodness (śuddha-sattva), beyond material contamination, affirming Him as the supremely pure transcendental Person.
In their prayerful mood, the Pracetas acknowledge the Lord’s transcendence, purity, and supreme personhood; repeated “namaḥ” expresses surrender and devotion as the proper approach to the Supreme.
By remembering the Lord as perfectly balanced and pure, a devotee practices steadiness—responding to success and failure with humility and prayer, anchoring the mind in devotion rather than agitation.