Srimad Bhagavatam — Shashtha Skandha, Shloka 13
Puṁsavana / Viṣṇu-vrata: Worship of Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa for Auspicious Progeny and Fortune
गुणव्यक्तिरियं देवी व्यञ्जको गुणभुग्भवान् । त्वं हि सर्वशरीर्यात्मा श्री: शरीरेन्द्रियाशया: । नामरूपे भगवती प्रत्ययस्त्वमपाश्रय: ॥ १३ ॥
guṇa-vyaktir iyaṁ devī vyañjako guṇa-bhug bhavān tvaṁ hi sarva-śarīry ātmā śrīḥ śarīrendriyāśayāḥ nāma-rūpe bhagavatī pratyayas tvam apāśrayaḥ
Śrī Lakṣmī is the manifest reservoir of all divine qualities, whereas You reveal those qualities and enjoy them. You dwell as the Paramātmā within every embodied being, and Śrī is the form of their bodies, senses, and minds. She has sacred name and form, while You are the support of all names and forms and the cause of their manifestation.
Madhvācārya, the ācārya of the Tattvavādīs, has described this verse in the following way: “Viṣṇu is described as yajña personified, and mother Lakṣmī is described as spiritual activities and the original form of worship. In fact, they represent spiritual activities and the Supersoul of all yajña. Lord Viṣṇu is the Supersoul even of Lakṣmīdevī, but no one can be the Supersoul of Lord Viṣṇu, for Lord Viṣṇu Himself is the spiritual Supersoul of everyone.”
FAQs
This verse distinguishes the Goddess as the manifestation of the guṇas, while Bhagavān is the revealer and experiencer—showing that the modes act as His potency, not as an independent ultimate reality.
To affirm Viṣṇu’s position as the indwelling Supersoul (ātmā) of every embodied being, grounding devotion in the understanding that the Lord is present within all living entities.
See changing moods and circumstances as movements of the guṇas, and anchor your identity in the inner Self and devotion to Bhagavān—cultivating steadiness, humility, and God-centered choices.