Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 47
Kṛṣṇa’s Impending Departure; Uddhava’s Surrender; King Yadu and the Avadhūta’s Twenty-Four Gurus
Beginnings
स्वमायया सृष्टमिदं सदसल्लक्षणं विभु: । प्रविष्ट ईयते तत्तत्स्वरूपोऽग्निरिवैधसि ॥ ४७ ॥
sva-māyayā sṛṣṭam idaṁ sad-asal-lakṣaṇaṁ vibhuḥ praviṣṭa īyate tat-tat- svarūpo ’gnir ivaidhasi
自らのマーヤーによって造られた有と無の相をもつ世界において、全能の至上霊は諸々の身体に入り、大小・性質の異なる木片に火が異なって現れるように、それぞれの同一性を帯びるかのように見える。
Although the Supreme Lord is within everything, everything is not the Lord. By the mode of goodness the Lord creates the exalted material bodies of demigods and brāhmaṇas, and by expanding the mode of ignorance He similarly creates the bodies of animals, śūdras and other lower forms of life. The Lord enters all of these superior and inferior creations, but He remains vibhu, the all-powerful Personality of Godhead. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura explains that although fire is present within smoldering wood, it blazes forth when we stir the wood around. Similarly, although the Personality of Godhead is indirectly present everywhere, when we chant and hear His glories with love and devotion the Lord is stirred into manifestation and directly appears before His devotees.
FAQs
This verse explains that the Lord creates the universe through His own māyā and then enters it, being perceived in many forms—while remaining the same Supreme Reality, like one fire appearing differently in different woods.
In the Uddhava Gītā, Kṛṣṇa instructs Uddhava on detachment and true knowledge: the world is temporary and mixed (sat/asat), yet the Lord pervades it as the indwelling reality, so one should not be bewildered by appearances.
See changing situations as temporary forms while remembering the steady presence of the Lord within all circumstances; this reduces anxiety, strengthens devotion, and supports steadiness in duty and spiritual practice.