Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 15
Chapter 19
एतद् एव हि विज्ञानं न तथैकॆन येन यत् ।
स्थित्युत्पत्त्यप्ययान् पश्येद् भावानां त्रिगुणात्मनाम् ॥
etad eva hi vijñānaṃ na tathaikena yena yat / sthity-utpatty-apyayān paśyed bhāvānāṃ tri-guṇātmanām //
இதுவே உண்மையான ஞானம்—மூன்று குணங்களால் ஆன எல்லா நிலைகளின் நிலைதல், தோற்றம், லயம் ஆகியவற்றைத் தெளிவாகக் காண்பது; ஒருபக்கக் காட்சி அதல்ல.
In this verse, the speaker defines vijñāna—realized, mature spiritual knowledge—not as a narrow theory but as a comprehensive vision of reality. All material phenomena (bhāvas) arise, endure for some time, and then disappear. This threefold pattern—utpatti (creation), sthiti (maintenance), and apyaya (dissolution)—is the signature of prakṛti working through the three guṇas (sattva, rajas, tamas). When one truly understands this, attachment to temporary forms loosens, because everything perceived within the guṇas is seen as changing and dependent. The phrase “na tathā ekena” indicates that partial explanations—seeing only one aspect of reality (only creation, only permanence, only destruction; or only one guṇa)—cannot grant liberating insight. Bhagavata wisdom trains the seeker to recognize the entire cycle and thereby discern the eternal substratum beyond the guṇas: the Supreme Lord and the soul’s relationship with Him. Such vision supports bhakti, because devotion naturally deepens when one recognizes the world’s temporality and seeks shelter in the unchanging Lord.
FAQs
This verse says real knowledge is to see that all material conditions—made of the three guṇas—undergo creation, maintenance, and dissolution.
In the Uddhava Gītā, Kṛṣṇa instructs Uddhava to develop clear discrimination and detachment from the temporary guṇa-made world, so his devotion becomes steady and liberated.
By remembering that situations, emotions, and possessions rise, stay, and pass, you reduce anxiety and attachment and redirect your heart toward lasting spiritual practice and devotion.