Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 7 - Chapter 1

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 1 Sanskrit: श्रीराजोवाचसम: प्रिय: सुहृद्ब्रह्मन् भूतानां भगवान् स्वयम् ।इन्द्रस्यार्थे कथं दैत्यानवधीद्विषमो यथा ॥ १ ॥ ITRANS: śrī-rājovācasamaḥ priyaḥ suhṛd brahmanbhūtānāṁ bhagavān svayamindrasyārthe kathaṁ daityānavadhīd viṣamo yathā Translation: King Parīkṣit inquired: My dear brāhmaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, being everyone’s well-wisher, is equal and extremely dear to everyone. How, then, did He become partial like a common man for the sake of Indra and thus kill Indra’s enemies?...

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 2 Sanskrit: न ह्यस्यार्थ: सुरगणै: साक्षान्नि:श्रेयसात्मन: ।नैवासुरेभ्यो विद्वेषो नोद्वेगश्चागुणस्य हि ॥ २ ॥ ITRANS: na hy asyārthaḥ sura-gaṇaiḥsākṣān niḥśreyasātmanaḥnaivāsurebhyo vidveṣonodvegaś cāguṇasya hi Translation: Lord Viṣṇu Himself, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the reservoir of all pleasure. Therefore, what benefit would He derive from siding with the demigods? What interest would He fulfill in this way? Since the Lord is transcendental, why should He fear the asuras, and how could He be envious of them?...

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 3 Sanskrit: इति न: सुमहाभाग नारायणगुणान् प्रति ।संशय: सुमहाञ्जातस्तद्भ‍वांश्छेत्तुमर्हति ॥ ३ ॥ ITRANS: iti naḥ sumahā-bhāganārāyaṇa-guṇān pratisaṁśayaḥ sumahāñ jātastad bhavāṁś chettum arhati Translation: O greatly fortunate and learned brāhmaṇa, whether Nārāyaṇa is partial or impartial has become a subject of great doubt. Kindly dispel my doubt with positive evidence that Nārāyaṇa is always neutral and equal to everyone. Purport: Since Lord Nārāyaṇa is absolute, His transcendental qualities are described as one....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 4-5 Sanskrit: श्रीऋषिरुवाचसाधु पृष्टं महाराज हरेश्चरितमद्भ‍ुतम् ।यद् भागवतमाहात्म्यं भगवद्भ‍क्तिवर्धनम् ॥ ४ ॥गीयते परमं पुण्यमृषिभिर्नारदादिभि: ।नत्वा कृष्णाय मुनये कथयिष्ये हरे: कथाम् ॥ ५ ॥ ITRANS: śrī-ṛṣir uvācasādhu pṛṣṭaṁ mahārājahareś caritam adbhutamyad bhāgavata-māhātmyaṁbhagavad-bhakti-vardhanam Translation: The great sage Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: My dear King, you have put before me an excellent question. Discourses concerning the activities of the Lord, in which the glories of His devotees are also found, are extremely pleasing to devotees....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 6 Sanskrit: निर्गुणोऽपि ह्यजोऽव्यक्तो भगवान्प्रकृते: पर: ।स्वमायागुणमाविश्य बाध्यबाधकतां गत: ॥ ६ ॥ ITRANS: nirguṇo ’pi hy ajo ’vyaktobhagavān prakṛteḥ paraḥsva-māyā-guṇam āviśyabādhya-bādhakatāṁ gataḥ Translation: The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, is always transcendental to material qualities, and therefore He is called nirguṇa, or without qualities. Because He is unborn, He does not have a material body to be subjected to attachment and hatred. Although the Lord is always above material existence, through His spiritual potency He appeared and acted like an ordinary human being, accepting duties and obligations, apparently like a conditioned soul....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 7 Sanskrit: सत्त्वं रजस्तम इति प्रकृतेर्नात्मनो गुणा: ।न तेषां युगपद्राजन् ह्रास उल्लास एव वा ॥ ७ ॥ ITRANS: sattvaṁ rajas tama itiprakṛter nātmano guṇāḥna teṣāṁ yugapad rājanhrāsa ullāsa eva vā Translation: My dear King Parīkṣit, the material qualities — sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa — all belong to the material world and do not even touch the Supreme Personality of Godhead. These three guṇas cannot act by increasing or decreasing simultaneously....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 8 Sanskrit: जयकाले तु सत्त्वस्य देवर्षीन् रजसोऽसुरान् ।तमसो यक्षरक्षांसि तत्कालानुगुणोऽभजत् ॥ ८ ॥ ITRANS: jaya-kāle tu sattvasyadevarṣīn rajaso ’surāntamaso yakṣa-rakṣāṁsitat-kālānuguṇo ’bhajat Translation: When the quality of goodness is prominent, the sages and demigods flourish with the help of that quality, with which they are infused and surcharged by the Supreme Lord. Similarly, when the mode of passion is prominent the demons flourish, and when ignorance is prominent the Yakṣas and Rākṣasas flourish....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 9 Sanskrit: ज्योतिरादिरिवाभाति सङ्घातान्न विविच्यते ।विदन्त्यात्मानमात्मस्थं मथित्वा कवयोऽन्तत: ॥ ९ ॥ ITRANS: jyotir-ādir ivābhātisaṅghātān na vivicyatevidanty ātmānam ātma-sthaṁmathitvā kavayo ’ntataḥ Translation: The all-pervading Personality of Godhead exists within the heart of every living being, and an expert thinker can perceive how He is present there to a large or small extent. Just as one can understand the supply of fire in wood, the water in a waterpot, or the sky within a pot, one can understand whether a living entity is a demon or a demigod by understanding that living entity’s devotional performances....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 10 Sanskrit: यदा सिसृक्षु: पुर आत्मन: परोरज: सृजत्येष पृथक् स्वमायया ।सत्त्वं विचित्रासु रिरंसुरीश्वर:शयिष्यमाणस्तम ईरयत्यसौ ॥ १० ॥ ITRANS: yadā sisṛkṣuḥ pura ātmanaḥ parorajaḥ sṛjaty eṣa pṛthak sva-māyayāsattvaṁ vicitrāsu riraṁsur īśvaraḥśayiṣyamāṇas tama īrayaty asau Translation: When the Supreme Personality of Godhead creates different types of bodies, offering a particular body to each living entity according to his character and fruitive actions, the Lord revives all the qualities of material nature — sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 11 Sanskrit: कालं चरन्तं सृजतीश आश्रयं ।प्रधानपुम्भ्यां नरदेव सत्यकृत् ॥ ११ ॥ ITRANS: kālaṁ carantaṁ sṛjatīśa āśrayaṁpradhāna-pumbhyāṁ nara-deva satya-kṛt Translation: O great King, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the controller of the material and spiritual energies, who is certainly the creator of the entire cosmos, creates the time factor to allow the material energy and the living entity to act within the limits of time....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 12 Sanskrit: य एष राजन्नपि काल ईशितासत्त्वं सुरानीकमिवैधयत्यत: ।तत्प्रत्यनीकानसुरान् सुरप्रियोरजस्तमस्कान् प्रमिणोत्युरुश्रवा: ॥ १२ ॥ ITRANS: ya eṣa rājann api kāla īśitāsattvaṁ surānīkam ivaidhayaty ataḥtat-pratyanīkān asurān sura-priyorajas-tamaskān pramiṇoty uruśravāḥ Translation: O King, this time factor enhances the sattva-guṇa. Thus although the Supreme Lord is the controller, He favors the demigods, who are mostly situated in sattva-guṇa. Then the demons, who are influenced by tamo-guṇa, are annihilated....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 13 Sanskrit: अत्रैवोदाहृत: पूर्वमितिहास: सुरर्षिणा ।प्रीत्या महाक्रतौ राजन् पृच्छतेऽजातशत्रवे ॥ १३ ॥ ITRANS: atraivodāhṛtaḥ pūrvamitihāsaḥ surarṣiṇāprītyā mahā-kratau rājanpṛcchate ’jāta-śatrave Translation: Formerly, O King, when Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was performing the Rājasūya sacrifice, the great sage Nārada, responding to his inquiry, recited historical facts showing how the Supreme Personality of Godhead is always impartial, even when killing demons. In this regard he gave a vivid example....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 16 Sanskrit: श्रीयुधिष्ठिर उवाचअहो अत्यद्भ‍ुतं ह्येतद्दुर्लभैकान्तिनामपि ।वासुदेवे परे तत्त्वे प्राप्तिश्चैद्यस्य विद्विष: ॥ १६ ॥ ITRANS: śrī-yudhiṣṭhira uvācaaho aty-adbhutaṁ hy etaddurlabhaikāntinām apivāsudeve pare tattveprāptiś caidyasya vidviṣaḥ Translation: Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira inquired: It is very wonderful that the demon Śiśupāla merged into the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead even though extremely envious. This sāyujya-mukti is impossible to attain even for great transcendentalists. How then did the enemy of the Lord attain it?...

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 17 Sanskrit: एतद्वेदितुमिच्छाम: सर्व एव वयं मुने ।भगवन्निन्दया वेनो द्विजैस्तमसि पातित: ॥ १७ ॥ ITRANS: etad veditum icchāmaḥsarva eva vayaṁ munebhagavan-nindayā venodvijais tamasi pātitaḥ Translation: O great sage, we are all eager to know the cause for this mercy of the Lord. I have heard that formerly a king named Vena blasphemed the Supreme Personality of Godhead and that all the brāhmaṇas consequently obliged him to go to hell....

Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 7 - Chapter 1 - Verse 18 Sanskrit: दमघोषसुत: पाप आरभ्य कलभाषणात् ।सम्प्रत्यमर्षी गोविन्दे दन्तवक्रश्च दुर्मति: ॥ १८ ॥ ITRANS: damaghoṣa-sutaḥ pāpaārabhya kala-bhāṣaṇātsampraty amarṣī govindedantavakraś ca durmatiḥ Translation: From the very beginning of his childhood, when he could not even speak properly, Śiśupāla, the most sinful son of Damaghoṣa, began blaspheming the Lord, and he continued to be envious of Śrī Kṛṣṇa until death. Similarly, his brother Dantavakra continued the same habits....